Chicken Chili Taco Soup

Do you ever see a recipe and know you will like it? Not just think it looks good, but know, from the picture, title, recipe, whatever, that it will undoubtedly be something you will like? That’s what happened to me with this recipe for Chicken Chili Taco Soup. I’m sure it had something to do with the name of the recipe. I like chili. I like tacos. I like soup. It was kind of a no-brainer. I also think I knew the recipe would be a winner because of its similarity to the Taco Soup recipe I told you about way back in the beginning of this blog. (If you click to check out the recipe, please don’t judge me on the photo quality.  I hadn’t figured out the whole lighting thing yet.)

After having tried the recipe, I can tell you that what I like best about it (besides being quick and easy) is its adaptability. The original recipe calls for ground turkey. I substituted ground chicken breast, and I’m sure ground beef would be great too (though I’d drain the beef before adding the soup ingredients to avoid having greasy soup). The recipe also calls for kidney beans, which add to the chili-ness of it. Kidney beans worked great, but black or pinto beans would work just as well. If you want to heft up the veggie content, you could easily add in some chopped zucchini, carrots or spinach. If you don’t have the can of Ro-tel, you can substitute salsa or regular diced tomatoes. You get where I’m going with this.  This recipe is flexible.

It’s also really good.  And ridiculously easy.  All you have to do is brown up the meat, add the veggies and then add everything else.  A 15 minute simmer is all you need to bring all the flavors together.  What you end up with is a chunky, meaty, protein-packed soup full of sweet corn, tender-crisp peppers, creamy beans, and zesty spices (how zesty is up to you).  You can serve it topped with any number of things – basically whatever you like on your chili and/or tacos.  We went for the fairly straight forward combo of shredded cheese and Greek yogurt (subbed for sour cream).  Stan also added enough tortilla chips to his to make it more like chip soup.  I was aiming for something a little healthier, but he assured me his version was delicious.  

Buffalo Chicken Chili

Happy New Year!  I 2012 is off to a great start for you.  We kicked things off in style with some major festivities at our house.  I’m talking tinsel garlands, strands of beads and lots of confetti.  It was classy.  We also had enough food to feed twice the number of people actually at the party.  That seems to me to be just the right amount of food to ensure a nice supply of leftovers, which is key the day after a big party.

Food, drink and friends – what else do you need to ring in the New Year?  Nothing I can think of, except maybe some healthier food to balance out all of that end of the year excess.  And if that healthy food tastes so good you forget it’s good for you?  So much the better.  If you’re like me and you prefer to eat healthy food that doesn’t scream “I’m on a diet!”, you will love today’s recipe.  It has all of the flavor of Buffalo wings and none of the fat.  Actually, this Buffalo Chicken Chili has hardly any fat at all – a fact that I’ve kept secret from Stan since he views fat as one of the most important food groups in his daily diet.  He hasn’t noticed.  He loves this stuff.

Despite its New Year’s resolution friendliness, this chili rocks.  The chicken makes it filling and the little pieces of carrot and celery running through it echo the carrot and celery sticks typically served alongside a basket of wings.  For those of you who aren’t into spicy food, don’t be scared by the amount of hot sauce going on here; it adds a great tang without too much heat.  For those of you who can’t get wings hot enough, add as much hot sauce as your poor stomach can handle.  Either way, top off your bowl with some (low-fat) sour cream, blue cheese crumbles, or whatever you like with your wings.  And don’t forget to smile, because you’ll be back in your skinny jeans in no time.  Unless you stick around to check out my upcoming New Year’s Eve posts… in which case you might want to stick with some comfy elastic waist sweatpants.  Whatever you wear, it’s going to be a tasty year.

Ancho-Chipotle Turkey Chili

Lately, a lot of you have told me about your desire for some healthier recipes.  Whether it’s upcoming spring break vacations or a desire to refuel those New Year’s resolutions, a lot of you are thinking thinner. And so I have a confession to make.  A few weeks ago I made the decision to get healthier myself. I’m eating less and working out more.  I feel good, and I know I’m going to continue feeling even better.

