Sans Tortilla Soup

I love soup season. The delicious aroma of a slow-cooked soup when I come home is one of the most delicious and comforting smells in the world. It doesn’t matter what kind of day I had, because all is right when I step through the door and my home smells of dinner. I have been contemplating doing some sort of soup marathon, partially for my love of soups and partially to expand my soup making horizons. I can’t wait until it is slightly cooler to start it out. What is your favorite Fall soup?

This soup is our go-to. Spicy, scrumptious Tortilla Soup. Which we have coined “sans tortilla soup” since we never actually put any tortillas in it. I am not a big fan of the added tortilla chip that gets all soggy in the soup. I do love the combination of flavors, spicy kicks of chili powder, green chiles, and enchilada sauce, with smoky cumin, slow-cooked chicken, and hearty diced tomatoes. Delicious!

Sans Tortilla Soup

Ingredients:

• 6-8 chicken tenderloins, thawed
• 2 (14 oz) cans of black beans, drained
• 1 (14 oz can) diced tomatoes
• 1 (8 oz can) green enchilada sauce
• 1 (4 oz) can of diced green chiles
• 1 box reduced-sodium chicken broth
• 2 bay leafs
• 1 teaspoon powdered cumin seed
• 2 teaspoons chili powder (we used chipotle chili)
• 1 tablespoon of your favorite hot sauce (we like Frank’s)
• salt and pepper to taste
• Sometimes I like to add a pinch of sugar and cinnamon to give it a spicy, sweet flavor (optional)

Preparation:

1. In a large slow-cooker add all of the ingredients and set to low.
2. Cook for 5 hours and then shred the chicken. Cook for another 30 minutes and serve hot.
3. Serve with: tortilla chips or wheat crackers, shredded cheese, or sour cream (to make it creamy)

The Fresh Fridge Tip: My favorite thing about this soup is all of the flavor combinations you can modify and change to suit your tastes. Other yummy additions could include diced white onions, white & yellow corn, or diced green bell peppers!