Chicken Tortilla Soup with The Kids Cook Monday!

 

Is it starting to get a little cooler where you live?  It's still warm here in Florida but we've been having cooler mornings and nights so I know our Fall weather will be here shortly.  It's the perfect time for soup (even though I love eating homemade soup anytime of the year). 

I thought this would be a great chance to try a new soup recipe for a healthy start to the week.  Make sure to check out the website for The Kids Cook Monday!  for tips and ideas on how to start your week off in a positive way.  

This soup is comforting and filling.  It's full of good for you ingredients and was enjoyed by all.  I recommend adding salt to taste and adding more chili powder or cayenne pepper if you like your tortilla soup a bit more spicy. 

I love discovering new blogs.  I get so many recipe ideas and inspiration.  This recipe comes from the blog, Skinny Kitchen.   Check it out for more ideas on making meals healthier.

Chicken Tortilla Soup

Slightly adapted, Recipe by Skinny Kitchen

5 - 6 servings

Ingredients

1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
1 ½ - 2 cups chopped onion
2 tablespoons chopped garlic
2 (6-inch) corn tortillas, chopped
2 tablespoons tomato paste
2 teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon cumin 
⅛ teaspoon ground red pepper
6 to 6 1/2 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 (15 oz) can diced tomatoes - I used fire-roasted tomatoes
1 (14 oz) can yellow hominy, drained and rinsed
1 (14 oz) can low sodium black beans, drained and rinsed
2 cups cooked chopped chicken - see cooking tip at bottom of post
Juice of one lime

Topping

1 ¼ cups tortilla chips, crushed
Shredded Cheddar cheese - optional

Instructions

1. In a large nonstick pot, add the olive oil, onions and garlic. Sauté for 1 minute.
2. Add the chopped tortillas, tomato paste, paprika, chili powder, cumin and cayenne pepper and sauté for 2 minutes.
3. Stir in the chicken broth and tomatoes. Bring up to a boil, turn down heat and simmer for 15 minutes.
4. Add the hominy, beans, chicken and fresh squeezed lime juice. Mix well. Cook 10 minutes more.
5. Garnish with shredded cheese and crushed tortilla chips.

I've never used Hominy before and honestly didn't know what it was.  Good time for a learning opportunity. So, Mariah looked it up on the internet. 

Per Recipetips.com, Hominy is:  "A corn product created by soaking white or yellow corn kernels in scalding water that is mixed with a chemical solution, such as a mild lye or slaked lime. The soaking forces the kernel to expand so the hull and germ split. This allows the kernel to be easily removed so that the remaining corn substance can be dried. After it has been dried, the whole kernels are soaked in water and a solution mixed with limestone or wood ash to expand the kernels, which are then boiled, creating a soft puffy food product referred to as Hominy.  Whole hominy can be boiled or fried and served as a side dish, with or without additional ingredients (meat, vegetables, or other foods), formed into cakes, or served as a filler in soups, stews and salads. Hominy grits are another form of hominy, produced by grinding the dried and processed corn kernels several times into a finer grained substance to be sold as fine, medium, or coarse textured hominy." 

The girls really helped me out in the kitchen today.  Marissa cut up the cooked chicken and helped pour in some of the ingredients like the beans and diced tomatoes.  Mariah sauteed the onions as I was busy prepping the other ingredients.

 

Enjoy!

Mom's Cooking Club Lesson:  Time saving tip for cooked chicken - Roast chicken breasts the night before or in morning.  Place in refrigerator.  You then have cooked chicken ready to use in your recipe that is moist, juicy and flavorful.  Directions:  Preheat oven to 450 degrees.  Use chicken breasts with bones and skin and place on baking sheet.  Drizzle some canola or olive oil over chicken and season with salt/pepper.  Place in top portion of oven and roast for 30 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.  Pull off skin and discard.  Shred or cut up cooked chicken as needed in your recipe. 

Udon-Beef Noodle Bowl

I can't believe it's already August.  I know time is flying by when it's another month of the Cooking Light Virtual Supper Club.  My four other Supper Club friends want to share another great menu with you this month.  The theme for August is, "A Visit to Chinatown".  

Making Asian-style food at home always tastes so good and flavorful.  Who needs take-out when you can make these dishes at home.  I made Cooking Light's Udon-Beef Noodle Bowl.  What a satisfying and comforting meal.  Really delicious.

