It Just Might be a Snail

Made a really yummy soup last night...and then as Beau and I are trying to enjoying our dinner, we turn into "those parents"...
...sit up straight...can't you just sit still...what did you just drop...have you forgotten HOW to use a napkin...please just try the soup...take just one bite...will you please stop touching each other...STOP SLURPING the soup!...no there is not poison in the soup...you have to eat some soup before you get any more bread...no you can't have any more cheese on top of your soup...

and then...
Yes, it's probably a snail in your soup, mommy likes to cook with snails...

the Snail soup...

This is a VERY easy soup, the prep is the hardest part...my suggestion is to prep everything ahead of time, open all the cans, drain, chop, zest/grate, etc. and then you can just dump the ingredients as you go...I hadn't done any prep and felt like I was running the whole time, because the recipe went faster then I had expected...

Tortellini Soup
1/2 lb Italian sausage (mild) or ground beef browned (or omitted for a vegetarian soup)
1/2 cup onion chopped
2 Celery stalks chopped
2-3 cloves garlic finely grated (I like to use my zester; the fine side of the grater for my garlic, you get all the flavor without chunks of garlic, or you can use a garlic press, but I don't own one)
3 cups beef broth or vegetable broth
1 can chopped tomatoes, drained (or one fresh tomato chopped)
1 8oz can tomato sauce
1/2 Green Bell Pepper chopped up
2 carrots peeled and chopped
1/2 -1 cup sliced up zucchini
1 tsp dried basil
1 tsp dried oregano
1- 1 1/2 cups dried tortellini (I used pesto filled, from Trader Joe's a 16 oz bag was $1.99 and I used less than 1/2 the bag...any kind/flavor would work)
Parmesan cheese for topping

Brown the sausage or beef in large sauce pan, remove meat from pan and drain all of 1 Tbl of fat from pan.  Sauté onion, celery and garlic in pan, return sausage/beef to pan, add broth, tomatoes, tomato sauce, peppers, carrots, zucchini, basil, oregano, and salt and pepper to taste.  Simmer for about 25 minutes, add tortellini and cook to package directions, around 15-20 more minutes, don't over cook the tortellini...
top with Parmesan cheese when serving.
Serve with French Bread for dipping....