Spicy Vegetable Tortilla Soup; Cheesy Chipotle Cornbread

Welcome spring? Right. Well, we welcomed it with a Spicy Vegetable Tortilla Soup for lunch. It may have been a wind chill of 38 degrees out, but our tummies were warmed with this wonderfully spicy concoction. I used canned tomato soup (not condensed, and a decent variety) to prepare it quickly.




* Exported from MasterCook *

Spicy Vegetable Tortilla Soup

Recipe By: Vicci
Servings: 4
Preparation Time :0:25


Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
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1 tablespoon olive oil
4 whole corn tortillas -- chopped
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
2 large garlic cloves -- minced
19 ounces tomato soup -- I used Progresso's Hearty Tomato Soup
12 ounces low sodium chicken broth
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon ground chipotle pepper
2 small carrots -- chopped; about 2/3 cup
1/2 cup frozen corn kernels
1/4 cup chopped cilantro -- divided
5 ounces pinto beans -- about half of a 15 ounce can; drained and rinsed


Heat olive oil in a large saucepan. Add onions and saute for 2 minutes (do not let brown). Add garlic, stir for a minute, then add the chopped tortillas. Stir for 2 minutes. Pour in tomato soup and broth, stir well, and bring to a boil. Add spices, carrot, corn, and cilantro. Return to a boil, then turn down heat, cover, and allow to simmer, stirring often, for 10 minutes. Add pinto beans and cook, uncovered, for 5 more minutes.


Serve with garnishes-shredded cheese, chopped avocado, sour cream, etc.


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Per serving: 315 Calories (kcal); 6g Total Fat (1g saturated); (16% calories from fat); 15g Protein; 54g Carbohydrate; 0mg Cholesterol; 626mg Sodium
Food Exchanges: 3 Grain(Starch); 1 Lean Meat; 1 Vegetable; 0 Fruit; 1 Fat; 0 Other Carbohydrates




I promised, in my last post, to remember to write down the chipotle cornbread recipe. And I did.



This bread was, as I mentioned, a fat-extravagance for me. But it was darn good. Spicy from the chipotles, creamy from the cheese, yum. There was some left over so I froze it, and we each had a piece with the soup for lunch. The baking time is a little vague since I forgot to set the timer after placing it in the oven and it was only by sheer luck that I remembered it just in time!







* Exported from MasterCook *

Cheesy Chipotle Cornbread

Recipe By: Vicci
Servings: 12


Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
2 large eggs
2 large egg whites
1 1/2 cups lowfat buttermilk
1/4 cup canola oil
1 1/2 cups yellow cornmeal
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
3/4 teaspoon ground chipotle pepper
4 ounces monterey jack cheese


Turn oven on to 375F. Coat a large (12-14") cast iron skillet with vegetable oil spray and place in oven to preheat. If no cast iron skillet is available, use a similarly-sized heavy baking pan.


Whisk eggs and egg whites in a medium bowl. Add buttermilk and oil. Set aside.


Mix dry ingredients (cornmeal through ground chipotle pepper) in a large bowl. Make a "well" in the center of the mixture and pour the egg mixture in it. Mix gently. Add shredded cheese and fold in until ingredients are combined.


Remove the hot pan from the oven and pour in the cornbread mix. Return to oven and bake for about 25-30 minutes (it could be longer) until a toothpick inserted into the center of the bread comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack for 15 minutes before cutting into wedges.


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Per serving: 247 Calories (kcal); 9g Total Fat (3g saturated); (33% calories from fat); 8g Protein; 33g Carbohydrate; 41mg Cholesterol; 647mg Sodium
Food Exchanges: 1 1/2 Grain(Starch); 1/2 Lean Meat; 0 Vegetable; 0 Fruit; 15 Fat; 1/2 Other Carbohydrates