Chicken Tortilla Soup

In high school, I couldn't wait for chicken tortilla soup day. I thought it was the best thing ever. And so when I started living on my own I set out to create a better, heartier version than the watered down (but still delicious) cafeteria one.

Before I used to cook this soup in a crock pot, but I've actually found that it tastes best made up about an hour before dinner in a large saucepan on the stove.

Ingredients:

4 chicken breast halves (thawed if frozen)
2 large carrots, chopped
2 large tomatoes, sliced (I slice the tomato into 8 wedges, then halve the wedges)
3 tbsp sugar (you can use less, but I find 3 tbsp is nicest)
2 stalks celery, chopped
handful of garlic cloves, chopped (I like to use plenty of garlic)
1 medium onion, chopped
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
2 c. vegetable or chicken stalk (you can use bouillon cubes if you don't have stalk)
1 c. fresh cilantro, chopped (or more if you prefer, which I do)
1 1/2 c. corn
juice of half a lemon or lime
salt to taste
pepper to taste
hot sauce to taste
plenty of crushed tortilla chips

*I like to place fresh chopped cilantro, sour cream, salsa, shredded cheese, lime slices and avocado in separate bowls on the table for guests to add as desired. The soup can also be served with corn bread on the side.

Recipe:

Saute chicken breast halves in olive or canola oil in a large sauce pan (feel free to use lemon, lime, hot sauce, salt, and/or pepper to season). Keep covered. Once chicken is cooked through, remove from pot and set aside to cool.

Add carrots to the pot and saute for about 3 minutes. Then add tomatoes; saute for 10 to 15 minutes covered or until the flesh of the tomatoes is mushy and the skin peels right off.

In the meantime, shred the cooled chicken with a fork into small pieces. Season with salt and set aside again.

Add sugar, and salt to taste to the pot (whenever using fresh tomatoes for a sauce, I add sugar and salt; otherwise it would taste too acidic - for this recipe, I usually add more salt as I go until I'm pleased with the consistency, so don't worry about getting the right salt amount until the whole dish is complete). Stir.

Add onion, celery, garlic, black beans and corn to the pot. Stir in. Cook for 5 minutes, covered.

Finally, add shredded chicken, cilantro, and salt, pepper and hot sauce to taste. A few minutes before serving, stir in lemon/lime juice.

Serve over a handful of crushed crisp tortilla chips. If desired, garnish with cilantro.

*Should feed 6; easy to double the recipe.