I’ve held off on telling you guys about this for a couple of reasons.  First, I don’t want to scare any of you away.  I know some of you come here for your butter and sugar fix, and I don’t want you to fear a shift to all “health food” recipes. To you, I say don’t worry.  That’s just not going to happen.  I have no intention of turning this into a diet blog.  I have lots of guilty pleasures saved up waiting to be posted.

I was also afraid to say anything about my healthy-eating plans because the last time I mentioned going on a diet (way back I don’t even remember when), it lasted all of four days. An opportunity to try an El Salvadoran restaurant did me in. We’re talking lots of cheese.  When I fall off the wagon, I tend to fall hard, and that was the end of that!

Eating healthier doesn’t have to mean eating tasteless, boring food. I love the challenge of taking typically less-than-healthy dishes and turning them into guilt-free options I can enjoy without feeling like I’m giving anything up. Take today’s recipe for example. Chili is not always the best choice for cutting back. This one, however, is pretty darn healthy, and it is ridiculously tasty. The recipe uses ground turkey breast, which is virtually fat free, and kicks up the flavor with garlic and onions and lots of spices. There is a fantastic smoky taste from the chiles and a very small amount of bacon. Plus, I enjoyed how this chili is so different from the tomato-laden, bean-filled chili recipes I typically make. If this is what diet food tastes like, sign me up!

Tex-Mex Chicken Sausage, Black Bean, and Hominy Soup

Spring may be on the way, but we’re still experiencing crazy temperature swings here in Nashville – 70 degrees one day, 40 degrees the next. I’m sure many of you can relate.  That being said, I’m still in full-on soup mode.  The other day it was gray and drizzling, and I was in the mood for a warm and cozy lunch. Cue the soup – my go-to cold weather lunch.

Today’s recipe was put together from things I already had in my fridge and pantry. Stan and I really like Tex-Mex flavors so things like canned black beans, hominy, taco seasoning mix, and peppers are staples.  Thrown together with some chicken sausage for protein and some lime juice and cilantro to brighten things up, this soup packs a lot of flavor.  It’s also healthy, quick and easy to make, and cheap to boot – all good things in my book.

Another great thing about this recipe is that it’s flexible. Don’t have a poblano pepper on hand? Use a red or green bell pepper.  Out of black beans?  Try pinto or kidney beans.  Can’t find hominy at your store?  Look in the Mexican food section – or just use a can of corn instead.  You can also adjust the spice level up or down to match your preference – just use more or less taco seasoning.  However you make it, this soup is sure to be a warm, hearty way to beat back the chill while you wait for spring.

Red Lentils with Stewed Tomatoes

I try to keep the language clean and family-friendly around these around these parts. I never know who might decide to stop by and check out my little piece of the internet – don’t want to scare anyone off, of course. Not that I’m a total potty mouth or anything. I just like to keep it safe enough for my Grammy or my mother-in-law to read. I imagine you’d do the same.

That being said, it is with some difficulty that I describe today’s recipe to you. Stan’s exact words were, “This is freaking phenomenal.” Except he didn’t say freaking. I’ll let you use your imagination to guess what he really said. (Yeah, so maybe he’s the potty mouth in the family.) Language aside, Stan was right. These lentils are, indeed, freaking phenomenal.

This recipe is one of my favorite kinds – those that take little time and little effort and produce huge flavor. Dinner can be ready in 15 minutes (plus however long it takes water to boil where you live). When it’s done you will have bowls of warm, fragrant lentils, redolent with Indian spices, and studded with chunks of juicy stewed tomatoes. Ladled over rice or served with Naan, this healthy meal will have you going back for seconds… and possibly having to watch your language, too.

Beef Carbonnade

When the in-laws come to visit, it’s time to bust out the big guns. Of course we’re talking culinary guns here. No need for the real thing. Especially if you have in-laws you like, which I hope you do. And whether or not you are lucky enough to like your in-laws, or co-workers, or random visiting dignitaries, when you have important people coming to dinner, the pressure is on.

A few weeks back, my in-laws came to visit. (If you’ll recall, they were witness to the skin-frying, too-hot-to-handle incident.) While I knew they wouldn’t care one bit what I served for dinner, they know I cook all the time, so I felt a little bit of pressure to deliver the goods. Show them I’m a good wifey and all. I went back and forth for at least a week before they arrived. Chicken or beef? Make ahead or made to order? Eventually I settled on Beef Carbonnade.

