Spicy Chicken Soup

While in Montana this summer, The Trout and I had the privilege of meeting two new blogging friends, Chris from Knitting Mania and Dustye from Dustye's Kitchen, who are both from California. Chris and Dustye talked about this fantastic soup recipe they can gotten from a friend. It was our luck to be invited to Chris and Pat's for dinner before we left to drive back to Florida.

We loved this soup immediately. So, with leftover turkey in the refrigerator, we both thought that this soup would be perfect. Besides, it was a cool but comfortable day in Florida today. It is easy, different and everyone seems to love it. So thanks, Chris, thanks Dustye, and I hope you don't mind me sharing with the blog world. All the credit goes to you.

Spicy Chicken Soup


1 whole cooked chicken (rotisserie chicken works great)
2 stalks celery, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
2-4 garlic cloves, chopped or pressed
2-3 Tablespoons olive oil
4 cans chicken broth
1 can chopped tomatoes
1 can Ro-Tel tomatoes (original) Use more if you want more heat
chopped fresh cilantro
1 Tablespoon cumin
chopped avocado
sour cream
small package corn tortillas

Saute all veggies in olive oil. Add broth, tomatoes, shred the chicken and add to the soup, cumin and pepper to taste. Bring to a good boil. Add 6 chopped corn tortillas which will melt in hot broth and slightly thicken soup.

Boil at least 20 minutes. Simmering for at least an hour is better and it even tastes better the next day.

How to serve:

Place a small amount of chopped cilantro and avocado in bottom of bowl and add hot soup. Sprinkle with your favorite shredded cheese and a drop or two of sour cream.

Another option would be to fry up strips of corn tortillas until crunchy and sprinkle on top.