Creamy Cheddar Cauliflower Soup (Instant Pot)

This Creamy Cheddar Cauliflower Soup is the perfect savory bowl, made with extra sharp cheddar and chicken broth. And it’s quick to cook in an Instant Pot! 

One of my husband’s all-time favorite dishes is baked cauliflower cheese so I knew this soup would be an instant hit. I was not wrong. The best part is that it is simple and, cooked in an Instant Pot, it takes hardly any time at all. 

I like to serve it with extra extra sharp cheddar on top, which endears it even more to my cauliflower cheese loving spouse. 

Creamy Cheddar Cauliflower Soup

This easy Instant Pot recipe is super flexible. If your cauliflower is a bit bigger or smaller, no worries. I give the weight of mine below, just as a guide. This recipe is adapted from one on Faith Hope Love and Luck Survive Despite a Whiskered Accomplice.

Ingredients

1 head cauliflower (about 2 lbs 7oz or 1100g, whole)

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/2 large onion, peeled

2 small stalks celery

1/2 cup or 63g all-purpose flour

5 cups or 1185ml chicken stock, divided

1 teaspoon Colman’s mustard powder

1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/2 teaspoon cayenne

1 1/2 cups or 360ml milk

1/2 cup or 120ml heavy cream

6 oz or 170g extra sharp cheddar, grated, plus extra for serving, if desired

1 tablespoon cornstarch

Optional for garnish: chopped green onions

Method

Trim all the green leaves off of the cauliflower and cut the head into small florettes. Finely chop the stalks. 

Finely dice the onion and celery. 

Place the butter and olive oil in your Instant Pot on the sauté normal setting. 

When the butter is melted, add the onion, celery and chopped cauliflower stalks to the pot and sauté for about 5 minutes, stirring often.

Add the flour to the pot and stir well to mix it into the softened vegetables. Cook for about 3 minutes, stirring constantly.

Slowly pour in half of the chicken stock, whisking constantly to avoid creating lumps. Whisk in the mustard, salt and both peppers. 

Add the cauliflower florettes to the Instant Pot and stir to coat with the stock and seasonings. 

Add in the rest of the stock.

Set the Instant Pot on for manual for 15 minutes. Immediately release the pressure by covering the valve with a towel and opening it carefully so you don’t get burned by the steam. 

Add the milk and cream into the pot, stirring well. 

Turn the Instant Pot on the sauté low setting and toss the grated cheese for the soup with the cornstarch to coat. 

Add the grated cheese a handful at a time, stirring well in between. Cook until the soup is warmed through and slightly thicker.

Serve with extra grated cheese for topping, if desired, and chopped green onions for garnish. 

Enjoy! 

It's Sunday FunDay and today we are sharing recipes made with cauliflower and broccoli, two of my favorite vegetables. Many thanks to our host, Sneha of Sneha's Recipe. Check out the links below:

• Buffalo Cauliflower Quinoa Bowls from Amy's Cooking Adventures
• Cauliflower Cheese from Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Cauliflower Curry Pathare Prabhu Style from Sneha's Recipe
• Creamy Cheddar Cauliflower Soup (Instant Pot) from Food Lust People Love
• Stirfry Chicken, Broccoli, and Cauliflower from A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Tandoori Cauliflower Steaks from Mayuri's Jikoni

We are a group of food bloggers who believe that Sunday should be a family fun day, so every Sunday we share recipes that will help you to enjoy your day. If you're a blogger interested in joining us, just visit our Facebook group and request to join.

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Malaysian-style Curry Laksa

This Malaysian-style curry laksa starts with a spicy paste, made soupy with water and coconut milk and loads of add-ins like shrimp, tofu, chicken and noodles. It is a rich, wonderful seafood dish for a chilly night!

One of my favorite dishes of all time from our many, many years living in Malaysia is curry laksa. I never had to learn to make it there since there were a lot of restaurants that served lovely or at least decent versions. 

