Chicken Vegetable and Tortellini Soup

For day 27 of Soup Month 2012, we have a hearty Chicken, Vegetable and Tortellini Soup.  This soup is packed with veggies and tender tortellini pasta and has a lightly creamy broth with just a hint of lemon juice.  With cold and flu season fast approaching, this will be a great recipe to have on hand. 

We used chicken quarters for this recipe (leg and thigh piece) to get the most chicken flavor into the soup, and we prepared the stock and chicken at the same time.

To make your own stock:  Place the 4 chicken quarters in a large pot and cover them with about 8 cups of water, then add a teaspoon each of salt and pepper, one cup of chopped celery and half of a sliced onion. 

 

Bring the chicken to a full boil over high heat, lower heat to medium and boil for about 40 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through.  (The leg and thigh will easily pull apart at this point.)  Remove the chicken from the pot to cool and measure 6 cups of the stock to use for the soup. 
 

This soup is so easy to make and the flavor is wonderful.  Once the chicken is cooked, the soup can be prepared in about 15 minutes, so it's perfect for a weeknight meal.  Enjoy!!

4  Chicken Legs Quarters, cooked and deboned
6 cups  Chicken Stock (homemade or canned)
2 tsp  Salt
1 tsp  Ground Black Pepper
1 TB  Chicken Base
1-1/2 cups  Frozen Peas and Carrots
16 oz  bag  Frozen Cheese Tortellini Pasta
1 cup  Fresh Spinach, rinsed and stems removed
2 TB Cornstarch
1 TB  Cold Water
1 TB  Lemon Juice

Using a medium soup pot, bring broth to a simmer over medium heat.  Add the salt, pepper, chicken base and frozen peas and carrots.  Simmer for 3 minutes.

Add the chicken and tortellini to the pot, increase heat to medium-high and cook for about 3 minutes until the pasta is just barely tender.

Add the spinach to the top of the soup, cover and cook for 5 minutes over medium-low heat to allow the spinach to wilt.  In a small bowl combine the cornstarch, water and lemon juice and stir to combine.  Add the mixture to the soup, stirring constantly until the soup thickens slightly.

Adjust salt and pepper to taste and serve.  Serves about 6-8.