Tortilla Soup

For a couple of weeks Michigan allowed us to dig out our capris and short sleeve shirts to take advantage of the burst of warm sunny days.  I would rather Indian summer come a bit later so it’s not so cold when raking leaves.  A couple of days ago the weather turned toward an actual autumn, with the chilled northern air from Canada.  The accompanying winds help bring the leaves down, creating a brown fall carpet all over our yard.  It always amazes me how if these temperatures were this “high” in February, we would run all of our errands without a coat.  Today I was chilled, just taking Fen out to potty.  Hopefully, by Christmas I will be able to face winter with a less wimpy attitude.  One good way to make the seasonal switch is by making a lot of soup.  My husband likes to see a pot available in the refrigerator at all times in the winter.  Then, he is not tempted to grab a more carb filled snack.

            Tortilla Soup

            Start with four pieces of chicken breasts, cooked and cubed.  After the cubes are cooked, place the following ingredients in the food processor:  ½ green peppers, 2 cloves, 1 onion, and 1 zucchini.  Process until all ingredients are the same size.  Add to the chicken pot and cook in 2 tablespoons of olive oil for about 8 minutes.  Add:  1 can of corn, 1 can of black beans, 2 chicken bouillon cubes, and 1 can kidney beans, 1 can of tomato sauce and 1 can of diced tomatoes.  Fill the pot 2/3 with water and add: ¼ Taco seasoning, 1 tablespoon of chili powder, ½ cup corn meal, ½ rice, 8 oz dark chocolate, chopped cilantro and the juice of two limes. Let cook until the rice is fully cooked.  Pour 2/3 into a bowl, grate cheddar cheese and add crunched up tortilla chips.  If you like it a bit hotter, add Jalapeño peppers to your own bowl.  This soup is great for warming up a person when they feel cold on the inside, so eat up and warm up.