When we moved on to Egypt back in 2012, that’s when my laksa cravings meant I’d have to figure out how to make it myself. There are tons of recipes online but it took meshing a couple together to come up with one that tastes the way I remember from my favorite restaurant, Madam Kwan’s.

It has a rich, fragrant broth that tickles your nose and delights your tastebuds. 

Malaysian-style Curry Laksa

The paste is made from a long list of ingredients but don’t let that dissuade you since this recipe makes plenty enough to freeze and you will be glad to have those little bags readily available next time the craving for curry laksa hits you. You need 3 1/2 oz or 100g paste (a rounded 1/3 cup) to serve curry laksa for four people. These ingredients are available at most Asian markets.

Ingredients

For the laksa paste (rempah):

15 dried chilies, soaked in hot water (about 1/2 oz or 15g before soaking)

1/4 cup or 25g dried shrimp, pounded to powder

7 lemongrass stalks, white parts only, sliced

30 small shallots, peeled and chopped (about 6 1/3 oz or 180g)

2.8 oz or 80g galangal, peeled and sliced 

2.8 oz or 80g fresh ginger, peeled and sliced 

10 candlenuts (available at Asian markets or substitute macadamia)

1 tablespoon ground turmeric

2 tablespoons shrimp paste 

6 fresh red chilies

8 cloves garlic 

1/2 cup or 120ml canola or other light oil

For the curry laksa:

3 1/2 oz or 100g paste (a rounded 1/3 cup)

2 cups or 480ml water

1 can (113.5oz or 400ml) coconut milk 

14 oz or  400g fresh yellow egg noodles or thick rice vermicelli (or a combo)

1.75oz or 150g bean sprouts, blanched (throw them in at the very end of the noodle cooking time)

7 oz or 200g raw, cleaned, peeled shrimp or prawns

7 oz or 200g fish cakes or balls

3 1/2 oz or 100g tau pok (deep fried soy bean curd puffs)

Garnish options: 

Curry leaves and/or fresh mint

Hard-boiled eggs, halved or use whole quail eggs

Shredded chicken

Sliced chili peppers

Method

First, we make the paste: Use a blender to combine all the ingredients until you have a homogeneous paste. 

Cook the paste in a heavy pan over a low heat for about 20-25 minutes or until the onion/garlic smell is not so prominent and the paste has darkened a bit. 

These ingredients make 4 cups of paste before cooking – about 2 3/4 cups or 700g after cooking – enough for about 7 batches of curry laksa for four people. Freeze the balance until needed in airtight bags, up to three months. 

To make the laksa, add the paste to a pot with the water and whisk till combined. Bring to a slow boil.

Add in the shrimp, fish cake or balls, tau pok and coconut milk. Simmer till the shrimp are cooked, just a few minutes. 

Meanwhile, cook your noodles to package instructions. To blanch the bean sprouts, throw them in right at the end of cooking time for your noodles. Drain and rinse noodles and sprouts in cold water. Dry the sprouts on a paper towel and set the noodles aside in a colander till ready to serve. 

To serve, share out the noodles and sprouts between four large bowls. Add shrimp, fish cake (or balls) and tau pok. 

Ladle hot laksa broth into the bowls. 

Garnish with curry and/or mint leaves, eggs, chicken and sliced chili peppers. 

Enjoy! 

It's time for Fish Friday Foodies, when my blogger friends along with group organizer Wendy of A Day in the Life on the Farm share our favorite seafood recipes. This month the theme is soups and stews. Many thanks to our host, Sneha of Sneha's Recipe. Check out the links below. 

• Food Lust People Love: Malaysian-style Curry Laksa 
• Karen’s Kitchen Stories:  Shrimp, White Bean, and Kale Stew 
• Palatable Pastime: Shrimp and Crab Gumbo 
• Sneha’s Recipe: Seer Fish/Surmai Kujit- East Indian 
• A Day in the Life on the Farm: Sausage and Halibut One Pot Stew

Would you like to join Fish Friday Foodies? We post and share new seafood/fish recipes on the third Friday of the month. To join our group please email Wendy at wendyklik1517 (at) gmail.com. Visit our Facebook page and Pinterest page for more wonderful fish and seafood recipe ideas.

