Chicken Tortilla Soup

I made this last night for dinner. It was delicious, simple, quick to make, and surprisingly pretty healthy.

Ingredients:
- 2 flour or 4 corn soft tortillas, cut into 1-by-2-inch strips
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast, trimmed of fat and diced
- 2 cups bell peppers, diced - I used red and orange
- 1 cup diced onion, I used shallots
- 1/2 a regular can of corn, or a small can
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 2 (14-ounce) can reduced-sodium chicken broth
- 1 (14-ounce) can diced tomatoes with green chiles
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
- 2 tablespoons lime juice
- 3/4 cup shredded reduced-fat Cheddar or Monterey Jack cheese
- couple dollops of sour cream, if desired
- couple shakes of hot sauce, if desired (I used Cholula)

Directions:
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Spread tortillas strips in a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake until lightly browned and crisp, 5-7 for flour, 10-12 for corn.
- Meanwhile, heat oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add chicken and cook, stirring occasionally, until beginning to brown, 3 to 4 minutes. (Don't have a dutch oven? No big deal, use a moderately sized pot)
- Add peppers, onions and cumin to the pot. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are lightly browned, about 4 minutes.
- Add broth, tomatoes, pepper and lime juice; bring to a simmer and cook, stirring often, until the vegetables are tender. Continue stirring, until heated through. Remove from the heat.
- Serve topped with the toasted tortilla strips, a little sour cream, and some cheese.

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This recipe makes about 2-4 servings. I doubled it. We were able to both eat a portion, refrigerate a portion for our lunches, and freeze the rest for a later date. I've been trying to do this a lot recently. We've got a jam-packed fall and I feel like there will be a lot of days where we're going to need something very easy, sans cooking. We'll be able to pull this out of the freezer, put it in a saucepan, and heat it up and enjoy... again!

Meatloaf, chantilly potatoes, and glazed carrots.

Most of the time, when people compliment my cooking I deflect with mention of recipes. This meal, compliments were accepted. I created each portion of this meal. I used knowledge from things learned and just cooked. No recipe to continuously refer to. It was up to me to create a flavor profile and I can't believe how well it turned out. Not to toot my own horn, but I couldn't have been more proud.

Let's start with the meatloaf. Pay mind, that this is not your mama's meatloaf. It was loaded up and very flavorful. It was crumbly, but only because it was so moist.

Meatloaf



1lb of ground beef (I used a 1/2 -1/2 sirloin/chuck to decrease fat content)
1 egg
1 large shallot, diced
2 tbl A-1
1 tbl worcestershire
2 cloves of garlic
1/4 cup ketchup + extra for topping loaf
1/4-1/3 cup Italian style breadcrumbs
3 tbl whipped cream cheese
3 tbl sour cream
6 slices of bacon, (4 chopped up tiny)
1/3 + 1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese (Steven loves sharp, so that's what I used)
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper

1. Getcha hands in there! Mix everything together, except the 2 whole bacon slices, and 1/4 cup of cheese.
2. Roll it into a big ball. I find it's easier to form into a meatloaf shape that way. Put the loaf into a pan; I used one a little larger to give it some room to breathe.
3. I topped the meatloaf with the remaining 2 slices of bacon (cut them into thirds and arranged on the top of it). I also sprinkled the remaining 1/4 cup of cheese on the top. I also topped with ketchup - made for the crispy crunchy top you see in the picture above.
3. Bake at 375 for about 45 minutes. Check it as it cooks for desired doneness.


Glazed Carrots



Sounds kinda fancy huh? They were simple and delicious! Most importantly, they just simmered while I prepared the rest of the meal which is always time appreciated.

5 large carrots, with a quick peel (doesn't have to be perfect) and angled chop
1 can of diet orange soda
1 tbl butter
1 1in piece of ginger
1 tbl soy
2 tsp rice vinegar

Add everything together and simmer on med-low (might be medium depending on your stove), until carrots attain desired tenderness. Think about 30-45 minutes.


Chantilly Potatoes



Sounds fancy, huh? Not as difficult as you might think :) I've only read chantilly recipes, and I totally made this one up.. in a healthier (less fat) way.

3lbs of potatoes, peeled and chopped into small 1in cubes
1 shallot
3 slices of bacon, chopped small
1/3 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup fat free half and half
1tbl sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/2-1 cup havarti (or desired cheese)
1/4 cup parmesean cheese (shredded)

1. Boil the potatoes as if you were making traditional mashed potatoes.
2. Whip the vanilla, sugar, heavy cream and half and half together - it will not whip up as the heavy cream usually does, but it will becoming bubbly and fluffy.
2. Combine remaining ingredients (except bacon) and fold in the cream/half-half mixture.
3. Once the potatoes are tender enough, mash them!
4. Fold everything together.
5. Sprinkle bacon on the top, and broil. Broiling times of ovens vary, so you will have to keep a close eye on this one.


Here's the finished product:


Here's a tiny tip.. utilize foil! Anytime I know we won't be up for a ton of dishes I line the pans with foil. I can hear you hippies saying that's not the best for the environment, but I use recycled foil and that's less damaging to the earth than the water it would take to clean the pans :) Time saving and earth conscious? Yes, please!

Enjoy!