Roasted Red Pepper and Tomato Florentine Soup with Mini-Ravioli

I’m not one of those people that can ignore hunger pains. I get super cranky when my tummy is growling and can’t concentrate. So whenever I end up working late, I take a short break and head over to the Au Bon Pain in the hospital to buy dinner. My intention is always to get a healthy salad, but it almost never happens. When I’m tired and wishing I could have left work hours ago, I crave comfort food, which for me, is a nice big bowl of creamy broccoli and cheddar soup and a piece of focaccia!

It was dreary and drizzling all week and I knew I wanted to make a nice big pot of comforting soup to enjoy. This recipe was inspired by a recent trip to Trader Joe’s where I found a package of super cute mini-ravioli. I always find some amazing new ingredient there!  All the fresh veggies really brighten up this soup and the mini-ravioli and cream make it very filling. I rarely cook with cream, but I had some left over from the ganache I made earlier, and didn’t want it to go to waste. I noticed Cara uses low fat cottage cheese to make her asparagus soup super creamy, so I’m definitely going to try that next time!

Roasted Red Pepper and Tomato Florentine Soup with Mini-Ravioli
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
4 vine-ripened tomatoes, cut in half
4 red peppers, cut into fourths
3 tablespoons olive oil
3 leeks, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 cups chicken stock
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups Trader Joe’s mini-ravioli
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 cups (4 ounces) fresh spinach, coarsely chopped
1/3 cup crumbled feta cheese

Directions:
Preheat the broiler. Place sliced tomatoes and red peppers on a large cookie sheet and drizzle with 2 tablespoons olive oil. Toss the veggies to make sure they are evenly coated with the oil and broil for 5 to 8 minutes, turning once, or until blackened. Discard any extra liquid, peel the veggies, and let cool.

Meanwhile, heat remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat in a large stockpot and sauté chopped leeks for 5 to 7 minutes or until soft. Add garlic and sauté one additional minute.

Place roasted tomatoes, red peppers, and sauted leeks in a food processor and pulse until well blended. Pour blended veggies back into stockpot and add chicken stock and salt. Bring the soup to a boil and add mini-ravioli. Boil for 15 minutes or until mini-ravioli are tender. Add cream and spinach and stir until spinach has wilted. Makes 6 servings. Garnish with feta cheese.

Nutrition: 403 calories, 19.9g fat, 5.0g fiber, 15.6g protein per serving
Cost: $2.20 per serving