Cheese Tortellini & Zucchini Ribbons in Brown Butter

I needed a super quick dinner the other night and this delicious little goodie fit the bill! I had just finished at the gym, needed to shop for the ingredients, got home & showered, and THEN started making it and I was eating within 20 minutes!

These flavors came together so nicely and it was SO good, you will not even feel like you’re eating healthy. But you are…and it’s pasta…with cheese in it…cooked in butter…with more cheese on top. You’re welcome.

Ingredients:

1 pound of fresh, frozen or boxed cheese tortellini (any flavor filling would be great, really)

4 T butter (I actually used Smart Balance with Omega 3 and it was perfect)

2 medium shallots, minced

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 small/medium zucchini (thinly sliced – use either a veggie peeler or a mandolin, and slice lengthwise)

1 pint cherry tomatoes, sliced in half

½ tsp sea salt

¼ tsp grated nutmeg

½ tsp fresh ground pepper

½ cup grated Parmesan

Crushed red pepper flakes, to taste

Preparation:

Bring a large saucepan of water to boil; salt if preferred. Cook the tortellini following the package directions. Tip*: these do not take long. Try to time it so that you’re draining the pasta when the below ingredients are almost done (they only take about 6 minutes).

In the meantime, melt butter in a large skillet over med/high heat. Let it cook until it just begins to turn brown (about 1 ½ minutes). See the slight brown color below: