I'm honestly... exhausted today as I write this. My little girl was up the most of the night with a cough. I tried everything I knew to do and nothing seemed to soothe or calm it. Finally, sometime in the wee hours of the morning I grabbed her up and brought her in bed to cuddle up with me.

After a good hour of wiggling and squirming she finally settled in and we managed to get 2-3 hours of sleep before the sun peeked in. Amazing how the cough went away once she was snuggled into me. Sometimes you just need your mommy.

Needless to say, I was pretty thrilled to realize that I had a rather easy and soothing soup on the agenda for dinner - full of stuff that my little princess loves and frequently gobbles up. Well... except for the spinach, I'm working on that.

This is the perfect soup to soothe a cough or sore throat. Oooor just to eat for any old reason!

I had other plans for lunch today, but I'll instead be indulging in the leftovers of this soup and I can hardly wait for noon to roll around.

This soup is pretty versatile (just as most soups are.) You can substitute in just about any vegetable if there is one in here that you don't care for. I tried to keep with the pretty standard veggies that tend to appease nearly everyone.

Tortellini En Brodo (Broth)
TheSkinnyFork.com

The Skinny:
Servings: 8 • Size: About 1 1/2 Cups • Calories: 236 • Fat: 7 g • Carb: 32.4 g • Fiber: 5.2 g • Protein: 10.5 g • Sugar: 3.9 g • Sodium: 337.4 mg

Ingredients:
1 Tbsp. Light Butter
1 Small Yellow Onion (1 C.), Chopped
2 Medium Celery Stalks (1/2 C.), Chopped
1 Medium Carrot (1/2 C.), Peeled & Chopped
2 Garlic Cloves, Minced
1/2 Tsp. Dried Basil
1/4 Tsp. Dried Oregano
1/4 Tsp. Dried Parsley
Pinch Red Pepper Flakes (If desired.)
8 C. Reduced Sodium Chicken Broth (I used Sodium Free Instant Chicken + Water.)
2 C. Water
1 Italian Cheese Rind (Optional, but delicious!)
18 Oz. Whole Wheat Cheese Tortellini (I used Buitoni.)
Salt & Pepper to Taste
2 C. Fresh Baby Spinach
Fresh Grated Italian Cheese (Parmesan/Grana Padano.)

Directions:
Melt the butter over medium-low heat in a large pot and add in the onion, celery, carrots, and garlic.

Cover and cook for 8-10 minutes, stirring occasionally until the veggies are becoming tender.

Add water a tbsp. at a time if/as needed to keep veggies from sticking or burning.

Once the veggies are softened, add in the spices, chicken broth, water and cheese rind (if using one.)

Increase the heat for medium-high and bring the soup to a boil.

When the soup reaches a boil, reduce heat back to low and add in the tortellini.

Season with salt & pepper to taste. Set to simmer and cook until al dente.

Once done, remove the cheese rind and add in the spinach.

Stir to combine and allow the spinach to wilt slightly.

Garnish with cheese and serve right away!