Tortellini Bean Soup

It was another soup night at our house.  I had some leftover tortellini so right away Tortellini soup came to my mind.  But, most of the Tortellini soups that I have had are clear soups. I wanted something filling as we were going to have it for dinner.  So I decided to puree some of the beans to make the soup a bit thicker.  The texture was a bit grainy for me - I must have not pureed it to a fine paste.  But, all in all it did the trick. 

Ingredients and Method:

Store bought tortellini, cooked according to package directions (About 20 should be enough)
4 handfuls of fresh baby spinach
2 10 oz of chicken or vegetable stock (use low sodium)
1 10 oz can of cannelini beans
1 10 oz can of butter lima beans
4 cloves of garlic, peeled and chopped
1 medium size carrot, finely diced
1/2 medium size onion, finely diced
2 stalks of celery, finely diced
Dash of Italian seasonings
Salt and pepper to taste
Dash of worcestershire sauce
Pinch of Red chilli flakes and turmeric (optional)

Heat oil in a stock pot.  Add olive oil and melt some butter. Add garlic and sautee.  Add the carrots, onions, and celery. Sautee well and let cook until softened.  Let cool.  Add to a food processor and blend to a paste.  Set aside. 

Add some butter to the same pan. Add the spinach, stir, and cook covered for a few minutes.  Set aside.

Drain and rinse the beans in a colander.  Reserve half of the cannelini beans and make a thick paste out of them in a food processor.  You may have to add some water to get it going.  Make sure there are no lumps before adding this to the pot. 

Add the carrots, onions, celery paste to the stock pot.  Add the chicken or vegetable stock.  Add the ground beans paste to the pot and stir well. Make sure there are no lumps. Add some water if you find the soup too thick.  Let it come to a rolling boil.  Add salt, pepper, Italian seasonings, worcestershire sauce, red chilli flakes, and some turmeric.  Add the remainder of the full beans and wilted spinach.  Cover and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes on low heat. 

Before serving add the cooked tortellini into the soup.  Quantity of the tortellini depends on your preference. 
Break the tortellini into two if they are too big. 

Serve hot.

Note: I used Herb chicken tortellini but any tortellini of your choice will work.  Make sure the tortellni is at room temperature before adding to the soup. This will prevent the tortellini from disintegrating. I made the tortellini first and let it sit aside until I made the remainder of the recipe.