Yup, I got nothin'

There aren't too many plays on the word "tortelllini" so I won't even try to stretch for one. Let's get right to it! Tonight we venture once again into "Everyday Pasta, Polenta, and Risotto." We begin a new section in this chapter: "Everyday Stuffed Pastas!" I was very excited when I saw this section. Most stuffed pastas are stuffed with cheese and, let's be honest, there's very few cheeses in the world that I don't like (one exception would be the Horseradish cheese that I accidentally ate at my sister's house. Never again.).

Tonight's recipe was Cheese Tortellini in Light Broth. Doesn't sound too exciting, right? I thought the same thing. It was extremely easy to make. I started by bringing some chicken stock to a boil. I then added the tortellini and let it cook for about seven minutes and added some pepper to the stock. My tortellini of choice was ricotta and spinach stuffed (it actually wasn't by choice, it was the only kind I could find at the grocery store, though I really don't mind. I love both of those things). Once it was al dente, I scooped it into a bowl along with some of the broth, topped with with fresh parsley and cheese, and it was finished!

I wasn't sure whether the dish was supposed to be like a soup, or just have a bit of broth below the pasta. The instructions merely say to ladle the broth and tortellini into serving bowls. A little confusing, and kind of strange if you ask me. I've never had tortellini served this way. It was good, though I wish it was in a sauce rather than a broth. Definitely good for a quick fix meal.

Me being me, I decided to make a side dish to go with the pasta. I halved some cherry tomatoes, added some pre-sliced mushrooms, and tossed them with my vidalia onion dressing and some salt, pepper, and mozzarella. It was a different spin on a traditional caprese salad. My tomatoes were definitely not at their peak though, and I'm beginning to realize why Ina Garten encourages you to use "really good" ingredients. They really do make all the difference.

Seeing as I don't have much work to do tonight, I'll give a little more to this blog entry. My earlier entries seemed much more interesting and chaotic, but I've really got this cooking thing down lately (not to mention the recipes haven't been too involved as of late). I've been trying to think of ways to incorporate cooking into my future without completely derailing the plan I have now (considering I DO enjoy my current career path) and without having to spend hundreds of dollars on cooking school (yes, I have looked up the prices). My goal is to be a music journalist, but what if I could add food into that as well? When I'm home, I rarely ever cook without music. To me, they seem to be inseparable. Now to find a way to make money from writing about food and music...hmm....

Anyhow, I will be cooking again HOPEFULLY on Sunday. It all depends on whether or not I can obtain the main ingredient. The dreadful main ingredient....tuna steaks. I'm hoping these taste different than canned tuna. Regardless, I have yogurt and granola as my back up plan for that night. Join me then to see if I survive.

P.S. My first order of business upon arriving home for Thanksgiving break is to have the Apple store clean my laptop. My mouse has been sticky lately and has developed a mind of its own. It's driving me insane.