Lemon Tortellini

Ingredients

1 lb. fresh or frozen cheese tortellini

1 cup frozen peas

4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter

1 bunch flat-leaf spinach (about six cups)

1 medium beefsteak tomato, coarsely chopped

1 grilled chicken breast

1 lemon's worth of finely grated lemon zest and juice

Salt and pepper

Directions

Cook the tortellini according to the package directions, adding the peas during the last minute of cooking. Meanwhile, melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat and cook, stirring frequently, until golden, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the spinach and tomato and cook, tossing occasionally, until the spinach is wilted and the tomato begins to soften, 4 to 5 minutes more. Add the tortellini, peas, lemon zest and juice, salt and pepper to taste, and toss to combine.

Frozen Mamas directions

Defrost the bag with all of the ingredients but keep the tortellini bag frozen. Chop chicken up into bite size pieces and microwave until heated through. Follow directions above, adding the chicken, plus salt and pepper, in the last step.

Old Spaghetti Factory's Spaghetti with Burnt Butter Recipe

Ingredients:
1 cup butter
1 cup mizithra cheese-Substituted Parmesan Cheese
pasta of choice

Directions:

There is a terrific dish served by The Old Spaghetti Factory chain, called Spaghetti with Browned Butter,. It is served topped with shredded Mizithra cheese (a Greek hard cheese). If mizithra is not available (I am able to easily locate it St. Louis at cheese shops and some supermarkets), a blend of ricotta salata and romano is suggested

Browned Butter Procedure: Cut 2 sticks of butter into 8 pieces and place in a 2-quart sauce pan. Place the pan of butter on a burner on medium heat. Bring butter to a slow boil (about 5 minutes).

Once the butter begins to boil, stir constantly to prevent residue from sticking to the bottom of the pan. As the butter cooks, it will start to foam and rise. Continue stirring, otherwise the butter foam could overflow (about 5 minutes) and catch fire.

Once the butter stops foaming and rising, cook until amber in color (about 1 to 2 minutes). It will have a pleasant caramel aroma.

Turn off the heat and remove pan from burner. Let the sediment settle to the bottom of the pan for a few minutes.

Pour the brown butter through a strainer into a small bowl. Do not disturb the residue at the bottom of the pan.

The brown butter can be stored in the refrigerator and reheated in a microwave as needed.

Boil the pasta of choice until Al Dente. Drain pasta and divide into four servings. Spread 1/4 cup of Mizithra over each pasta serving. Top with 1/4 cup of hot brown butter.(We found that was way too much butter, so we poured a couple of big spoonfuls, and topped with cheese).