HEARTY CHICKEN TORTILLA SOUP

Growing up in Hungary it was customary to start a meal with a bowl of soup almost every single day. Not a problem for me as I love soups, especially hearty ones - even in place of a main course. Since it is a bit cooler lately, I have been making soups quite often, and tonight is no exception. Let me share with you our tasty recipe for our delicious tortilla soup. Bring on the avocados!

Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil

• I large onion diced

• 1 large jalapeno pepper diced small (discard or include seeds for preferred heat)

• 4 garlic gloves minced (you can use a garlic press as well)

• 32 oz of chicken broth (regular or low sodium)

• 2 cans of vine ripened diced tomatoes including juice

• 1 can of black beans, drained and rinsed

• 2 cups of shredded cooked chicken - I cooked 4 pieces of chicken tenders in the broth (roasted, rotisserie or poached chicken works fine as well)

• 1 can of sweet corn

• 1 tablespoon of lime juice

• 1 teaspoon of chili powder

• 2 teaspoons of cumin

• chili flakes

• 1/4 teaspoon of cayenne pepper

• 1 teaspoon of smoked or regular paprika, I used our famous Hungarian paprika

• salt & pepper to taste

• 1/3 cup of cilantro leaves, finely chopped

Optional: but highly recommended

• avocado

• shredded cheese

• sour cream

• corn tortillas cut into strips, toasted

First, let’s prepare our tortilla strips. Preheat oven to 375 F and line a cookie pan with baking paper for easy cleanup. Spread out cut up tortilla strips and drizzle it with olive oil, season with salt. Bake it for about 15 minutes or until lightly golden brown and crispy. Set aside.

For the soup, in a large pot heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat. Add onions and jalapenos and saute for about 5 minutes, stirring intermittently. Add garlic and cook for an additional minute or two.

Pour chicken broth into pan, adding the tomatoes with its juice, black beans, chicken, ( I cooked my chicken in the broth for more flavor) corn, lime juice, cilantro, and all the seasonings. Bring it to a gentle boil, cook for about 20-30 minutes. Adjust seasonings to your taste, also you can add an extra cup or two of water if you prefer your soup with more broth.

If you used raw chicken, remove chicken pieces and on a chopping board pull them apart using two forks. Return shredded chicken into pot.

Finally add cilantro and cook for a couple more minutes.

Serve your soup in bowls, top it with tortilla strips, avocado, cheese, and sour cream. Yummy! Enjoy!