Mexican Tortilla Soup

This is the second time I've made tortilla soup on this blog.  My previous recipe uses tomatoes, but this one has a clear broth flavoured with chipotle peppers in adobo and cilantro.

It starts with a broth made from whole chicken legs, onions and garlic and adds a few beef bones for extra meaty flavour.

While the broth is simmering, fry two whole tortillas and 4 tortillas cut into strips. 

After simmering for an hour, the chicken is shredded.  Chipotles, cilantro, onion and crumbled fried tortillas are pureed and added to the broth.

The broth takes on a greenish colour with the puree added in.  The shredded chicken goes back into the soup and I added some corn as well. 

Once the soup is warmed through, place the garnishes in the bowl - avocado, chopped cilantro and shredded cheese.

Ladle the hot soup over the garnishes and top with fried tortilla strips. 

This soup is slightly spicy, hearty and warming. It makes a fantastic winter dinner. 

Here's the recipe, adapted slightly from Mark Bittman's Tortilla Soup recipe in the New York Times. 

Ingredients:
4 large chicken legs
2 meaty beef bones (optional)
1 medium onion, skin on, quartered
1 whole head garlic, halved, skin on
1/4 cup vegetable oil
6 corn tortillas
2 chipotles in adobo
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
salt
1 cup frozen corn (optional)
shredded cheese
diced avocado

Directions:

Place chicken legs, beef bones, garlic and 3/4 of onion in a large pot. Cover with water, about 10 cups. 

Bring to a boil, then reduce to a low simmer.  Cook for about an hour. 

Strain the broth through a fine sieve lined with cheesecloth or a coffee filter.  Set chicken aside to cool.  At this point you can also chill the broth to let the fat rise to the surface. 

Meanwhile, slice 4 tortillas into strips. Heat oil in a pan and cook 2 whole tortillas until light brown and crisp, about 1 minute per side. Remove tortillas and drain on paper towels.  Add tortilla strips to oil in pan and toss until brown and crisp, about 2-3 minutes. Drain strips on paper towels. 

Add the chipotles, 1/4 cup cilantro, the remaining 1/4 onion and a teaspoon of salt to a blender.  Crumble in the two whole, fried tortillas and add 2 cups of the broth.  Puree until smooth.

Remove the chicken from the bones and shred the meat. 

When ready to serve, skim the fat from the chicken broth and pour into a pot to reheat.  Add the chipotle mixture and bring to a boil.  Simmer for 10 minutes. 

Add the corn and chicken and bring back to a simmer to warm through.  Season with salt to taste. 

Add avocado, cheese and cilantro to serving bowls and pour soup over top.  Sprinkle fried tortilla strips over the top and add more cheese if desired.  

Enjoy! 

Tortilla Soup

This recipe was originally intended to use up stale tortillas, but it is so good, I bought fresh corn tortillas just for this soup.  It's rich, spicy and flavourful, and so easy to pull together in just minutes.  

I used store-bought white corn tortillas for this but you can always make your own. 

Here's what you need:

Mulled Wine

I've been really enjoying hot beverages this holiday season.  Normally I prefer cold drinks, but hot apple cider (with rum), hot chocolate (with Peppermint Kahlua), and hot mulled wine with spices have been keeping me warm lately.

Mulled wine is so easy, I can't believe I've never made it before.  You can add any spices you choose.  I went with a wide variety but you can select just a few of these:

• orange zest
• cinnamon sticks
• cloves
• sliced fresh ginger
• cardamom pods
• star anise
• peppercorns

plus about 1/4 cup of brown sugar

Pour a bottle of wine over the spices.  You can do this in a pot on the stove or in a crock pot.  If you're serving a crowd, go ahead and double this.

Warm over medium heat until steaming, then keep warm for serving.  

I like the spicy flavour the ginger adds, but you can play around until you find your personal ideal spice combination.

Ladle into mugs to serve and enjoy this winter treat.  Happy Holidays!  

