Tortellini, White Bean, and Spinach Soup

I saw this recipe in Cooking Light, and thought it sounded like a hearty, simple soup.  I couldn't help but tweak it, because basically I don't know how to not tweak recipes...  And, I know Mark doesn't like artichokes, so I made a few minor adjustments...  It was delicious and easy...  AND around 280 calories a serving!  Can you beat that?

Tortellini, White Bean, and Spinach Soup

Ingredients
1 tsp olive oil
2 c chopped onion
1/2 c chopped red pepper
2 tsp dried Italian seasoning
1 tsp dried basil
3 tsp minced garlic
2/3 c water
1 (16 oz) can small white navy beans, rinsed and drained
3 c chicken broth
1 (14.5 oz) can whole peeled tomatoes, undrained and chopped
1 (8 oz.) bag prepared four cheese tortellini
1 1/2 c coarsely chopped spinach
1/4 c grated fresh parmesan
salt & pepper, to taste

Instructions
Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium high heat.  Add chopped onion, bell pepper, Italian seasoning, basil, and garlic; saute 5 minutes or until tender.  Add the water, beans, broth, and tomatoes and heat through.  Turn heat to low.

Bring a medium pot of water to a boil, and add prepared tortellini.  Boil for 10 minutes and drain.  Add the tortellini to the soup, and then add the spinach.  Cover and return heat to medium high until soup is heated through.  Add salt & pepper to taste.  Sprinkle parmesan on top.

Serves 6.  Enjoy!

Crisp Lentil Salad

Ingredients
1 c brown lentils
3/4 tsp kosher salt
4 c water
4 Roma tomatoes, chopped
1/4 c red onion, chopped
1/4 c red pepper, chopped
1/4 c green pepper, chopped
1/4 c yellow pepper, chopped
3 Tbsp red wine vinegar
2 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp black pepper

Instructions
Bring the water, lentils, and about 3/4 tsp of kosher salt to a boil over medium high heat.  When you've reached a rolling boil, reduce the heat and simmer over medium-to-low heat for approximately 30 minutes when lentils are done. Drain the water from the lentils.

Stir in the vegetables and the vinegar, olive oil, salt & pepper.  Chill a few hours, it actually gets better as the lentils soak in the liquid.  Serves 6.  Very fresh, crisp, and tasty with a nice nuttiness from the lentils.

Zucchini & Yellow Squash Skillet

We finally got yellow squash in the CSA delivery a few weeks ago.  I love zucchini & yellow squash in the summer, and it's one of the first vegetable side dishes I was able to convince Mark to try...  And, he likes them!  Bonus!  Even though we've established that he likes them, I still like to give vegetables a little extra oomph from time to time.  And, when I give oomph, that means I add bacon and cheese...  This was delicious!

Zucchini & Yellow Squash Skillet (with oomph)

Ingredients
2 slices of bacon , sliced and quartered
1 medium zucchini, sliced and quartered
1 medium yellow squash
1 tsp minced garlic
1/4 red bell pepper, diced to quarter inch
1/4 red onion, diced to quarter inch
1/3 c shredded monterrey jack cheese
salt & pepper to taste

Directions
Place two slices of bacon in a large skillet and pan fry over medium low heat.

As bacon is frying, slice and chop the zucchini, yellow squash, garlic, red pepper and red onion.

When bacon is done, remove from pan.  Pour the majority of the bacon grease out, leaving just enough to coat the pan.  Add the chopped vegetables to the pan.  Cook over medium heat, until the onions and squash become chopped and translucent.  Turn heat to low, and crumble the two slices of bacon into the mixture and sprinkle the top with shredded cheese.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Enjoy!

Serves 4

The bacon grease really adds a nice richness to this side dish.  We ate it alongside some homemade bacon cheeseburgers (so really I made more than the two slices, but you only need two slices for this dish!), and it was a great meal!