Beef Carbonnade is a classic Belgian dish comprised of beef cooked low and slow with beer and onions. As it cooks, the beef becomes meltingly tender. The onions cook down to an almost creamy consistency and give the sauce sweet onion flavor that melds perfectly with the malty essence of the beer. After a couple of hours in the oven, the stew is rich, savory, and utterly delicious. It just begs to be ladled over hot, buttered egg noodles or a pile of fluffy mashed potatoes – something to cradle all of the luscious sauce you will want to lick off your plate. Try not to do that though. Especially if you’re cooking for visiting dignitaries. Or if your mother-in-law doesn’t like you. 

Lentil Vegetable Soup

Stan and I just got back from a lovely visit with his family in Cleveland, Ohio. While the wisdom of traveling to the land of lake effect snow in January is debatable, finding $60 roundtrip tickets is a rarity that makes braving the cold a little more tolerable. (You read that right - $60 roundtrip! We caught a crazy Southwest sale back in October and jumped on those prices in a flash.)

To keep us warm and spoil us rotten, Stan’s parents cooked all of our favorite Russian foods, turning our visit into a four-day feast. (I’ve told you before that Stan is Russian, right? He didn’t move to the U.S. until he was eleven, and his family still speaks Russian at home.) Russian food is the perfect winter belly-warmer. It’s hearty and homey enough to fortify you through those Arctic Siberian winters – or January in Cleveland.

However, while we love traditional Russian foods and Stan’s parents’ excellent home-cooking, back in Nashville we are feeling the need to lighten things up while we recover from the feasting that embodies our family get-togethers. When it comes to eating healthier, lentils are an excellent choice. They are inexpensive, high in protein, and very filling.

While we already have a lentil soup recipe on this site, today’s soup is a bit different. It has a different flavor profile and a lot more vegetables. It also takes quite a bit more time to prepare, due to all of the chopping involved with those vegetables. Do not let that dissuade you though. This soup is fantastic – flavorful, colorful (as colorful as lentil soup can be), healthy, and filling. The recipe makes an enormous pot of soup, so you can have it on hand for healthy lunches or dinners all week. I imagine it would freeze well too, so you could make some now and save the rest for the next time you, like us, need to lighten thing up a little.

Healthy Recipes to Kick Off the New Year

Happy New Year! I hope you all had a wonderful New Year’s Eve with friends and family and have kicked off 2011 with a bang. We stayed in to ring in the New Year this year, and celebrated with friends, an enormous meal, and a whole lot of celebratory libations. After all of that revelry, Stan and I are feeling the need for some healthier meals and a little more exercise in our lives. While neither of us are big on New Year’s resolutions, eating better and moving more are certainly tops on many people’s lists for this time of year. So, in honor of those, like us, who need some holiday detox, or are trying to make good on healthy resolutions, today’s post features recipes that can help you cook your way to a healthier new year.

Soups and stews are always good in January, heating you up without filling you out. Here are some delicious, belly-warming options... (Just click on the recipe titles to link to the original posts!)

Coconut Curry Noodle Soup

Island Kale and Sweet Potato Soup

Curried Butternut Squash Soup

 Moroccan Spiced Chickpea Soup

Tortellini Soup

Shrimp and Corn Chowder

Chickpea and Kale Stew

Chicken Posole

Island Kale and Sweet Potato Soup

Hello friends, I finally have my computer back up and running (stupid broken charger…grrr), and I must say, I’ve missed you. The past few weeks have been a whirlwind of travel and houseguests for us. We’ve either been out of town or had friends visiting every weekend for the past five weeks. And while we certainly love spending time with family and friends, it is good to be home with nothing to do but watch tv in our pajamas and spend some time in the kitchen.

I don’t know about you, but after frequent travel and lots of eating out, I start to crave healthy, hearty, soul-warming foods. Especially when it’s freezing cold and raining outside, and the sun doesn’t seem to want to show its face any more than absolutely necessary. You know the kind of days I’m talking about. The ones with gross weather that make you feel sluggish and in dire need of quality time on the couch. The ones that make you turn down socializing for snuggling. The days that are made for soup.

