Gourmet Magazine's April 2009 edition had a tempting recipe for asparagus and tortellini in a cream sauce and topped with a generous serving of Parmesan Reggiano. I thought having some of my mom's cream that needed to be used up gave me a perfect excuse to buy the ingredients for the dish. (Tortellini is rarely in our house just because we like dried pasta best.)
The sauce was a success. It was thin because I didn't have the corn starch to thicken it, but the flavor was fantastic. My father and Paul loved the crushed red pepper the recipe called for. I also thought the recipe was easily prepared in the 10 minute window the magazine said it would take. The only question I had was about the purpose of the lemon. I did not notice any effect it had on the sauce.
This recipe is a perfect example of the additional ease of being a vegetarian. The first step in the recipe is to cook down chicken stock. However, when making your own (vegetarian) chicken-flavored broth, there's no need to cook down the liquid, just flavor the necessary amount of liquid needed as the final product.
An example of what a great success this recipe is: my father was eating dinner with us because my mother was out of town. He actually took the leftovers for lunch. Dad never takes leftovers to work. Either it was really good or he was just trying to make me feel good about the meal, but the fact that we all went back for seconds definitely suggests the first option.
The actual recipe isn't on line; so, go to your local library with a note pad and copy it down (or just email me). I promise, you won't be sorry.
Cost to Make
- $1.08 Asparagus (Publix)
- Free Cream (From Mom)
- $2.20 Tortellini (Publix, sale)
- Free Crushed Red Pepper (Gift from Paul's Sister)
- $0.10 Garlic (Publix)
- $1.00 Parm-Reg Cheese (Costco)
- $0.17 McKay's Chicken Seasoning (Adventist Nutrition Center)
- $4.55 Total feeds 4 (3 with one leftover.)
