Save the Earth and Tortilla Soup

Madelyn was sick and out of school for 3 days last week. When she went back she found she had missed 3 big assignments having to do with "Saving the Earth." Last weekend, to catch up, we researched facts on the internet and made a poster, a recycled craft, and a slide show. The picture above is from her slide show. She's demonstrating how one should use fans instead of air conditioning to save energy and produce fewer pollutants. We ran around the house and took as many pictures as we could of Madelyn turning off lights, saving water, and re-using grocery bags as trash can liners. We actually had quite a good time. The only snag came when it was time to burn the slide show on a DVD so she could take it to school. Jon has been in Michigan for a job interview all week (coming home tonight! Yay!), so I had no one to trouble shoot for me. Google came to the rescue, however, and gave me a simple solution for my perplexing error that kept popping up. So we got it done. I made Tortilla Soup for dinner tonight. It is delicious - amazing flavor.

Chicken Tortilla Soup

8 TBSP canola oil
10 corn tortillas
1 onion
3 garlic cloves
1 small bunch of cilantro
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 yellow bell pepper, chopped
2 - 14.5 oz cans diced tomatoes
5-6 c chicken stock
1/2 TBSP ground cumin
1 TBSP chili powder
4 bay leaves
1 lb skinless chicken thighs
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
14 oz canned or frozen corn
2 cans black beans, rinsed and drained
juice from 1 lime
avocado, shredded cheddar cheese, sour cream


Cut up 5 of the tortillas into 1/4 inch strips and fry them in 3 TBSP canola oil. You want them to be a golden brown but be careful not to burn them, they cook quickly. Depending on the size of your pot, you may have to cook several at at a time. Remove the strips from pot and transfer to some paper towels to drain. Season with a little salt.

Heat the remaining oil over medium high heat and sauté the onions for a couple of minutes. Then add garlic and sauté for another minute or two. Tear the remaining corn tortillas into bite size pieces and add to the pot.

Now add the cilantro, stir, and cook for a minute more. Stir in the bell peppers. Add the canned tomatoes with their juice and the chicken stock, cumin, chili powder, and bay leaves and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer, add the whole chicken pieces and cayenne. Cover and simmer the chicken for 30 minutes until cooked throughout. Remove the chicken and put aside to cool. Add corn and beans. Continue to simmer.

Debone and shred chicken and return to the pot. Add your lime juice and taste for spiciness. If you like it hotter, add more of the spices.

Serve soup with the fried tortillas, freshly diced avocado, grated cheddar cheese, and sour cream.