This Island Kale and Sweet Potato Soup is the perfect antidote to all of those heavy holiday meals and nights out on the town. A riff on the Caribbean dish callalou, this soup is simple to make yet has surprisingly complex flavors. Full of nutritious kale, creamy sweet potatoes, rich (light) coconut milk, and a lick of heat, this soup will warm you up on even the rainiest of days.

Chicken and Dumplings

So I have to tell you, I have not been inspired in the kitchen this week. Not at all. Nothing sounded great, nothing tasted exceptional, and there were no fall-inspired baked goods to be seen. What could cause such a case of the culinary blahs? I’ll give you one guess… and it has something to do with expanding waistlines. (More mine than Stan’s.)

If you guessed I’m on a diet, you’d be mostly right. I like to call it an exercise in portion control – it’s less depressing. But don’t worry, I have plenty of delicious recipes coming your way, healthy and sinfully not. Some of them are recipes I’ve been itching to tell you about for a while now. Others are ones I’ve been lining up for test runs in the kitchen. Either way, you don’t need to worry. My waistline issues need not have any effect on your culinary adventures. And let’s be honest, I don’t see this being a long-term self-improvement project. There’s a whole lot of holiday baking on the horizon, after all. (Please do not make judgments about my willpower. Or lack thereof. Thank you.)

Personal sharing aside, I do, in fact, have a new recipe to share with you today. And it is wond-der-ful. When I took my first bite, I’m pretty sure I said something like, “holy crap, this is good”. (Embarrassing, but true.) Let me tell you friends, you must try this version of chicken and dumplings. Imagine a rich chicken broth, full of poached chicken and veggies, and topped with light, biscuit-like dumplings. It is warm, hearty, and pretty much perfect for chilly fall evenings. I am certain you will enjoy it as much as we did.

Three Bean and Beef Chili

The days are still nice and warm here in Nashville. We’re talking 70 to 80 degrees most days. But the nights? Oh, the nights are wonderfully, finally, cool. You know the kind of nights I’m talking about. The kind that make you want to be outside sitting around a campfire roasting marshmallows. Or cozy in bed under a pile of blankets with the windows open. Or sitting at the dinner table (or in front of the television) eating a bowl of something warm and hearty. Ah fall… how I’ve missed you.

And folks, let me tell you, I’ve missed this chili too. However, before I tell you about it, let me start off by saying that I know this is not a true, Texas-style, meat-and-nothing-else chili. But I’m okay with that. So chili-purists, please keep your objections to yourself – and forward me your recipes, because I’d love to try them.

Now about this chili... It’s got beans – pinto, black, and kidney. It’s also got lean ground beef and some carrots and red bell pepper to make it a little healthier. To top it off, it’s a little smoky because it gets its heat from chipotle peppers in adobo sauce. (Chipotle peppers are actually just smoked jalapenos.) Basically, this chili is ridiculously delicious. It’s also versatile. We eat it as is, tuck it inside tortillas to make chili burritos, serve it over brown rice, and always top it with sour cream and cheese. It’s one of the few recipes I make repeatedly throughout the fall and winter. Give it a try for your next family dinner or football watching party. It might just become your new go-to chili. Beans and all.

Coconut Curry Noodle Soup

Most times, when I try a new recipe for the first time, I follow it pretty close to the letter. I might add a little more garlic, a little less hot pepper, or salt it at different times, but overall, I try to stay true to the original recipe. Sometimes, however, I’ll find an interesting (or not so interesting) looking recipe and use it as a jumping off point for a somewhat different creation. That’s what I did with today’s recipe - a warm, richly flavored soup with great color and texture.

I made quite a few changes to the original recipe, some dictated by necessity (an empty fridge), some by personal taste. For instance, the original recipe called for using already cooked, shredded chicken, snow peas, and spinach. I didn’t have any of those things on hand (and I wasn’t about to go out to get them at 8 pm – we were hungry!) so I decided to substitute cubed firm tofu for the chicken, matchstick carrots for the snow peas, and arugula for the spinach. All worked very well. In fact, I don’t know that I would have liked the chicken as much as I liked the tofu. Same goes for the snow peas and carrots. I think spinach and arugula would work equally well though. I also swapped out chow mein noodles for linguine, cause that’s what I had!

