Tortellini Soup with Pancetta and Beans

This hearty, comforting tortellini soup is made with white beans, pancetta, Swiss chard and a richly flavored broth.

After tucking into cinnamon rolls and chicken enchiladas over the past couple of days, the seams on my pants were groaning. I prefer my muffin tops to stay on my muffins, not above my waistband. In other words, it was time for something lighter. What better than a flavorful broth, vitamin-packed chard, and filling tortellini? Okay, so there's a little pancetta in there. Rome wasn't built in a day.

If you're not familiar with pancetta, think of it as fancy bacon. It is pork that has been salt cured and spiced, and then dried for about three months. Unlike bacon, it's not typically smoked. Pancetta is commonly used in Italian, Spanish, and Croatian cooking. In your grocery store, look for it by the deli section. It's usually packaged flat in 4 oz plastic packages.

This recipe is from Giada de Laurentiis' book Everyday Pasta.

Chop 4 oz pancetta.

Chop 3 large shallots, 2 cloves of garlic, and 1 peeled carrot.

Set a large, heavy pot over medium-high heat and add 3 tablespoon olive oil. Add the pancetta, shallots, garlic, and carrot.

Cook for about 5 minutes, or until the pancetta is crisp. Stir occasionally while cooking.

Drain and rinse 1 can (15 oz) of cannellini beans.

Giada's recipe called for Swiss chard, but my grocery store was all out. However, they had some beautiful red chard. Tip from my produce guy: If your chard starts to wilt after a few days, soak it in warm water for about 10 minutes, put it in a plastic bag, and refrigerate it. It will crisp up again. Cool, huh?

So pretty!

Chop 4 cups of the chard.

Add 7 cups low-sodium chicken broth, the chard, and the beans to the pancetta mixture.

Bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat, then lower to a simmer. Add 9 oz of fresh or frozen cheese tortellini.

Simmer for 5 minutes for fresh or 8 minutes for frozen tortellini. The tortellini should be just tender.

Season with ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper and serve. What a beautiful, flavorful broth!

Other tortellini recipes:

Delish.com's Cheese Tortellini with Walnut Pesto

Serious Eats' Tortellini with Gorgonzola Cream Sauce

Tortellini Soup with Pancetta & White Beans

3 tablespoon olive oil
4 oz pancetta, chopped
3 large shallots, chopped
1 carrot, peeled and chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
(15 oz) can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
4 cup chopped Swiss or red chard (1 bunch)
7 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 (9 oz) package fresh or frozen cheese tortellini
¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Set a large, heavy pot over medium-high heat and add 3 tablespoon olive oil. Add the pancetta, shallots, garlic, and carrot. Cook for about 5 minutes, or until the pancetta is crisp. Stir occasionally while cooking.

Add the low-sodium chicken broth, chard, and beans to the pancetta mixture. Stir well. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat, then lower to a simmer. Add the fresh or frozen cheese tortellini. Simmer for 5 minutes for fresh or 8 minutes for frozen tortellini. The tortellini should be just tender. Season with ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper and serve.

Makes 4 to 6 servings.