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Potage de Crécy - French Carrot Soup

Potage de Crécy or French Carrot Soup is a traditional dish made from sweet carrots with rice as a thickener. It’s smooth, savory and delicious!

The story behind this very traditional French soup is that is it named for Crécy-en-Ponthieu , a town in northern France that is said to produce carrots with the best flavor in the country. I’ve done a little research and visited several sites about the town and their claim to carrot fame isn’t mentioned these days. 

I did find out more information about the battle that started the Hundred Years’ War which was fought there in 1346.  Despite its name, the war lasted 116 years and involved not just the English who started it by attacking the French on their own soil, but it grew to encompass much of what is now considered Europe. Who knew? 

Certain historians fix the creation of Potage de Crécy on this date, because it would have been made to nourished the British army. In fact, it has also been suggested that the soup was served to triumphant English soldiers after the battle was over, with carrots sourced (pillaged?) from Crécy. Talk about kicking a town when they are already down!

To commemorate the battle, this soup was eaten King Edward VII each year on August 26th, the day of the battle in honor of his ancestor, Edward of Woodstock who led the battle. Today seems an appropriate time to share the recipe. 

Potage de Crécy - French Carrot Soup

I’ve added fine sea salt as an ingredient but how much you will need depends greatly on how salty your stock is. A little salt always seems to help accentuate the sweetness of the carrots though. 

Ingredients

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

2 small shallots, finely chopped

1 small stalk celery, stringed and finely chopped

1 pound sweet carrots, peeled and thinly sliced

1/4 cup or 45g rice, preferably Arborio 

5 1/4 cups or 1.25L chicken or vegetable stock

1/2 teaspoon sugar

fine sea salt, to taste as needed

Freshly ground pepper to taste

Optional for garnish:

Chopped fresh herbs, such as chives or parsley

1 cup toasted croutons

Method

Heat the butter and olive oil in a large, heavy soup pot over medium-low heat and add the shallot and celery. 

Cook, stirring, until tender, about 5 minutes. 

Add the carrots, cover partially and cook for another 10 minutes, stirring often, until the vegetables are tender and fragrant. 

Add the rice, stock and sugar. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, cover and simmer 30 minutes, or until the carrots are completely soft.

Blend the soup either with a hand blender or in a blender, in batches. Do be careful not to splash or overfill as the hot soup will scald you. 

Return to the pot. 

Stir and taste. Adjust salt, add a generous amount of freshly ground pepper, and heat through. If the sweetness of the carrots needs a boost, add another pinch of sugar.

Serve, garnishing each bowl with sprinkle of herbs. Put the croutons on the table and let people help themselves. (I did make croutons! They just didn't get in the photos.)

Enjoy! 

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- French Carrot Soup!

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Ham and Split Pea Soup - Instant Pot

This hearty ham and split pea soup is flavorful and satisfying. Made with a smoked hambone, split peas, potatoes and carrots, it’s a full meal soup!

I love baked ham, especially when it has a brown sugar/mustard glaze and pineapples! But my favorite part of that meal comes after most of the cut ham has been eaten, when I can use the bone to make soup. There’s always plenty enough meat left on the bone and the bone itself adds the most wonderful flavor to the broth. 

Before I bought my Instant Pot, this soup would take a couple of hours in a pot stovetop or, occasionally, I’d use the slow cooker to make the base broth and the hambone would simmer for six to eight hours. Either way, this soup was worth it. 

Enter the game changing Instant Pot! Now I can enjoy my ham and split pea soup in under an hour and you can too. 

Ham and Split Pea Soup - Instant Pot

This soup is one I often make after Christmas and Easter if baked ham was on the menu but I must confess that this time, I bought and baked a ham because I really wanted the bone for this soup. Call me crazy. I don’t mind. We enjoyed the ham in myriad ways but this is the best one.

