vegetable soup with tortellini

it rained today. yes, rain. not snow. not sleet. not hail, straight up rained. and although we've had a heat wave (it was 50+ today!!) over the last few days, rumor is it isn't going to stay too long.

even though i've already put this to the back of my make this next winter pile, it might have to be bumped back up into normal rotation.

truth be told, i made this soup right in the thick of it. right smack in the middle of a week where the temperature hovered around 0 the entire week. extra blankets were thrown on the bed. it was so cold we turned the temperature of our water heater up, so our morning showers could actually warm us up.

vegetable soup with tortellini
adapted from keep your diet real
1 hour, easily makes 8 servings (great as leftovers for lunch)

1 medium onion, diced
4 cloves of garlic, minced
4 carrots, diced
4 celery stalks, diced
4 potatoes, yukon gold or another variety that won't disintegrate into the soup, diced
15 oz can kidney beans
15 oz can cannellini beans
15 oz diced tomatoes
28 oz crushed tomatoes
4 cups chicken stock
1 1/2 cups cheese tortellini, fresh or frozen
parmesan or mozzarella cheese to top, optional

1. coat the bottom of a dutch oven or large soup pot (this makes a lot of soup, it came within an inch of the top of my 5.5 quart dutch oven) with olive oil and heat on medium high. cool the onion and garlic until translucent and starting to brown around the edges, about 5 minutes.
2. add the carrots, celery, and potatoes. season with salt and pepper. cover and cook an additional 5 minutes.
3. add the beans, tomatoes, and chicken stock and cover. bring the soup to a boil, reduce to simmer, and cook 20 minutes.
4. add the cheese tortellini and cook another 15 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender and the tortellini is cooked through. taste and season with salt and pepper.
5. top each serving with parmesan or mozzarella cheese, as you like. serve with crusty bread.