Spinach Tomato Tortellini

I really REALLY liked this dish.  In fact I’ve never met a tortellini that I didn’t like.  I mean, it’s pasta filled with cheese, what’s not to like?  I’m also a big fan of creamy sauces.  I prefer rich, creamy alfredo to a tomato based sauce any day (unfortunately my husband feels just the opposite).  This sauce was spectacular and went perfectly with the spinach and tomato.

And by the way, if you do make this dish according to the recipe, you should have a bit more sauce in your sauce to pasta ratio than what you see in the picture.  See, it calls for 16 oz. of tortellini, and it was only after I dumped mine all in the pot that I realized my package was actually 20 oz.  Oops.  I’m not complaining about more pasta (I think we’ve established that pasta filled with cheese is always a good thing), but I would’ve like a little more sauce.  It’s all about the ratio!

I also thought this recipe does a great job of getting just the right amount of spices.  Sometimes I feel like the seasonings are overwhelming the rest of the dish, and then sometimes I feel like it’s all bland and lacks seasoning.  This recipe gets it spot-on.  We LOVED it!

Source:  all recipes

Serves: 4 (the original recipe says 6, but those would be scant servings)

Ingredients:
1 (16 ounce) package cheese tortellini
1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes with garlic and onion
1 cup chopped fresh spinach (I found it was easier to just tear the spinach into small pieces rather than chop it)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons dried basil
1 teaspoon minced garlic
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
3/4 cup milk
3/4 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the tortellini, and cook until tender, about 10 minutes.

While you get the tortellini going, combine the tomatoes, spinach, salt, pepper, basil and garlic in a large saucepan over medium heat. Cook and stir until the mixture begins to bubble.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, milk and cream. Stir this mixture into the saucepan along with the Parmesan cheese. Heat through, then reduce heat to low, and simmer until thick, about 3 minutes.

Drain the tortellini, but do not rinse, then pour them into the saucepan with the sauce. Stir to coat, and serve.