Ingredients

1 onion, finely chopped

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 hambone (with some meat attached) from a spiral cut baked ham

4-5 cups or 946-1180ml ham, chicken or vegetable stock 

1 large russet potato, peeled and cubed

2-3 carrots, peeled and small cubed

1 lb or 450g green split peas

Method

Use the sauté function to cook the onion in the olive oil for a few minutes. 

Add the hambone and enough stock to almost cover it. Cook on the soup setting for 30 minutes, then use a quick release. 

Fish the hambone out with a slotted spoon and set it on a plate to cool. 

One of the handy features of the Instant Pot is the volume measurements on the side of the pot. For 1 lb or 450g of split peas, we’ll need 6.75 cups or 1.6L of liquid to cook them in for soup. After the ham bone removal, I had 4 cups or .95L of liquid left. 

I hate to make you do math in the middle of a recipe but 6.75 minus 4 = 2.75 so this means we need to add 2 3/4 cups or 650ml more water or stock in with the split peas. Depending on what you have left behind, you may need to add less or more, remembering that your goal is 6 3/4 cups or 1.6L for 1 lb or 450g split peas.

Add in the cubed potatoes and carrots as well. I always cut the potatoes larger than than the carrots because they cook faster and I don't want them to cook to mush. To give you a size perspective, the carrots are about the size of small garden peas, the ones that are called petit pois.

Cook on high 15 minutes, followed by 15 minutes of natural release, then quick release.

While the split peas and veggies are cooking, remove all the edible ham from the bone and discard the bone, gristle and fat. Cut any larger pieces in cubes. 

When the soup is ready, add the ham back in with a few generous grinds of black pepper. 

Serve hot and enjoy! This is soooooo tasty! I wish I had another bowl (or three) now. 

It’s almost St. Patrick’s Day so my Sunday FunDay friends and I are sharing some of our favorite Irish recipes. This ham and split pea soup is one of mine 1. because it’s delicious and 2. because it’s green! Luck o' the Irish to ye!  Check out all the other St. Patrick’s Day recipes below. Many thanks to Amy of Amy’s Cooking Adventures for hosting. 

• Amy’s Cooking Adventures: Irish Soda Bread & Leprechaun Traps
• A Day in the Life on the Farm: Dingle Pie
• Our Good Life: Irish Nachos
• Palatable Pastime: Bangers and Mash
• Sneha’s Recipe: Irish Scrambled Eggs With Chaffles
• Culinary Adventures with Camilla: Irish Stout Tea-Infused Truffles
• Food Lust People Love: Ham and Split Pea Soup (Instant Pot)
• Karen’s Kitchen Stories: Colcannon | Irish Mashed Potatoes with Kale
• Mayuri’s Jikoni: Irish Potato Farls
• The Mad Scientist’s Kitchen: Easy Irish Soda Bread

 

We are a group of food bloggers who believe that Sunday should be a family fun day, so every Sunday we share recipes that will help you to enjoy your day. If you're a blogger interested in joining us, just visit our Facebook group and request to join.

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Cajun Crab Shrimp Corn Soup

This Cajun Crab Shrimp Corn Soup is rich and creamy, full of shrimp and corn (two kinds!) and lots of crabmeat. You might want to double the recipe! This disappears in a heartbeat. 

My mom has been telling me about this soup for quite a while and sending me multiple copies of the recipe. It comes from a lady who was a dear friend to my Aunt Karen in New Orleans. Ms. Debbie is a great cook (as was my wonderful late aunt of best pecan pie ever fame) and she was very happy to share. Like every Cajun recipe, it starts with the holy trinity of onions, bell pepper and celery. 

For some reason, my mom seemed to think it was a crab soup so maybe that’s how my aunt made it but in Ms. Debbie’s original recipe, it was called shrimp soup and the crab was optional. 

