Sausage Tortellini Soup

I think I owe y'all one more healthy recipe, so here it is.  It isn't super healthy, but it isn't super unhealthy either.  Its the best I've got!  I really don't have a lot of healthy recipes, so it has been a struggle to share good ones.

In honor of this being my last healthy recipe as a belated end to my 30-day fitness extravaganza, and because I was going to make it for dinner tonight anyway, I thought I would go all out and photo-document the process in true Pioneer Woman fashion. Here we go!

SAUSAGE TORTELLINI SOUP

The cast of characters:
1 lb. Italian sausage

1 c. coarsly chopped onions

2 garlic cloves, sliced

5 c. beef broth

1 c. water

1 28 oz. can crushed tomatoes

1 c. thinly sliced carrots

1/2 tsp. basil leaves

8 oz. (2 cups) cheese filled tortellini or small ravioli

2 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley

1 medium green pepper cut into 1/2 inch pieces

grated Parmesan cheese

You do not want to know how long it took me to stage this shot.  The crushed tomatoes wouldn't stand still, the carrot and parmesean kept fighting, and once I finally got everyone to smile and look at me, the zucchini blinked right as I snapped the picture.

If you were wondering what I do all day now that I work part time this is it... take pictures of vegetables.

I'm kidding... sort of.

Start cooking the sausage in a dutch oven.  Usually I don't use Italian sausage, but I decided to try it this time, since the recipe calls for it and all.  I didn't like it.  I think I will stick with regular sausage.  Bob Evans is always the best, but it was a whole $1 per pound more, and I'm cheap.

While the sausage is starting to cook, chop an onion.  If you don't know how to do this, you need to spend more time on Pioneer Woman Cooks, because she offers a tutorial in every second recipe she posts.  However, here is my little side note on chopping onions.

After you have peeled the onion and cut it in half (or cut it in half and peeled it, whichever school of thought you belong to) instead of slicing straight down perpendicular to the cutting board, I try to cut in toward the center, like spokes of a wheel.  It is a subtle difference not well illustrated by this photo, but I learned it from my dad and I find that it allows for more evenly diced pieces.  I am sure no one cares about this difference, but I value symmetry and evenness.  I'm just kind of obsessive that way..

Then rotate the onion and finish chopping.  Tada!

Put the onions in with the sausage and give it a little stir, breaking up the meat.

Now mince the garlic.

Confession:  The garlic bulb and knife are just for show.  I rarely actually mince garlic anymore...

I actually use this.  Its already minced for me.  I am sure some people would have a cow and tell me that I am missing out on so much flavor but

1)  I just use more to compensate for alleged "less taste"

2)  They can get over it.  Mincing is too much work, especially when you already have about half a produce aisle to chop.

I decided to use about this much... I am sure the picture is very helpful in figuring proportions :)  Just use whatever feels right to you.

Give it another stir, chopping the meat up real nice.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the counter, we just peeled and thinly sliced the carrots.

Now we chop the green pepper.  This is where I offer the tutorial.  I learned this trick at Taste of Home cooking school last November.  I loved Taste of Home cooking school.

After you rinse the pepper, set it on the cutting board and cut straight down, about a half an inch away from the stem.

Then rotate 90 degrees and do the same thing, then do it 2 more times.  So you should have 4 chunks then the core.  Notice how all of the seeds and most of the white membrane are still attached to the core... not spread all over the cutting board, knife, and your fingers.  Nifty, huh?  This trick was life changing for me.

The core junk can all go straight into the compost bin or garbage disposal.

Cut the pepper chunks into strips, then rotate and chop the other way.

The sausage is done now, and since skimming the fat from the top of the soup is difficult, I just drain the fat now.

With our dutch oven, this is kind of a 3 handed job, so I enlisted the help of Tim-- he has mad skills at draining fat.

This is my other "helper."  This picture accurately represents my cooking experiences, except that sometimes she lays her head on my foot if I stand still for too long.

Now we add the broth.  I usually use water and bullion, so I added 6 cups of water and 5 bullion cubes.

Toss in the carrots and basil....

Stir in the crushed tomatoes...

...and the tomato sauce.

Bring it to a boil...

Then reduce the heat and simmer for 30 minutes... and ignore the grime on my oven.

Here's where the healthy part really kicks in... go for a short run while you wait!!  I did... I wanted to get my run in before dark.

When I got back, I added the rest of the ingredients (tortellini, zucchini, green peppers, parsley).  I was still catching my breath, so I forgot to take pictures along the way.  

Here's what it looks like when its all in.  Healthy, right?

Cook for another 30-45 minutes, or until tortellinis are cooked through.  It rarely takes the whole 30 minutes.

Top with Parmesan just before serving.  Yummy!