Chicken Tortellini Soup with Sage Pesto

Holy cow, delicious food! Combine cheesy tortellini with sauteed chicken, and fantastic homemade sage pesto.

Ingredients:

- 1 cup walnuts
- 1 cup tightly packed flat-leaf parsley leaves
- 1/4 cup fresh sage leaves
- 1 clove garlic, smashed
- 1/3 to 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1/3 cup grated Romano cheese
- salt and pepper

- 1 tablespoon canola oil
- salt and pepper
- 6 oz chicken breast
- 8 cups chicken stock (or less if you want it to be less "soupy")
- 9 oz fresh cheese tortellini
- grated Romano or Parmesan cheese
- parsley

Directions:

To make the pesto: combine the nuts, parsley, sage, and garlic in a food processor until coarsely ground. With the motor running, slowly add 1/3 cup of the oil until the mixture is emulsified. Add the cheese, salt, and pepper; pulse a few times until it reaches a loose-paste consistency. Scrape into a bowl.

To make the soup: heat the canola oil in a medium saucepan over high heat. Season the chicken breast with salt and pepper on both sides; cook until golden brown, about 3 minutes per side. Remove chicken to a plate. Drain any fat left in the pan, then add the chicken stock and bring to a boil over high heat. Replace the chicken into the stock; cover the pan tightly and remove the heat. Let the chicken sit in the hot broth until cooked through (about 8 minutes). Remove the chicken breast to a plate and let cool for 10 minutes, then shred into small pieces.

Return the stock to high heat and bring to a boil. Add the tortellini and cook until tender (about 7 minutes). Season with salt and pepper. Stir in the shredded chicken. Ladle soup into bowls and add a scoop of sage pesto and a sprinkling of cheese; garnish with parsley.