Since crabmeat is so expensive, you could just double the shrimp but I’m here to tell you that the addition of lump crabmeat is fabulous if it's within your budget for a special occasion. I must confess at this juncture that since my mom really really wanted me to cook this soup, she paid for the crab and I purchased the rest of the ingredients. We were both happy with the deal we struck.  So happy that after the first batch, I made one more on the same terms. 

Cajun Crab Shrimp Corn Soup

If my shrimp are large, I like to use a sharp knife to cut them right through the middle lengthwise into two shrimp-shaped halves. This means more bites of soup with shrimp in them. You could also leave yours whole if they are small or cut them into chunks. As for the cream of shrimp soup, mine was Campbell's. When my mom first shared the recipe, I thought that must be one of the old fashioned canned soups that is no longer made since I'd never seen it. Turns out I had just never looked closely enough at the soup aisle! One of my local grocery stores does indeed stock Campbell's cream of shrimp. Who knew?

Ingredients

1/2 cup or 113g butter

1 small onion

1 small bell pepper

1 long stalk celery

2 cloves garlic

1 lb or 450g shrimp, already peeled and cleaned

1 teaspoon Cajun seasoning (Tony Chachere's or the like)

1 can (10.5 oz or 298g) cream of shrimp soup

1 can (10.5 oz or 298g) cream of celery soup

1 can (14.75 oz or 418g) cream style corn

1 can (15 oz or 425g) whole kernel corn, drained

2 cups or 480ml half and half (or 1 cup milk and 1 cup whipping cream)

1 teaspoon liquid crab boil

1 lb or 450g lump crabmeat, picked over carefully for shell bits 

Optional for garnish: chopped parsley and a sprinkle of Cajun seasonings

Method

Finely chop the onion, bell pepper and celery and mince the garlic. Melt the butter in a Dutch oven a low heat then add everything but the garlic. 

Sauté for a few minutes until the vegetables are softened and the onion is translucent. Add the garlic to the pot. Sauté for another couple of minutes. 

Add in the shrimp and sprinkle on the Cajun seasoning. Stir well and cook till shrimp are pink. 

Add the rest of the ingredients, except the crab. 

Slowly heat the soup and then simmer for 30 minutes, stirring often. 

While the soup is simmering, pick through the crab carefully and discard any bits of shell you find. 

When you are ready to serve, add in the crabmeat and heat until it is warmed through. 

Stir gently to keep the crabmeat intact as much as possible. 

Serve in bowls with a sprinkle of chopped parsley and a pinch of Cajun seasoning for flavor and color. 

Enjoy! 

It’s third Friday of the month, time for my Fish Friday Foodie friends to share their seafood recipes! I’m hosting this month and chose seafood soups as our theme. There are lots of warm and comforting dishes in the list below, perfect for winter weather! 

• Cajun Crab Shrimp Corn Soup from Food Lust People Love
• Lobster Wonton and Corn Chowder from Karen’s Kitchen Stories
• Salmon Chowder from Making Miracles
• Shrimp Fra Diavolo Soup from Palatable Pastime
• Shrimp Ramen from A Day in the Life on the Farm
• White Hot & Sour Chicken & Prawn Soup from Sneha’s Recipe

Would you like to join Fish Friday Foodies? We post and share new seafood/fish recipes on the third Friday of the month. To join our group please email Wendy at wendyklik1517 (at) gmail.com. Visit our Facebook page and Pinterest page for more wonderful fish and seafood recipe ideas.

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Caldo Tlalpeño

Caldo Tlalpeño is a deliciously nutritious chicken and vegetable soup, perfect for chilly days, served with fresh cheese and chipotle chili pepper on top. And avocado, if you've got some!

This dish is originally from Tlalpan, Mexico, one of the 16 administrative alcaldías or boroughs of Mexico City. It is the largest borough by area but most of it is forested rather than urban. According to Wikipedia, the city still boasts colonial era mansions and cobblestone streets. Frankly, it sounds lovely and totally worth putting on my list of places to visit, even if it didn’t also have a Six Flags amusement park. Which it does!

