Tortellini Soup

We have a few sickies in our house this week and I felt like some brothy soup tonight.  This soup has a base of chicken broth with some fresh lemon juice and seasonings.  You can use whatever pasta you like, I threw in some tasty fresh pesto tortellini that we had on hand for a hearty dinner dish.  Enjoy!

Recipe: (serves 4)
Ingredients:
2 medium carrots, diced
1 medium leek, white and light green only, thoroughly washed and diced
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon thyme
1/4 teaspoon poultry seasoning
6 cups low sodium chicken broth
2 cups water
juice of 1/2 a lemon
10-12 ounces tortellini pasta (or your favorite pasta)
2 cups fresh organic spinach leaves
salt & pepper to taste
Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, shredded

Directions:
1. Combine oil, carrots and leeks in large soup pot over medium high heat.  Once vegetables begin to soften, about 5 minutes, add thyme and poultry seasoning, stir to combine.
2. Add chicken broth and water to pot and bring up to a gentle boil.  Add lemon juice.
3. Add pasta and cook about 1 minute less than package instructions.  Add spinach leaves.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.  Serve in soup bowls topped with cheese and served with warm crusty bread.

Along side our bread we like to pour a small plate of delicious olive oil with a splash of balsamic vinegar for dipping.  This is what our dipping sauce looked like tonight.  :)