Byrne Family Weekly Menu: 2/24

Here is our menu for this week. I'm feeling Italian this week, so I'll be making my favorite tortellini soup and I'm trying a new pesto recipe. I love making up new pestos. I feel like you can't really mess it up. Links and the recipe for the pesto are below. Have a happy week!

Tortellini Soup:

This recipe is so easy, I'm serious! The kids love it and it will probably last for two meals. It calls for heavy cream, but I just put in a splash of half and half. I make some roasted broccoli to go along with it. Roast at 425, drizzle some Olive Oil, and a few sprinkles of sea salt + freshly cracked black pepper. Add some lemon slices with it and roast for about 15 minutes.

Spinach + Artichoke Pesto Pasta:

I love artichokes. I also love this artichoke pesto from a local pasta shop here in Atlanta, but I'm going to attempt to make my own. I have a spinach pesto recipe down pat, but I thought why not add artichokes to it?

- a small container of fresh spinach

- a bag of frozen artichoke hearts (microwave before adding to food processor)

- 1/2 cup of slivered almonds or pine nuts (toasted in a pan over low heat for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently)

- 1-2 cloves of garlic

- sea salt

- juice of half a lemon

- 1/4 cup to 1/2 cup of olive oil

- 1/2 cup of fresh parmesan

In a food processor pulse the nuts and garlic until a paste is formed. Add in the spinach, artichokes, a few sprinkles of sea salt and the juice of the lemon. Pulse until fully combined. With the food processor running, slowly add in the olive oil until it has a creamy consistency. Lastly, add in the fresh parmesan. Transfer to a large serving bowl. (You can make this pesto a day ahead of time too!)

Make the pasta of your choice ( I love to use a bow tie pasta or spaghetti), reserve a little bit of the pasta water to mix in with the pesto. Drain the pasta, and combine with the pesto, add in the water a few tablespoons at a time if necessary. Top with some more grated parm. That's it!

Roasted Cauliflower:

Pretty much the same as my roasted broccoli recipe, except you can add some shredded parmesan during the last 5 minutes of cooking, so good! Preheat the oven to 425. Drizzle some Olive Oil, and a few sprinkles of sea salt + freshly cracked black pepper. Roast for about 25 minutes.