Baked Tortellini

It's no secret that artichokes and spinach are among my favorite vegetables.  I cook with them a lot, and you can almost always find canned artichokes and a Costco sized bag of baby spinach in my fridge.  I also happen to love the value of frozen spinach.  Since spinach cooks down so much, it's nice to have a lot of the work done for you.  I especially love to use frozen spinach in baked pastas and sauces.  Enough about my love of spinach and on to another of my loves... Pasta.  I'm a carb kind of gal.  Life without carbs is just not one I want to live.  Pasta is probably my favorite carb ever.  This delicious dish combines my love of pasta with my love of spinach, which really just makes me a happy girl.  Here's how you make it...

Ingredients:
1 family sized pkg of cheese or spinach tortellini
1 cup of frozen spinach defrosted and drained
1 can of artichoke hearts drained and roughly chopped
4 oz. cream cheese
1/2 stick of butter
1 1/2 cups of whole milk
1/2 cup of parmesan cheese (plus a little extra for topping)
1 clove of garlic
1 cup of leftover rotisserie chicken (optional)

Directions:
Heat a large pot of water to cook tortellini.  While you are waiting for the water to boil, assemble sauce. Start by melting butter over med-low heat in a non-stick skillet.  Add the garlic and cream cheese and continue to stir until the cream cheese starts to soften.  Whisk in milk and continue to stir until cream cheese melts and sauce becomes smooth.  Add the parmesan cheese and stir until cheese is melted and combined. When the pasta water begins to boil add salt and tortellini, cook for 5 minutes then drain.  Finish the sauce by adding the drained spinach and the chopped artichoke hearts. Add the tortellini (and leftover chicken) to the sauce and stir to coat all of the pasta.  Transfer to a greased baking dish and top with a little extra grated parmesan cheese.  Bake at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes.