Me & My Boy

I love these pictures, even though one of them is a bit blurry.

Yesterday, I had a hankering for tortilla soup. So I looked up a recipe online (thanks to Food Network), changed it to suit my own tastes, and made a big old batch. I've never made homemade soup before, and it turned out really well.

Soup: it's good, it's cheap to make, and it lasts a couple of days. In other words, economical. The recipe I used is as follows:

Gary's Tortilla Soup

Diced vegetables (1 large yellow onion, 1 green bell pepper, 1 jalapeno pepper (seeded), and 2 small tomatoes).
1 small can of roasted green chiles.
2 tablespoons olive oil.
4 cups chicken broth.
2 cloves finely chopped garlic.
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin.
2 large chicken breast halves, cooked and shredded.
8-10 white corn tortillas, cut into strips.
Chopped cilantro leaves, as needed.
The juice of one lime.
Salt, as needed.

Begin with a large pot. Saute the vegetables and chile briefly in about 2 tablespoons of oilve oil over medium-high heat, until limp. When the vegetables are limp, add the broth, garlic, and cumin, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, add chicken, and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes.

Next, take the tortilla strips and stir them into the soup. They're going to disintegrate, but this makes for good tortilla flavor as well as acting as a thickener. Last of all, stir in the cilantro and lime juice.

I served it with shredded cheddar cheese. I took some of the tortilla strips and fried them until crispy, and then sprinkled them lightly with taco seasoning. They make a good garnish, along with the cheese.