For some reason, when I first started cooking, I was just desprate to figure out a fantastic recipe for Chicken Tortilla soup. And then, I got scared, but I only sort of like Chicken Noodle soup so I quit trying for a while. I’m going to be honest here and tell you that while I was looking for a reliable recipe, I was also looking for a result that looked appealing. I’ve seen a lot of tortilla soups in my search and not one of them, no matter how yummy it sounded, it didn’t look good to me.

As the weather here chills, I find myself wanting to spend my afternoons curled up with the kids, instead of in the kitchen cooking. This recipe is something quick and easy and makes your home smell comforting. I will warn you though, my kids don’t eat soup (I suspect the texture wierds them out a bit in addition to the fact that it takes an awful lot of coordination to get a spoon of liquid from a bowl to your mouth…). Therefore, this is more of a date night or dinner guests sort of meal for us. I made my own tortilla chips from whole wheat tortillas, but they did not keep well at all. Oh well, at least we tried!

Hearty Chicken Tortilla Soup

• 3 large chicken breasts
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1 large green pepper, chopped
• 1 jalapeno pepper, halved and seeded
• 1 quart tomato puree
• 1 quart chicken broth
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 Tbsp. cumin
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2 cups black beans (optional)
• 1 cup corn (optional)