Chicken Tortilla Soup

This is a quick and easy yummy soup. It takes about 30 minutes if you have everything ready (45 if you need to cut and cook the chicken and crush the tomatoes). It's pretty healthy too. I made a few changes, but there is a link to the original recipe. We make it all the time - well, on a cool day. I updated it with pictures!

Chicken Tortilla Soup

INGREDIENTS
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes
2 1/2 cups chicken broth
1 can white hominy
1 (4 ounce) can chopped green chile peppers
1 (15 ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1 boneless chicken breast half, cooked and cut into bite-sized pieces
crushed tortilla chips
sliced avocado
shredded Monterey Jack cheese
chopped green onions

DIRECTIONS
In a medium stock pot, heat oil over medium heat. Saute onion and garlic in oil until soft. Stir in chili powder, oregano, tomatoes, and broth. Bring to a boil, and simmer for 5 to 10 minutes.
Stir in , hominy, chiles, beans, parsley, and chicken. Simmer for 10 minutes.
Ladle soup into individual serving bowls, and top with crushed tortilla chips, avocado slices, cheese, and chopped green onion.


Notes: I didn't have any parsley, the kids don't like green onions, and I only used one chicken breast. I usually boil the chicken pieces. I add some chicken bullion to that water for the chicken broth.

Cooking the onions and garlic

I used diced tomatoes.

So I use my handy hand blender - one of my favorite wedding gifts - OK we used a gift certificate

Adding the spices

Add the tomatoes and chicken broth

After rinsing the beans and draining the hominy, I put the remaining in the colander

Add to the broth and mix

Then get the toppings ready

Grating the cheese

Have you seen these graters from IKEA? I love them!

Do you know how to cut an avocado?
Slice it in half

If you are dicing it, cut it while still in the skin

then use a spoon to dig it out

ta da!

The pit comes out easily if it's ripe and you stick your knife into it a bit and lift it out.

Soup's ready

Top it off!