Chicken Enchilada Soup

My sister brought some leftover chicken enchilada soup she had made over to my mom's one night. It was so delicious. She told us she bought a pouch of a mix and added chicken, corn, and rice. It was so good, I decided I wanted to make it this week. When I went to the store, I only found one mix, and it was 4 dollars. I was then inspired to try to make it from scratch. I searched for chicken enchilada soup recipes and came across a few copycats for Chili's chicken enchilada soup. A few had velveeta, which I don't usually buy, but I did find one with cheddar, so I decided to give it a try. YUM!!! This soup is awesome!
Note- this recipe calls for Masa Harina. This is a corn flour that can be used to make tortillas, tamales, and this soup! It can be found either in the ethnic food or with the flours.

Chicken Enchilada Soup
(Chili's copycat)- Original Recipe found on Allrecipes.com

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts cut into small cubes and cooked
1/2 onion diced
1-2 garlic cloves diced
4 cups chicken broth
3 cups water, divided
1 cup masa harina
1 can red enchilada sauce
1 1/2 cup shredded cheddar
1 tsp salt
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp cumin

1. Prepare a large pot with cooking spray and heat over medium high. Add onions and garlic and cook until soft and translucent. Add chicken broth and 1 cup water.
2. In a bowl, combine 2 cups of water and masa harina and mix until well combined. Add mixture to soup and stir in.
3. Add enchilada sauce, cheddar, salt, chili powder, cumin and stir to combine. Bring to a boil. When boiling, add chicken and lower heat to simmer. Simmer 30 minutes.

I think I am going to add in corn and rice next time.

Smoky Lentil Soup

This recipe came to my inbox the other day along with an advertisement for a new soup making small appliance for the kitchen. I don't really feel that I would ever need something like this appliance (which is pretty much a blender that can heat up to cook ingredients prior to needing to be blended...I can achieve the same thing-although with a few more dishes to do- with a pot and a blender), but the recipe was intriguing. Now I can't believe in the dreadfully hot day we are having that I decided to make soup, but I did and it is delicious! So we will just sit under the fan in the A/C eating this yummy soup!

Using the Cuisinart soup maker and blender, you can sauté the vegetables, cook the soup and then puree it all in one vessel. For a quick and easy weeknight dinner, pair this hearty lentil soup with our Grown-Up Grilled Cheese Sandwiches (see related recipe at left).


3 slices of bacon (I used turkey bacon)
1 small onion, diced
1 carrot, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch dice
1 celery stalk, cut into 1/4-inch dice
1 tsp. minced garlic
1 Tbs. tomato paste
1 tsp. smoked paprika (I didn't have this, so I used a little more than 1/2 tsp of chili powder)
1/4 cup canned diced tomatoes, drained (I also didn't have this, so I used crushed tomatoes)
3/4 cup lentils, picked over and rinsed
4 cups chicken broth

1. Preheat large pot over medium-high heat. Add the bacon and cook, stirring occasionally, until browned/crisp. Drain on paper towels and chop.

2. Return the pot to the heat and add the onion, carrot, celery, garlic, tomato paste and paprika (or chili powder). Cook until the vegetables just start to soften. Add the tomatoes, lentils and broth. Cover and cook on high heat until the lentils are tender, approximatley 30 minutes. Add in bacon reserving a few pieces for garnish.

3. This step is optional. I used my stick blender and pureed until smooth and almost creamy. If you like yours more chunky, you can skip this or just blend it lightly. If you don't have a stick blender, you can pour the soup into a blender. Use the lid, but leave that central piece out and cover with a towel, blend on low.