Roasted Tomato and Asparagus Tortellini

 
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The other day one of my little twin boys (age 5) said to me.
"Hey, Mom. How come your bum is so runny?"

"Um. Did you say runny?"

"Yeah, you know like it's just kind of saggy and droopy and runny...like, all the time."

Now, dear reader! What can a mother say to a comment such as this! Thank you? Don't talk about my bum? Get me a tissue my eyes are running just as much as my bum? None of these seemed to fit the situation so I just said... 

"That kind of hurts my feelings, honey."

He looked stunned by this newsflash and said...

"Oh...uh....hmmmm. What I meant to say is you've sure got a nice lookin' bum Mom."

And then I went to the store and bought a lot of vegetables (I think I read somewhere that they can cure a severe case of runnybum).

And then I roasted them in my oven and tossed them with some tasty tortellini and took some pictures for you...Because that's what girls crave when they have come down with a case of runny bum. Fabulous tasting vegetables. That's what.

Roasted Tomato and Asparagus Tortellini

Time: 30 minutes start to finish

Yield: 6-7 servings

Recipe from Jamie Cook It Up!

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2 pints grape tomatoes

1 pound fresh asparagus

5-6 cloves garlic

Olive Oil

Salt and Pepper

1 (24 ounce) package cheese tortellini

1 C chopped spinach

1 T lemon juice (fresh, please)

1 C Parmesan cheese, grated

1. Cut about 1 inch of the bottoms off each lovely stalk of asparagus. The bottoms are really tough and woody tasting. Chop the rest of the asparagus into 2 inch pieces. (Don't get out the ruler, now...these measurements are approximate)

2. Spread the asparagus pieces and the grape tomatoes out evenly over a large cookie sheet. Be sure to use a pan that has a nice rim on it. You don't want those lovely juices to run off and on to the bottom of your oven. 

3. Peel and roughly chop 5-6 cloves of garlic. Do not  be mistaken. You don't want to peel and chop 5 or 6 whole garlic bulbs, now. Just 5-6 of the little cloves that come in a bulb. 

4. Add the fresh garlic to the tomatoes and asparagus and drizzle olive oil over the top of them. You just need about 2-3 tablespoons.

5. Grind a bit of salt and pepper over the top as well. 

Then, using two large spoons, toss the ingredients together. Make sure all of the veggies have a bit of oil on them. Toss your pan in the oven to roast at 400 degrees, for about 20 minutes, or until the asparagus is fork tender. 

6. When the veggies are about half way done, put a large pot of hot water on your stove and bring it to a boil. Salt it generously and then add your tortellini. Cook until done, but not over done. :) Tortellini actually cooks pretty fast. You will most likely only want to boil it for about 5 minutes.

7. Pour the tortellini and boiling water into a colander that has been placed in your sink. Run a bit of warm water over the top. You want the tortellini to stay quite warm. Don't run cold water over it. 

8. Pour the tortellini into a large mixing bowl and add 1 cup of chopped spinach to it. 

9. Take your roasted vegetables out of the oven. See how lovely they look! The tomatoes should have cracks all along them, and the garlic should be golden in color.

10. Carefully pour the roasted veggies into your mixing bowl, making sure to scrape any of the wonderful juices off the roasting pan and into the bowl. 

11. Crack a little more salt and pepper over the top.

Squeeze 1 tablespoon of lemon juice over the bowl...

and add 1 cup of shredded Parmesan cheese. Toss it all together, serve and enjoy!