Trader Joe’s Mexican Style Roasted Corn with Tortellini

During the week everyone is busy, especially now that kids are going back to school, and easy weeknight dinners are a must. I love using Trader Joe’s frozen or pre-made items to help pull a meal together in minutes Here I enlist the help of Trader Joe’s Mexican Style Roasted Corn (which can be found in the freezer section). This corn is quite tasty on it’s own, served as a side dish with some tacos but add some tortellini and you have yourself a whole flavorful, satisfying, meatless meal in minutes. 

I do add a few extra ingredients to help the meal taste fresh, almost like it's homemade. I start by sautéing some garlic and jalapeño in a bit of oil before adding in the frozen corn. As a side note: the cotija cheese that comes with the frozen corn is in a little packet so be sure to remove that before pouring the corn to a hot pan. When you add Trader Joe’s Mexican Style Roasted Corn you will notice frozen chunks of sauce that will melt as the corn cooks and add flavor to the whole dish. While the corn is cooking you will also want to cook the cheese tortellini. I usually cook them for a minute or two less than the package directions and make sure to reserve a quarter cup of the water before draining. Once they are ready, add the tortellini to the pan of corn with the packet of cotija cheese and the reserved pasta water. This combo gets nice and saucy and coats all the tortellini. I usually continue to cook for a minute or two, you will notice the pasta water reduces slightly and then remove the pan from the heat. Add a big handful of chopped cilantro, the juice from half a lime and a little bit of salt to taste. And dinner is done!

I like to serve this with a little extra cotija cheese (you can buy this at Trader Joe’s as well), a sprinkle of fresh cilantro and a lime wedge. This whole meal comes together in about 15 minutes thanks to Trader Joe’s flavorful frozen corn and quick cooking tortellini and is so satisfying and delicious. Enjoy!

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Trader Joe's Mexican Style Roasted Corn and Tortellini

Prep time: 5 MinCook time: 10 MinTotal time: 15 Min

Ingredients

• 1 package cheese tortellini
• 1 package Trader Joe's Mexican Style Roasted Corn
• 1 jalapeño, seeds removed and finely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup cotija cheese
• juice from 1/2 a lime
• handful of cilantro, roughly chopped
• salt to taste

Instructions

1. BOIL: Start by boiling a pot of water to cook the tortellini. Cook for about a minute less than the package direction. Reserve 1/4 cup of the cooking water before draining. 
2. COOK: In a large sauté pan, heat about a tablespoon of oil over medium heat. Add the jalapeño and garlic and cook for about 2 minutes. Add the package of Trader Joe's corn (make sure to remove the package of cheese). Cook until heated through and the cubes of seasoning have melted. Add the tortellini, the package of cheese (from the roasted corn) and the reserved cooking water. Mix everything through and continue to cook for another minute until the water reduces slightly. Remove from heat.
3. ASSEMBLE: Once everything is cooked through and the pan removed from the heat. Add the juice from half a lime, the cilantro and about half the cotija cheese (not the packet from the corn) and mix well. Taste and add salt as needed. Divide the tortellini into dishes and top with remaining cotija, some cilantro and a lime wedge. Enjoy!