Those were the changes of necessity. The changes of personal choice included the addition of soy sauce for a little salt and lime juice for acidity and a little tang. The soy sauce was a nice, subtle touch, but I found that I still needed to add a little (sea) salt at the end. I added the lime juice after tasting the soup and finding it a bit bland. The juice punched up the flavor, but I kept thinking I would have liked it better with a little more. (Unfortunately I couldn’t add more because I was out of limes.)

All this goes to show that it’s possible to take a recipe and twist it into something that fits your taste – and the contents of your pantry. I am certain my mom is rolling her eyes right now and preparing to call me out for calling curry paste and fish sauce pantry staples. (I’m right aren’t I, Mom?) I understand that these ingredients are not staples for everyone. I don’t have a clue how they became staples for me considering I didn’t even try Thai food until I was seventeen. Regardless, you get what I’m trying to say, right? Don’t be afraid to try a recipe just because you don’t have every ingredient. Tweak it a little and you might just end up with something you’ll like even more. Unless you are baking, in which case specificity is important. Nobody likes a flat cake or burnt cookies.

Shrimp and Corn Chowder

Last weekend Stan and I went to Florida for a friend’s wedding. When we left, Nashville was a balmy 95 degrees. When we got back four days later, the temperature had dropped by at least 20 degrees, and fall had officially arrived. And really, it’s about time. I was starting to have (more) serious concerns about global warming.

The cooler weather excites me for so many reasons. Sweaters, apple picking, pumpkin carving, changing leaves, sleeping with the windows open… I could go on and on. I seriously looove fall. And I really love fall food. You’re going to see a lot of apples and squash and fresh baked breads and hearty stews coming up in the next few months. I’ve got stacks of recipes waiting to be tried and shared with you.

Today’s recipe is sort of my transition from summer to fall. It’s a warm and comforting soup, perfect for crisp fall days and nights. At the same time it is light and fresh, a final culinary ode to summer. Plump shrimp and sweet corn are the stars of this healthy chowder. Chunks of fresh veggies add color and texture, while a little turkey bacon infuses the soup with subtle smoky flavor. This was good the night I made it, but I swear it made even better leftovers. The corn seemed sweeter and the broth seemed smokier. The second day of leftovers was best of all. Who knows if it would have gotten better after that. The chowder was just too good to last any longer.

Superfast Chicken Posole

I know what you’re thinking – and I agree. Soup is not what you typically think of, or even want to eat, when it’s pushing 100 degrees outside. But what if you could have a colorful soup that is bold in flavor and would fill you up without weighing you down? Would you reconsider then? I know I would, but hey, I like soup. And this posole is a winner, no matter the season.

Posole is a traditional Mexican soup/stew that is very popular in the Southwest. I was lucky enough to try an authentic version in Albuquerque, New Mexico a few years back, and I have kept an eye out for it on restaurant menus ever since. Different variations of posole abound, using all types of meats and vegetables. This particular version is a quick and easy take on posole using already cooked chicken breast, hominy, tomatillos, and enough herbs and spices to keep you going back for more. It makes a great weeknight dinner, especially with an icy cold beverage alongside.

Moroccan Spiced Chickpea Soup

I know what you are thinking. Katie – are you insane? It’s 98 degrees outside, and you are telling us about soup?! Well, yes, I am. But before you close your browser, hear me out. This soup is so good. It’s been one of my favorites for years, and I’ve been meaning to tell you about it for ages. And really, while it may be scorching outside, how many of you spend your days in over-air conditioned homes and offices? I know I was wearing long sleeves at two different times yesterday. A bowl of this soup would have been a welcome treat.

Now about the soup. The broth is warm and spicy without being spicy hot. Stan always comments about how good the kitchen smells when the broth is bubbling away. In addition to being fragrant and flavorful, the soup is incredibly filling from its hearty helping of chickpeas. It is also colorful and nutritious thanks to fresh spinach stirred in just before serving. Whatever the season, this is the perfect soup to take the chill off.