Contest Entry #1

I bought all the ingredients yesterday to make the recipes that people sent me. Today's recipe comes from my dear friend Michelle in Halifax. She and I lived side-by-side in Mexico 10 years ago, and I don't think either one of us did a whole lot of cooking back then. I know I sure didn't, and I vaguely remember her making eggnog from scratch for our Christmas party (which the Mexicans did not enjoy!)... but for the most part, our culinary skills back then consisted of pasta, grilled cheese sandwiches, and lots of take-out from the local hamburger and taco stands. We could sure make a mean blender drink though....

Anyway, Michelle sent me a recipe for Italian Sausage & Cheese Tortellini Soup. I'm going to call it "Prima Soup" because Michelle and I decided we were long lost cousins (primas in Spanish), and the nickname has always stuck.

PRIMA SOUP
1 lb. mild or hot italian sausage (casings removed) - I used half a package of mild and half a package of hot sausage
1 large onion, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
2 celery stalks, chopped
4 c. chicken stock (I used Epicure's Chicken Bouillon)
1 can chopped tomatoes with juices (I used a 540 ml can of whole tomatoes, and chopped them up a bit)
1 can tomato soup
2 c. mushrooms, sliced
1 can kidney beans, rinsed & drained
Italian spices (I used 1 tbsp. Bolognese Sauce Mix)
1 pkg. (10 oz) frozen cheese-filled tortellini

In a large sauce pan, cook sausage until crumbled and browned. Add remaining ingredients, except for the tortellini. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat, cover, and simmer until veggies are cooked and flavours are blended. (About 45 minutes to an hour.) Add tortellini and continue simmering for 15 minutes. Serve with parmesan cheese on top (I forgot to do that).


Prima, this was FABULOUS! I polished off 2 big bowls of it, with some crusty bread to soak up the liquid. It makes an enormous amount of soup (this contest may take two weeks to get through the recipes if they're all this big!), but it would be a perfect soup to make for a large family meal.

I had to eat early because I have a meeting tonight, and my husband took the kids swimming, so I'm anxious to hear how they like it when they get back. The kids might find the sausage a little spicy, and I'm sure my son will pick out all the vegetables, but my bet is they will like it (and I know my husband will adore it.) I used low-sodium tomatoes, and I didn't add any salt or pepper to this soup, so the only seasoning was the tablespoon of Bolognese spices. It's so flavourful, the only reason I'm not eating more right now is because I have to go get ready for my meeting! (And because I want leftovers for tomorrow's lunch.)

So the contest has started off with a bang! The other recipes I've chosen look equally delicious, so we'll see who the winner is in the end. Thank you so much to everyone who sent me recipes. I'm so excited to try them out and share them with you.