I love that this caldo is even mentioned in their tourist information. They are rightly very proud of it. What makes it so wonderful, in my opinion, is the fresh tomatoes in the broth. They give it a light, bright flavor, so much better than plain old chicken soup.

Despite photographic evidence to the contrary, I did serve this to my family with the crumbled fresh cheese as well as the required chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, I just completely forgot to put it on when taking the pictures. Some recipes mentioned adding avocados as well but I didn't have any. Add it cubed or sliced when serving, if you do.

Caldo Tlalpeño

I used unsalted homemade chicken stock for this dish so I did season the chicken with a little fine sea salt before poaching it in the stock. If you are using stock with salt, you can skip this step. I give the approximate weights for the vegetables below but know that if you have, say, a little more carrot or fewer green beans, this caldo will still be delicious. 

Ingredients

For the chicken:

1 1/2 lbs or 675g boneless, skinless chicken breast

¼ of a medium white onion

1 clove garlic

8 cups or 1.9L chicken stock 

1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt

For the caldo:

2 tablespoons canola or other light oil

4 medium carrots (about 13 oz or 370g)

1/4 white onion (

3 tomatoes (about 1 lb or 450g) 

1 clove garlic

5 oz or 142g green beans 

1 can (16 oz or 454g) chickpeas, drained and rinsed

2 sprigs coriander

4 epazote leaves (These are apparently a traditional ingredient and I was lucky enough to find some at my nearby Fiesta supermarket. If you can’t put your hands on some, just add a little more cilantro.)

To garnish:

Crumbled fresh cheese

Chipotle peppers in adobo sauce

(Avocado is also recommended but as I mentioned above, I didn't have any.)

Method

Season the chicken breasts with the salt (if using a salt free stock - see note above) and set aside for a few minutes. Cut the onion into thick slices and smash the garlic clove with the side of a large knife. 

Add the onion and garlic to a large pot along with the chicken. Pour in the stock and bring it to a soft boil over a medium flame.

 

Turn the fire down to simmer, put the lid on your pot and cook the chicken for 45 minutes. 

Remove the chicken from the pot and set aside until it is cool enough to handle. Use two forks to shred it.

Strain the broth into a heatproof bowl and discard the onion slices and garlic. 

Finely chop the onion and peel and slice the carrots. Core and chop the tomatoes. Cut the green beans into bite-sized pieces.

Add the oil to the pot and sauté the chopped onions and the carrots for about 10 minutes or until the onions are translucent and the carrots are starting to soften. I find the carrots cook faster if I put the lid on the pot so you might want to do the same. Just don’t forget to stir occasionally.

While the onion and carrots are cooking, place the tomatoes and garlic in the blender with a cup of the strained chicken broth. I have a hand blender so I popped mine in the hand blender vessel and whizzed them smooth with it. 

Add the tomatoes to the onion and carrots. 

Cook over a low heat for about 12 minutes or until the carrots are tender. At minute 8, add in the green beans. Give it a good stir. 

When the beans are just about cooked through, add the rest of the reserved chicken broth, chickpeas, epazote, cilantro, and shredded chicken. 

Cook over low heat for 6 more minutes. Season with salt, if needed.

To serve, spoon the chicken and vegetables into bowls. Top with broth. Serve the cheese and chipotles in small plates at the table so that everyone can add what they’d like to their bowls. It is traditional to add one chipotle pepper to each bowl!

Enjoy!

It’s Sunday FunDay and my friends and I are sharing Mexican dishes to commemorate The Day of the Dead (el Día de los Muertos), a Mexican holiday where families welcome back the souls of their deceased relatives for a brief reunion that includes food, drink and celebration. Check out all the links below! Many thanks to our host, Camilla of Culinary Adventures with Camilla. 

