Chicken Taco Soup

Incase you are thinking "she said she tried 5 recipes, but she only talked about two" let me mention that the malted milk chocolate chip cookies were good, though you wouldn't be able to identify that extra special taste as malted milk if you didn't know. I might add more next time. I also tried to make macarons which will require another attempt and the white nectarine galette (but with the peaches and nectarines I had). Funny thing about the galette- I took it to a gathering, then left before we cut into it so I have NO IDEA how it was. It turned out too juicy, but I think it's because I swapped out the 4 small white flesh nectarines for 4 large, juicy nectarines and peaches. It looked good though.

Ok so the soup. I got a recipe for something similar while looking for some "lighter" options, but adjusted it for what I was trying to clean out of the pantry. (The previously mentioned cousin Mandy also sent me a similar recipe that I'll have to try out as well! She really needs to be a guest blogger here; I'll get on that.)

It was good, tasted really fresh, and had just enough spice. I added some sour cream to top off my bowl and it was delicious; next time I might add some guacamole. I'm excited to have left overs for the next few days. The original recipe said it made 4 servings, but I think it will be 6-8 for me (as a main entree). And this one is obviously an easy one to edit to your liking! Enjoy.

What I used:

1/2 lb boneless, skinless chicken, cut into smaller-than-bite-size cubes

salt & pepper

1 small onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, diced

1/4 a green pepper, diced (could have used more if I'd had it)

2 tsp. cumin

3 large or 6-7 small tomatoes, diced (you could used canned if needed, 2-3 cups)

1 c. salsa

4 c. chicken broth

10 oz. corn, I used canned, you could go frozen or even fresh

10 oz. black beans, rinsed (or whatever the regular size can is)

you could add cilantro or lime or both, but I don't like cilantro and I didn't have any lime :)

What to do:

Spray a skillet with cooking spray; salt and pepper and brown the chicken in the skillet. Set aside. Wipe and spray the pan, add a little olive oil if you like (my sister says I put olive oil in everything, but it's the good-for-you oil!), and cook the garlic, onion, and peppers. Sprinkle these with cumin and cook until tender. While the peppers and onions are cooking, start a soup pot heating with the chicken stock. Once this is lightly simmering, add tomatoes, salsa, beans, and corn. Once cooked, add the garlic, peppers, and onions as well as the chicken to the pot. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes or until you are ready to eat.

You can cook of liquid or add liquid as you choose, but know that this will be a runny soup with a clearish broth. I wasn't sure about the liquidyness at first, but it was really good. And then I added the sour cream which made it creamy; you could add some cheese too if that's your style.

This dish required a lot of chopping/dicing which I always find sanity-inducing. It's so methodical! Enjoy!

Sidenote: I made my own granola bars last weekend and, while delicious, they turned out pretty crumbly. I'm going to try again to try to get them to hold together better and then I'll share my recipe with you.