Let me begin by stating one of the basic facts of my life: I love soup.

I really don’t care what the season is, what the weather is, or even what time of day it is- I simply love soup!  There’s just something so wonderfully comforting and relaxing about a good (not out of a can) bowl of soup, preferably with some fresh bread alongside, and I refuse to limit that wonderful feeling to a set time, temperature, or season.  As far as I’m concerned, it’s always a good day for soup!

This weekend’s soup offering was one of my favorites, a variation on a Crock-Pot Chicken Tortilla Soup recipe I found on DisneyFamily.com several months back.  I’m not usually a fan of soups that are heavy on the tomatoes, but something about this recipe pulled me in, so I decided to give it a shot.  Of course, as usual, I didn’t have all of the ingredients on hand, so I made some changes along the way that I ended up liking better than the original!  You can see the first version of the recipe by clicking the link above, but here’s my version of Chicken Tortilla Soup:

Chicken Tortilla Soup

Ingredients

• 4-6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs (I get them in packages of 6, so I put them all in)
• 2 10-ounce cans of RO*TEL tomatoes, including juice (I use one Mild and one Mexican Lime & Cilantro, but you can use the spicier versions if desired)
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 yellow onion, diced
• 1 15-ounce can of petite diced tomatoes, including juice
• 1 32-ounce box of chicken broth
• 1 teaspoon cumin (chili powder works in a pinch)
• Kosher salt and pepper (as desired- I rarely add either)
• Shredded Monterey jack cheese
• Chopped fresh tomatoes (for garnish)
• Fresh tortillas, cut into strips, or tortilla chips (for garnish)

Directions

1. Place the boneless, skinless chicken thighs in the bottom of your slow cooker.  (I prefer to use a disposable liner in my slow cooker- it’s not perfect, but it cuts down the clean-up considerably!)
2. In a large bowl, mix the RO*TEL, garlic, onion, canned tomatoes, cumin, and 1 cup of the chicken broth.
3. Pour the tomato mixture over the chicken, spreading to distribute evenly. 
4. Cover and cook on HIGH for 3 hours, or until the chicken is tender.
5. Remove the chicken to a bowl and shred, using the tines of two forks to pull it apart.  (I occasionally will just attack it with my kitchen shears for a quick chop)
6. Return the chicken to the slow cooker, along with the remaining chicken broth, and stir to combine.  Adjust seasoning as desired at this time.
7. If desired, you can stir in your fresh tortilla strips prior to serving.  (I generally skip this step, because I’m just as happy without it, but then it’s technically not tortilla soup…)
8. Serve hot with a generous helping of shredded cheese and some fresh tomatoes and tortilla chips to garnish.

I always double this recipe, because it freezes beautifully!  If you would like to freeze your soup, simply spray the cups of a muffin tin (I use a jumbo muffin tin) with cooking spray and fill the cavities about 3/4 of the way with soup.  Cover the tin with plastic wrap and freeze.  (You can stack several trays in the freezer if you put a piece of cardboard between them!)  When frozen, remove the soup pucks from the tin and store them in a zippered freezer bag (if the soup won’t come out, you can run a little bit of hot water over the back of the tin to loosen).  To reheat, simply put several soup pucks into a microwave-safe bowl or mug and cook until hot, stirring occasionally.  This is one of those tricks that I wish I’d known about sooner, because it’s just as easy to make a lot of soup as it is to make a little, and it’s fabulous to have a supply of home-made soup ready on a whim!