Tortilla Soup

This post originally appeared on The Confident Mom’s Blog, where How To: Simplify regularly contributes monthly guest posts filled with tips, tricks and recipes to simplify life in the kitchen.

One of my all-time favorite meals is a crusty deli sandwich with a warm bowl of homemade soup. I love dunking the crunchy bread into the soup to soften its edges and to marry all of the flavors in one bite. To me, this meal is comforting on so many levels. It brings me back to my childhood and it also keeps me nice and warm, especially during these chilly winter months.

Making homemade soup can seem a bit daunting at first, especially when it’s so easy to open a can and pour the contents into a saucepan. However, once you gather up enough courage to tackle a soup recipe, it usually turns out to be simple and, in the long run, you can enjoy it for days. I love playing with the flavors of homemade chicken noodle soup, experimenting with tomatoes in a tomato bisque or chopping vegetables to add to this simple Tortilla Soup.

When it comes to Mexican or TexMex food, you can guarantee I’ll be the first in line to pile my plate high. That is why it comes as no surprise that I took my love for soup and combined it with Mexican-inspired flavors to create this Tortilla Soup. It’s simple to prepare and it cooks in a matter of minutes. If you have tortilla chips, guacamole and sour cream on hand, you will have yourself a pot of flavorful soup that the whole family will enjoy.

Tortilla Soup

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1/2 cup chopped green bell peppers
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 3 1/2 cups chicken broth
• 1 3/4 cups chunky salsa
• 1 cup whole kernel corn
• Salt and pepper (to taste)
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 6 corn tortillas, cut into 1/2-inch strips
• 3/4 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese
• Sour cream (optional)

Directions:

1. Melt butter in a medium saucepan. Add bell pepper, onion and cumin. Cook for 3-4 minutes or until tender.
2. Stir in chicken broth, salsa and corn. Bring to a boil and season with salt and pepper.
3. Heat oil in a pan and add tortilla strips. Cook/fry until the strips are light brown and crisp. Remove from pan and place on a paper towel to drain. Sprinkle with salt.
4. Place a few strips and some cheese into a bowl and pour soup over top. Garnish with a dollop of sour cream (optional) and tortilla strips. Repeat with remaining bowls.