Chicken Soup with Tortilla and Avocado

6 servings

Ingredients

For Soup

• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2 medium yellow onions, roughly chopped (about 2-1/2 cups)
• 4 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced into quarters
• 1 green bell pepper, seeded and roughly chopped
• 6 small corn tortillas, cut into small pieces
• 2 teaspoons chili powder
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 2 quarts (8 cups) low sodium chicken
• 1-1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Suggestions for Garnish

• Crushed tortilla chips
• Handful chopped fresh cilantro
• 2 cooked skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite sized pieces 
• 1-2 avocados, chopped

Instructions

1. Heat olive oil and butter in large pot over medium heat. Add onions, garlic and green pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender and just starting to brown, about 15 minutes. (Turn heat to medium-low if mixture is browning too quickly.)
2. Add cut corn tortillas, chili powder and cumin; continue to cook, stirring occasionally, a few minutes more. Add chicken stock, salt and cayenne pepper and bring to a boil. Turn heat down to low and simmer with lid slightly ajar for about 20 minutes. Off heat, use hand-held blender to puree until completely smooth (you can also do this in a blender in batches; just be careful to open the steam hole and cover with kitchen towel to avoid splatters). Stir in chicken if using, then ladle soup into bowls and garnish as you like.
3. Note: I usually use leftover or rotisserie chicken, but if you want to cook the chicken from scratch, buy two bone-in chicken breasts. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Place chicken breasts on foil-lined baking sheet, season with salt and pepper, then cook 35-40 minutes or until done. Let cool, then pull meat off the bone and cut into bite-sized pieces.

* The leftover soup will thicken in the refrigerator; add a bit of water to thin it out if necessary.