Spicy Tomato Soup with Tortellini.

I salvaged a chicken carcass a friend’s roast chicken dinner on Friday (just one of those things I do, I guess), and made a seriously delicious stock with it on Saturday, following Giorgio Locatelli’s recipe, which is foolproof and turns out superbly. It’s the kind of recipe that involves brushing the carcass in tomato paste and roasting in the oven. Basically the awesome kind. So Saturday night I simply threw some tortolini in this potent broth and that was dinner. As simple as Italian fare gets, right there, but hearty, rich and filling. I used beef and parmesan tortellini, but you could use any kind. On Sunday, with about 300ml leftover stock in the fridge and a tin of tomatoes eyeballing me on the shelf, I decided to use them for spicy tomato soup.

I do seem to have a tomato addiction and might have to seek counseling for it in the near future (please, if you know someone that is an expert at tomato overdose prevention, do get in touch). Addict or not though, you might enjoy this recipe for possibly one of my favourite new dishes. Simple to make and rather quick also, taking roughly 30-minutes in total, it would make a great starter.

Ingredients (makes 2 starter portions)

1 tin whole-peeled tomatoes

100g totellini (beef & parmesan works well)

300ml chicken stock

100ml water

1 garlic clove, finely chopped

1/2 an onion, finely chopped

2 birds eye chilies, finely chopped

1 Tbsp chopped parsley

olive oil

Preparation

Saute the chili, garlic and onion in olive oil in a hot saucepan for 3-minutes, till onions start to darken.

Add the tin of tomatoes, stir to mix and cover.

Simmer for 20-minutes, stirring occasionally, until tomatoes are softened and broken up.

Use a hand-blender to blend the saucepan contents into a smooth consistency.

Add the chicken stock and water, simmer another 5-minutes.

Add the tortellini and cook another 3-minutes.

Serve in bowls, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with parsley.