Italian Meatball & Tortellini Soup

Well ... given that today started out so dark and gloomy I decided I was going to make soup for dinner. I didn't want to go to the store so I pulled together ingredients from home ... this is what I came up with! Cheers :-)

Italian Meatball & Tortellini Soup

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• ¾ cup diced onion
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh garlic
• 5 cups beef stock
• 1 (14 ounce) can diced tomatoes
• 1/2 cup edamame
• 1/2 cup diced carrots
• ½ teaspoon each: marjoram, thyme, rosemary, & oregano
• 3 tablespoons fresh basil, diced
• 1 bay leaf
• ½ pound frozen, cooked Italian-style meatballs - thawed
• About 36 cheese tortellini
• Parmesan cheese, for garnish

Directions

1. Heat oil in a large pot over medium-high heat; cook the onion and garlic in the oil until tender, 5 to 7 minutes. Pour the beef stock into the pot; add the tomatoes, carrots, edamame, spices, and bay leaf. Bring the mixture to a boil. Stir in the meatballs and simmer for about 30-40 minutes. (I cut the meatballs into quarters so it was easier form the kiddos to eat)
2. Return to a boil, add tortellini and cook another 3-5 minutes. Ladle into bowls and top with Parmesan cheese to serve.  (Serves 4)

Heavenly Halibut

I finally found a halibut recipe that the Hubby loves :-) The basics of the recipe is from allrecipes.com however, I made a few changes to make it a bit healthier (using olive oil rather than butter) shhh ... don't tell! Recipe is for about 8 servings. Amazing flavor and a little over 200 calories! Can't beat that ... Enjoy ... 

Heavenly Halibut

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 3 tablespoons mayonnaise
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 3 tablespoons chopped green onions
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 dash hot pepper sauce
• 2 pounds skinless halibut fillets

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Grease a baking dish.
2. In a bowl, mix the Parmesan cheese, olive oil, mayonnaise, lemon juice, green onions, salt, and hot pepper sauce.
3. Arrange the halibut fillets in the prepared baking dish.
4. Bake halibut fillets 20 minutes in the prepared oven, or until easily flaked with a fork.
5. Switch oven onto broil and spread halibut with the Parmesan cheese mixture.
6. Broil 2 minutes, or until topping is bubbly and lightly browned.