Barley Mushroom Risotto

Although making a satisfying traditional risotto is one of my greatest cooking struggles, this barley risotto can't fail. It's easy and delicious every time.  It does take a bit of hands-on stirring time but the results are very satisfying.  Epicurious has the original recipe.

Here's what you need:

4.5 cups chicken or beef stock (I used a combination. It's about 1.5 cartons)

• 2 teaspoons butter
• 1 cup finely chopped onion
• 1 cup pearl barley
• 2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme or 3/4 teaspoon dried
• 1 bay leaf

• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 1 pound assorted fresh mushrooms (these are white, cremini and shiitake), sliced
• 2 garlic cloves
• 2 tablespoons chopped parsley

First, warm your stock in a small pot over medium heat until just below a boil, then set it to low to keep it warm.  I am using packaged beef stock here but this is probably the last time I'll buy it after reading that packaged chicken stock is almost always much better in quality and flavour. Using chicken stock where it calls for beef won't make your dish taste like chicken, it'll just have better flavour.  

Next, melt the butter in a bit of oil in a large pan.  I like to use a bit of oil when I cook with butter because it keeps the butter from burning.  

Add in your chopped onions and sauté until softened and translucent.

Take a cup of pearl barley which is polished barley that cooks faster than other kinds.

Add the barley and thyme to your onions.  You can chop the thyme but I just add the full stems and remove them at the end.

Stir to coat the barley with butter.

And then add 2 cups of the warm stock and bring to a boil in the pan.  Reduce heat and simmer until stock is absorbed, about 5 minutes.  

Then keep adding and stirring in additional stock about 1/2 a cup at a time until all the stock is absorbed and the barley is tender.  This'll take about 45 minutes.

Eventually it'll look something like this.

Meanwhile, as the barley cooks, add some oil to a separate pan over high heat to cook the mushrooms.

Add the mushrooms to the hot pan and brown for about 5 minutes.

Reduce heat to medium, add minced garlic and cover and cook for about 5 more minutes until tender.  

By now your barley should have absorbed all the stock and should look like this.

Add the mushrooms and chopped parsley to the barley.

And stir to combine.

Serve the glossy, rich barley and mushrooms as a vegetarian main course (substitute vegetable stock) or as an accompaniment to roasted chicken. I served it with lamb sausage and green beans.  

This is a wonderful fall and winter dish.

Italian Wedding Soup with Turkey Meatballs

This soup far, far exceeded expectations.  I didn't even expect to like it much but I absolutely loved it!  Plus, it's pretty darn healthy.  Excuse the lighting on the pictures though.  

This recipe is from Clean Eating Magazine.  

First you need to make some turkey meatballs.  
You'll need 3/4 pound of ground turkey, breadcrumbs, an egg and Italian seasoning or oregano and basil. 

Mix those ingredients together.

The nice thing about ground turkey and chicken is that you don't have to be super careful mixing it like you do with ground beef.  You can really pack it together without it becoming tough.

Roll the turkey mixture into about 30-40 small meatballs.

I placed them on a plastic wrap-covered baking sheet.

Heat some oil in a large pan.

Place half the meatballs in the pan to brown.

Cook for about 2-3 minutes.

Then flip over.

Keep flipping until  browned on all sides.

Now for the soup, here's what you need:

For two people you can use half the meatballs and freeze the rest for next time.  You'll also need onions, carrots, celery, parsnip, chicken stock, orzo and spinach.  You'll also want some more Italian seasoning, chili flakes, and some parmesan cheese.  

Peel and dice the onions, carrots and parsnip and dice the celery.

Sauté in a little oil until slightly softened.  Then add some Italian seasoning and red chili flakes.

Add four cups chicken stock.  I used homemade stock for this but you can use store-bought.  Bring it to a boil.

Stir in meatballs and 1 cup of orzo pasta.  Simmer for about 15 minutes until pasta is cooked.

Add 2 cups fresh baby spinach and stir in until wilted. 

I served the soup in a shallow bowl.

Topped with curls of fresh parmesan cheese.  This is a delicious, warming soup.  It actually really thickens up almost like a stew.  It's a great, healthy meal on a cold night.