Meatless Monday

Making this tonight, and I can't wait! Will post a pic later on tonight tomorrow:

Seriously good. I snagged the recipe from this blog here, and it was a big hit! It could also use chicken, and I think that would be fantastic, but we used veggie broth and omitted the bird. We didn't miss it.

Saute veggies with olive oil until onions are translucent -- I used white onion instead of yellow ('cause it's what we had) and added in a few stalks of celery that were whimpering at me from the crisper drawer. One big poblano pepper in place of the jalepenos (toning down the heat a bit for the kids -- I love jalepenos), and half each of a zucchini and a yellow squash (don't tell the Eat In-Season Police) that were nearing their end of days. 

I adore soups for this reason, especially: their power to absorb what didn't get used up the week before. Plus, we could use some extra nutritional oomph around here, what with all the peanut butter balls and brittle floating around.

Add a can of diced green chilies, can of diced tomatoes, plenty of garlic, yummy spices, box of veggie broth... Ours simmered patiently for 20 or 30 minutes while the kids did homework and had baths. Another reason I love soups. That's a can of black beans in the background, heating with the rest of the diced squash and a couple tablespoons of sherry vinegar, for garnishing the finished soup.

Enter immersion blender: my favorite thing about this recipe! It comes out so nice and creamy, without any dairy. Roughly (read: quickly while your one-year old cries for your attention) chopped vegetables get smoothed out (read: not complained about by picky toddlers slurping soup). I love it. If I ever get around to blogging a gift list for home cooks, this item will be at the top.

Corn tortilla strips tossed in olive oil and kosher salt.

Baked at 475 for 15 minutes, stirring every 5.

Lastly, as a healthier, easier, less messy version of the traditional fried tortilla garnish, I baked the tortilla strips. The original recipe simmers them with the soup for added body and flavor, and I really wanted to try this, but my kiddos LOVE to dress up their tortilla soup with all the fixin's. And I knew they'd miss these. You could also just crumble up some tortilla chips, but we didn't have any on hand. Other toppings = cheese, cilantro, black beans and sour cream.

Ingrid's masterpiece, sans beans.

This was a very popular soup, and one that I'll definitely make again. We have leftovers, but not enough to enjoy in its original form... Since it's so creamy and nutritious, and since we have plenty of corn tortillas and cheese, it may just present itself as cheese and onion enchilada sauce tonight. Jealous?

P.S. Try it with Veramonte Sauvignon Blanc. A Chilean wine that goes for around $10 at Safeway, but absolutely does NOT taste like it. I'll try to post a review soon. This is one SB I really, really like, and I'm not always a fan.

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