chicken tomato soup with tortellini

this is one thing to make with your stock. there are many other things one could make with something as versatile as a well-made stock.

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 4 or 5 pieces across the breast
1 lg onion, cut as for the stock
5-6 small carrots, peeled and quartered (or you could use those pre-prepped baby carrots)
3 stalks celery, roughly chopped
1 15 oz. can of diced tomatoes, drained
4-5 cloves garlic, chopped
about 2 quarts chicken stock
1 family size package of barilla three cheese tortellini (click on the title of this post for more info)
3 T olive oil
1/4 c chopped parsley
1 bay leaf
freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano, for serving
salt and pepper

liberally pepper the chicken chunks, and heat olive oil in heavy dutch oven over med-hi heat. brown well in small batches and remove to a bowl. add onions and saute quickly until starting to caramelize. you'll notice quite a bit of what appears to be burnt stuff on the bottom of the pan. fear not, this grime is what will provide a good deal of the flavor for your soup. pour in about 2 cups of the chicken stock, and stir until all that grime has been loosened from the bottom of your pan. add the rest of the vegetation (minus the parsley and tomatoes but including the bay leaf), the rest of the chicken stock and the chicken. cover and simmer over low heat until the chicken is thoroughly cooked, about 30 mins.

add the tomatoes and tortellini. cook over med-lo to med heat until the pasta is done, about 10-12 mins. check for salt and pepper and adjust seasonings accordingly. turn off the heat and allow to cool about 20 mins.

add the chopped parsley and stir well. serve with parmigiano-reggiano scattered over the top. any sort of garlic bread would make a lovely addition to your meal.