Heavenly Chicken Tortilla Soup

This homemade Mexican-style chicken soup is so rich in intriguing flavors, vibrant in color and full of tantalizing aromas, that fill your kitchen!  It’s usually made by combining chicken broth, tomatoes, onion, garlic and fried tortillas.  There are dozens of variations to add after that. I’ve added cooked chicken along with fiber rich black beans and hominy for texture.  The skinny for 1 cup, 180 calories, 4 grams of fat and 1 Weight Watchers Freestyle SmartPoints. This recipe’s always a huge hit with everyone.  It’s so hearty, satisfying and can be served as the main course too!

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Ingredients for Soup:

1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil

2½ cups chopped onion

2 tablespoons chopped garlic

2 (6-inch) corn tortillas, chopped

2 tablespoons tomato paste

1 tablespoon smoked paprika, 1½ teaspoons chili powder, 1½ teaspoon cumin,  1½ teaspoon garlic powder and black pepper, to taste , shopping tips below

6 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth, I like Swanson’s

1 (15 oz) can diced tomatoes

1 (14 oz) can yellow hominy, drained and rinsed or corn

1 (14 oz) can black beans, drained and rinsed

2 cups cooked chopped chicken

Juice of 1 lime

Ingredients for Topping: optional

1¼ cups reduced-fat tortilla chips, crushed

Instructions

1. In a large nonstick pot, add olive oil, onions and garlic. Sauté for 1 minute.

2. Add chopped tortillas, tomato paste, smoked paprika, chili powder, cumin, garlic powder and black pepper, to taste. Sauté for 2 minutes.

3. Stir in chicken broth and tomatoes. Bring up to a boil, turn down heat and simmer for 15 minutes.

4. Add hominy, beans, chicken and fresh squeezed lime juice.  Mix well.  Cook 10 minutes more.

5. Top with some crushed tortilla chips, if desired.

Makes 10 cups or 5 main-course servings (2 cups each)

Food Facts
Tortilla soup is so popular. You see it served in a variety of restaurants. It’s so versatile with dozens of ways to make.  It originated in Mexico.

Hominy is yellow or white corn that has its hull removed mechanically or by soaking in lime.

Health Benefits
Black beans are digested slowly and can suppress your appetite for hours.  They’re packed with fiber, iron, B vitamins and folate.

Rinsing canned beans and hominy before adding to soups greatly reduces the sodium content.

Shopping Tips
I love the flavor of smoked paprika. It smells like BBQ flavors and really enhances the smokey flavor of this soup. You’ll find it in most supermarkets in the spice aisle. Or, you can just use regular paprika.

At a wine event on the Central Coast of California, I discovered the most amazing spice company called  Spice of Life.  They sell many fabulous blends of delicious, all natural spices. In this recipe, I used their “Southwestern Mesquite.”  It gives this soup a rich, wonderful flavor. Use 4 teaspoons in this recipe to replace the blend i included! Visit their website to order some or see where they sell their line of spices at www.PasoSpices.com. You won’t be disappointed!  And, they’re super nice people too!

Serving Tips
If you want to create a soup and salad meal,  serve this soup with Skinny Guacamole  Salad Sticks.
Make this a main-course meal by serving 1 cup of soup with my recipe, Oh Boy It’s Taco Night.   Another main course idea is to start with a 2 cup serving of soup and add chopped avocado, tomato, shredded reduced-fat cheese and chopped cilantro on the side. Let everybody customize their own bowl.

Weight Watchers Freestyle SmartPoints 1
Weight Watchers SmartPoints 4
Weight Watchers POINTS PLUS 4