Tortellini with Sautéed Vegetables

Last month I blogged about the Tri-Color Tortellini Soup I made. This recipe is very similar to the soup; however, it's served as a pasta dish! I made this on a busy evening after worked. Literally looked in the refrigerate grabbed all the green veggies I could find and began cooking. A little of this and a little of that and this is how the dish was born. Ever since I made the Orecchiette with Italian Sausage last July I've had a love affair with bread crumbs on pasta! After tasting the flavors I knew it was good, but I also knew I could make it great by adding home-made bread crumbs to the pasta dish! 

Here was the end result... a devoured plate of tortellini with only a few crumbs left! 

Source: Katie Original

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Servings: 4

Ingredients:

1 package refrigerated tri-colored tortellini

1/2 cup white wine

1 garlic clove, minced

1 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp butter

1 zucchini chopped

1/2 cup of fresh asparagus, chopped

1/4 cup of diced leeks

1/2 cup of quartered artichoke hearts

1/2 tsp herbes de provence

salt & pepper to taste

freshly grated parmesan cheese 

4 inch piece of stale baguette, crumbled

Directions:

1. In a large stockpot cook tortellini according to package. Set aside once cooked.

2. In a skilled on medium heat add olive oil and 1 tablespoon of butter. Once the butter has melted, add garlic and leeks. Sauté for 3-5 minutes until leeks have soften and garlic is fragrant (not burnt).

3. Add white wine to pot and deglaze for 1 minute, then add artichoke hearts, asparagus, zucchini, herbes de provence, salt, and pepper. Cook on medium heat with lid on for 5 -10 minutes or until asparagus and zucchini have started to steam. 

4. While the vegetables steam, in a small frying pan melt one tablespoon of butter. While butter is melting take the baguette and run it through your food processor to make bread crumbs. It's ok if you have a few dime sized pieces of bread crumbs. It's totally up to you as to how small you want your crumbs. Add the bread crumbs to the frying pan and mix with the butter. Toast until golden brown, and set aside.

4. Add tortellini to the pot, mix well, and grate parmesan cheese on top. Plate the tortellini and add a generous helping of bread crumbs on top.