Chicken Tortilla Soup

I made this the other day and Dustin said it's his new favorite soup! He loved it! I thought it was yummy too!

Ingredients:

3 cloves garlic
1 medium onion
4 tablespoons oil
2 cans mexican-style tomatoes, chopped
2 cans stewed tomatoes, chopped
4 cups chicken broth
2 cups beef broth
1 1/2 cups chicken...chopped (I cooked the chicken in lime juice with salt and pepper)
1 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. chili powder
cilantro leaves...from about 10 stalks of cilantro (chopped)

10-15 corn tortillas...cut into bite size pieces and fried in oil right before serving

grated mozzarella (about 1 cup)
1 ripe avocado (sliced)

Saute garlic and onion in oil. Add tomatoes, broths, cumin and chili powderm mixing well. Add cilantro. Simmer one hour on medium heat. Just before serving add chicken and heat all the way through.

Heat oil and drop in cut up tortilla chips...they will cook quickly...remove from oil and allow to drain on some napkins. Salt them after cooking.

When you serve the soup...top each bowl with some fried tortilla chips, some grated cheese and a few avocado slices. (I also sliced some limes and squeezed one and dropped one in each soup bowl.)

Chile

1-2 lbs. Hamburger
1 onion, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
1 clove garlic, chopped
3 tsp. salt
2 tsp. chili powder
2 tsp. oregano
1/2 tsp. cumin
2 bay leaves (take out after baking)

Bake in 9x13 glass pan. 325 for 1 and a 1/2 hours. Then put in crock pot and add:

2 cans diced tomatoes
2 cans pork & beans
2 cans diced green chilies (In original recipe, but I don't add)
1 can refried beans
1 can cream of mushroom
2 can cream of chicken

**All cans are the small size.
Heat through and serve. I like to keep my on low for a few hours.

**Makes a lot. I like to freeze half and get two (or three) meals out of it. I am normally not a Chile lover, but this is the exception!

Cabbage and Beef Soup

1 lb lean ground beef
1 c onion, chopped
½ tsp garlic salt
¼ tsp garlic powder
2-16 oz cans kidney beans, drained
1 med head cabbage, chopped
28 oz can tomatoes, chopped
16 oz can tomato sauce
3 c water
4 beef bullion cubes

In Dutch over, brown ground beef with onion. Add all remaining ingredients; bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, covered for 1 hour. Garnish with parsley. Yields 3 quarts.

Chicken and Dumplings

This is a delicious Rachael Ray recipe... Love it!!! I made a few modifications - I added an extra carrot and an extra potato. I also cooked it for at least 40 mins to make sure everything was really tender, and I didn't add parsely to the biscuit mix.

Chicken and Dumplings

1 1/2 pounds chicken breast tenders
1 tablespoon olive oil, 1 turn of the pan
2 tablespoons butter
1 russet potato, peeled and diced
2 medium carrots, peeled and diced or thinly sliced
1 medium onion, chopped
1 rib celery, diced
1 bay leaf, fresh or dried
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon poultry seasoning, 1/3 palm full
2 tablespoons flour, a handful
1 quart chicken broth or stock, canned or paper container, preferred brand Kitchen Basics
1 small box biscuit mix(preferred brand Jiffy Mix)
1/2 cup warm water
Handful flat-leaf parsley, chopped
1 cup frozen green peas

Directions:

Dice tenders into bite size pieces and set aside. Wash hands.
Place a large pot on stove over medium high heat. Add oil, butter, vegetables and bay leaf and cook 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Season mixture with salt, pepper and poultry seasoning. Add flour to the pan and cook 2 minutes. Stir broth or stock to the pot and bring to a boil. Add chicken to the broth and stir.

Place biscuit mix in a bowl. Combine with 1/2 cup warm water and parsley. Drop tablespoonfuls of prepared mix into the pot, spacing dumplings evenly. Cover pot tightly and reduce heat to medium low. Steam dumplings 8 to 10 minutes. Remove cover and stir chicken and dumplings to thicken sauce a bit. Stir peas into the pan, remove chicken and dumplings from heat and serve in shallow bowls.