Note:  I used more beef than the recipe called for, a little over a pound.  I also couldn't find udon noodles in my grocery store so I used dried lo mein noodles which I found in the Asian section of my store.  Spaghetti can be substituted as well.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Click here for the Udon-Beef Noodle Bowl recipe on Myrecipe.com   

What did my other Cooking Light buddies bring to our Chinatown menu?

Sandi (Whistlestop Cafe Cooking) made Asian Turkey Cabbage Cups

Val (More than Burnt Toast) brought Salt-Baked Chicken

Shelby (The Life & Loves of Grumpy's Honeybunch) made Ma Po Tofu

Patsy (Food, Family and Friends) made Pork & Stir Fried Veggies in Spicy Sauce

Jamie (me from Mom's Cooking Club) made Udon-Beef Noodle Bowl

Hope you enjoyed this month's menu.  I'll be back soon with more recipes and don't forget to check back in September for another meal with the Cooking Light Virtual Supper Club.   

Enjoy!

Mom's Cooking Club Lesson:  Udon Noodles are thick wheat flour noodles and are very popular in Japanese cuisine and used often in hot soup. 

No Fuss (Easy) Chicken Noodle Soup

This is my kind of soup....quick, easy, delicious and good for you.  When I saw this chicken soup in the recent (Jan/Feb) edition of Cooking Light magazine, I knew it would be a great weeknight meal.  It uses the convenience of rotisserie chicken that I bought at my grocery store.  I increased the recipe 1.5 times because I wanted leftovers and enough broth.  So I used 3 cups water and 48 oz. of chicken broth.  I then increased the other ingredients a little bit.  I also heated the water and broth in the saucepan instead of the microwave.  I used rotini pasta but you could use wide egg noodles, fusilli or orzo. 

Click here for the Quick Chicken Noodle Soup recipe on Myrecipes.com

This was a wonderful soup and it was enjoyed by all.

Enjoy!

Mom's Cooking Club Lesson:  Pair this soup with some Skillet Rosemary Rolls for a satisfying meal.

Three Cheese Tortellini Soup with Summer Vegetables

Soup? I know what you're thinking. Why would I make soup when it's so blazing hot outside. Well, because soup is a great light, healthy and comforting dinner. I had a package of tortellini's in the refrigerator and came up with this wonderful, satisfying soup. Everyone and I mean everyone loved this soup. Even my daughters ate the zucchini and squash in the soup and they normally don't eat these vegetables. The base of the soup was inspired by Prudence Pennywise's Tuscan Vegetable Soup. This is another fantastic soup that you must try. So, even though you may break a slight sweat while eating this soup, it will be worth it.

Three Cheese Tortellini Soup with Summer Vegetables

Recipe by Jamie from Mom's Cooking Club

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/2 large onion, chopped

2 carrots, peeled and chopped in bite size rounds

1 stalk celery, chopped

1 large garlic clove, minced

1 teaspoon dried basil

pinch of crushed red pepper flakes

1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

1 - 14 oz can of Italian Style Diced Tomatoes (Basil, Garlic & Oregano), pureed in blender

2 - 14 oz cans of low sodium & fat-free chicken broth

1 yellow summer squash, chopped

1 zucchini, chopped

9 oz package of fresh 3 cheese tortellini (I used Buitoni brand)

Parmesan Cheese

In a large stockpot, heat olive oil over medium high heat. Add onions, carrots, celery and garlic. Cook about 5 minutes or until vegetables are softened, stirring often. Add basil, pepper flakes and balsamic vinegar. Cook for 30 seconds. Add pureed tomatoes and broth. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and cook for 15 minutes.


Add tortellini, squash and zucchini. Bring to a simmer and cook about 8-10 minutes until pasta and vegetables are cooked through. Add salt and pepper to taste. Serve with Parmesan cheese, if desired.

This is the brand of pasta I used.




Enjoy!



Mom's Cooking Club Lesson: It was my sister-in-law, Pam, who turned me on to these fresh pastas. I never paid much attention to them in the grocery store. Well, they are great. I buy them when they are on sale and they last awhile in your refrigerator or you can freeze them. You don't even have to defrost them. You can use them frozen. They are convenient to have on hand when you want a quick dinner.