• Atola - East Indian by Sneha's Recipe
• Caldo Tlalpeño by Food Lust People Love
• Dia de Los Muertos Sugar Skull Cake by Amy’s Cooking Adventures
• Enfrijoladas de Pollo by A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Fiambre Rojo for Día de los Muertos by Culinary Adventures with Camilla
• Pan de Muerto (Mexican Day of the Dead Bread) by Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Pan Seared Tilapia with Shrimp by Palatable Pastime
• Taco Casserole by Making Miracles
• Vegetarian Tortilla Soup by Mayuri's Jikoni

We are a group of food bloggers who believe that Sunday should be a family fun day, so every Sunday we share recipes that will help you to enjoy your day. If you're a blogger interested in joining us, just visit our Facebook group and request to join.

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Meatball, Spinach and Tortellini al Brodo

This bowl of warm comfort is called Meatball, Spinach and Tortellini al Brodo and each spoonful is a light yet cozy delight on a chilly night.

It’s not cold here in Texas yet but I am anticipating those days with soup! The traditional Italian dish of tortellini al brodo – that is to say, cooked in broth – doesn’t have meatballs or spinach but I couldn’t resist the urge take it up a notch by adding both. 

Meatball, Spinach and Tortellini al Brodo

If you don’t have ground turkey, by all means substitute another light ground meat like pork or chicken. You can also skip the meatballs altogether but why would deprive yourself like that?

Ingredients

For the meatballs:

1 lb or 450g ground turkey

1 egg

1 green onion, white and green, minced

3/4 teaspoon fine sea salt

1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper

freshly ground black pepper

1/4 cup or 20g panko

olive oil

For the tortellini: 

8 cups or 1.9L chicken stock

1 lb 4 oz or 567g fresh tortellini (I used one Buitoni family-size pack.)

To serve: 

Grated Pecorino Romano cheese

Method

Preheat your oven to 350°F or 180°C and line the bottom of a baking pan with foil or silicone liner to make clean up easier.

In a large bowl, mix the ground turkey, egg, green onion, sea salt, red pepper and a few generous grinds of black pepper together until well combined. 

Add in the panko and mix again. 

Use a small poon or melon baller to divide the mixture into little portions. 

Wet your hands so the mixture doesn’t stick to them and rolls the portions into balls. Drizzle the meatballs with a little olive oil. 

I made 64 mini meatballs. You can make yours bigger, of course, but they won’t be as cute. 

Bake them 20 minutes in the preheated oven. Turn your oven to broil for 5 minutes to brown them. 

Add the meatballs to a large pot along with the chicken stock. Bring the stock to a simmer. 

Add tortellini and cook until just before al dente according to package directions.

Tip in the spinach and stir. You may have to add it in batches to get it all to fit. 

Divide the broth, tortellini and meatballs among bowls and top with grated Pecorino Romano. 

If you have any leftovers, I suggest you store the broth and the tortellini in separate containers or the tortellini will absorb all of the broth!

Enjoy! 

Today my Foodie Extravaganza friends are all sharing pasta recipes in celebration of National Pasta Month. Check out the links below. Many thanks to our host, Camilla of Culinary Adventures with Camilla.

• Baked Mostaccioli by Palatable Pastime
• Blue Evolution Penne by Culinary Adventures with Camilla
• Casunziei All'Ampezzana (Beet Filled Pasta with Poppy Seeds) by Tara's Multicultural Table
• Chinese Pickled Mustard and Noodle Soup by Pandemonium Noshery
• Grain-Free Garbanzo Beans Pasta and Paneer Soup Magical Ingredients
• Instant Noodles Shots by Sneha's Recipe
• Karen’s Lasagna Bolognese by A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Meatball, Spinach and Tortellini al Brodo by Food Lust People Love
• One Pot Lasagne Soup by Our Good Life

Foodie Extravaganza is where we celebrate obscure food holidays by cooking and baking together with the same ingredient or theme each month. Posting day is always the first Wednesday of each month. If you are a blogger and would like to join our group and blog along with us, come join our Facebook page Foodie Extravaganza. We would love to have you! If you're a spectator looking for delicious tid-bits check out our Foodie Extravaganza Pinterest Board.

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