Tortilla Soup

 

I love a fabulous bowl of tortilla soup and there are plenty of places to get one in my hometown of San Antonio, TX. Many places serve variations of this soup which includes with tomatoes or without. I have to admit, I like mine with diced tomatoes. Making tortilla soup without tomatoes doesn't seem right to me. I'm all about the garnishes when it comes to this soup. Large slices of avocado, crumbled or shredded cheese and fried tortilla strips takes this soup over the top. This is my version of this classic soup.

Tortilla Soup:

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 small onion, diced

1 bell pepper, diced

1 4 oz can diced green chilies

1 teaspoon of cumin, mexican oregano and ancho chili powder 

(You can substitute oregano for mexican oregano and chili powder for ancho chili powder)

4 cups chicken broth

1 14.5 oz can of fire roasted diced tomatoes

1 tablespoon cilantro, diced

4 small baked chicken breast, diced

Garnish:

fried corn tortilla strips or a handful of tortilla chips

1 avocado, sliced

Queso Panela (you can substitute Monterey jack cheese)

Directions:

In a large soup pot, heat olive oil. Add garlic and onion, cooking until translucent. Add in bell pepper and green chilies. Cook 4 minutes. Add in spices and mix well.  Add in tomatoes and chicken broth and bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer for 20 minutes. Add in diced chicken and cilantro and cook for another 10-15 minutes. Garnish with tortilla strips, cilantro and cheese.

Enjoy!

My Fabulous Fabio Freak Out

What embarrassing thing do you say to your celebrity Chef crush if you are me? More on that later.

I arrived at the HEB Plus thirty minutes early for Fabio's cooking demo. I was surprised there were not more people there. I don't think the event was fully advertised. Hey, better for me to get up close during the demo. Fabio was his easy going, gregarious self. He definitely knows how to work a crowd. His demo lasted 45 minutes and after we were treated to a meet and greet. Meatballs and homemade pasta were on the menu. Fabio's secret to fantastic meatballs...Ricotta cheese and cooking them in pasta sauce. His challenge to the audience... Make pasta in 2 minutes. Really, It takes me more like 2 days!! For the pasta part of the demo, he enlisted two members of the audience. They were wonderful sports and unlike me were not shaking and able to speak in complete sentences. 

I have to say, I felt like a twelve year old girl meeting Justin Bieber. The first words I blurt out of my mouth, not approved by my brain of course, I LUUUUUV YOU FABIO!! What?!?!? Did I seriously just tell Fabio I "LUUUUVED HIM"? Now, My brain has to focus and recover. I try to regain my composure and ask him a question. "How was your Shot Ski experience on Jimmy Fallon?". After a mishap with my camera, Fabio snapped this photo of us. If I close my eyes, I think I'm back in Tuscany drinking red wine and eating pasta. Overall, It was a memorable experience. Luckily, I was not hauled off by security.