Chicken Tortilla Soup (Slow Cooker/ or Instant Pot Cooker)

Chicken Tortilla Soup is filled with many ethnic ingredients to create a filling and savory side dish or a soup that could be served as the main meal. This is a hearty and enjoyable combination of vegetables, meat and seasonings that are combined to create a flavorful soup for any meal.

This was in California a few years back when I first visited a Mexican restaurant (On the Borders), and it happened, yes! love at first sight with a spoon of slurpicious chicken tortilla soup! I fell in love with this bowl of creamy goodness! Since then whenever I am in a Mexican restaurant without even blinking I order this soup to start my course of meal! I like On the Borders recipe a lot! There are times when I am totally disappointed by what they serve and I don't shy away from telling the server about it.

The smoky flavors of the soup gets me all warm and fuzzy! Then the goodness of avocado gives all the creaminess texture to it and the tanginess of tomatoes along with cumin and chilli pwd makes this soup very irresistible.

I tried making it in a slow-cooker and the results were amazing! Then I tried it in my Instant Pot Cooker using slow cook mode, excellent results. Gotta use that slow cooker pot once in a while- don't want it to feel lonely lol. You can cook it in a regular way too. Makes a great 1 pot meal and is very very filling. Less work, less cleanup, great flavors and a filling dish! Who can say no to that :)

Let us take a look at the Chicken Tortilla Soup recipe!

Ingredients:

• 4-5 chicken drumsticks  or (2 whole boneless chicken breasts)
• 1 tsp cumin
• 2 tsp chili powder
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1 cup onion chopped
• 1/4 cup green bell pepper chopped
• 1/4 cup red bell pepper chopped
• 2 cloves garlic finely chopped
• 1 & 1/2 cup tomatoes chopped
• 32 ounces chicken stock (low sodium)
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• 1 cup garbanzo (originally use  black beans (15 oz. can))
• 1 whole chipotle pepper in adobo (very spicy and smoky flavor, use more if you need spicy)
• salt and pepper as per taste

For Garnish:

• 3 corn tortillas (or regular tortilla)
• sour cream
• diced avocado
• Grated Monterey Jack Cheese
• Cilantro
• lime
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

Preparation:

• Place the chicken in the slow cooker. Sprinkle on the chili powder, cumin, and salt and pepper. Add the onion, bell pepper, tomatoes, chicken broth, tomato paste, chipotle, and garbanzo (black beans). Stir, place the lid on the slow cooker, and cook on high for 5 hours or high (or 8 hours on low.) Stir in the lime juice.
• Using 2 forks, break up the chicken into chunks (or you may shred it more fine). Once its cooked chicken basically starts falling off the bone. Taste and add more salt if the soup needs it. 
• Now warm the corn tortilla on a griddle/tava on both sides till it is little hard (not soft). You can deep fry it too but former option is much better! Cut into strips of 2-3 inches.
• Serve the soup piping hot in a bowl topped with avocado, sour cream, grated cheese, cilantro leaves, and corn strips!

Preparation using Instant Pot Cooker :

• Place the chicken in the Instant pot Inner vessel.  Sprinkle chili powder, cumin, and salt and pepper on the top (or use taco seasoning packet). Add the onion, bell pepper, tomatoes, chicken broth, tomato paste, chipotle, and garbanzo (black beans). Stir, place the lid on the Instant Pot, seal on venting and hit slow cook button, adjust the time for 6 hours. 
• Open the lid, using 2 forks, break up the chicken into chunks (or you may shred it more fine). Once its cooked chicken basically starts falling off the bone. Taste and add more salt if the soup needs it. 
• Stir in the lime juice.
• Now warm the corn tortilla on a griddle/tava on both sides till it is little hard (not soft). You can deep fry it too but former option is much better! Cut into strips of 2-3 inches.
• Serve the soup piping hot in a bowl topped with avocado, sour cream, grated cheese, cilantro leaves, and corn strips!

njoY!! happY cookinG!!

Notes:* I have tried this soup many times, using both ways- cumin and chilli powder and sometimes adding packet of taco seasoning, it comes out good every single time! Also I like to add meat with the bones as it imparts more depth and taste to the broth and taste.

recipe courtesy Pioneer Woman.

Health Benefits: Chicken is a very good source of protein. It helps one build muscles, keeps your bones healthy, relieves stress, boosts immunity and promotes heart health. Always buy organic or a good quality chicken and try to include it in your diet regularly. Avocado is loaded with heart-healthy monounsaturated fatty acids, fiber and is known to lower cholesterol and triglyceride levels. The beans again is a good source of proteins and nutrients!

Spinach Pepperoni(turkey) Flag Pizza (Pastry Puff)

This is a gooey fun loaded pizza that you can bake with your kids and have a good time in the kitchen. I made this with pastry puff as a base and used spinach stirfry using garlic and oil along with mozzarella cheese, marinara sauce and turkey pepperoni. You can replace the pepperoni with tomato slices. It tastes soooo good!

You can indulge in this rich pastry and cheese-loaded pizza once in a while, like 4th of July as it has the deco of a FLAG:) An apt preparation for the day of independence to show strength, unity, freedom, peace and love!

So go get your pastry sheets and start rolling and baking :)

Without further ado, here is the recipe:

Ingredients:

• 1 sheet of pastry puff
• 2 cups of shredded mozzarella cheese
• 3 tbsp of marinara sauce (or pizza sauce)
• 2 dozen of turkey pepperoni
• 1/2 cup frozen spinach
• 2 garlic pods minced
• salt/pepper as per taste
• mozzarella cheese cut into small bits/pieces
• 1 tsp olive oil

Preparation:

Thaw the pastry puff for 30 minutes on the counter. 
Preheat the oven to 400F/200C. Use a little olive oil to lightly coat the bottom of a baking sheet. Set aside.
On a lightly floured surface, roll out the puff pastry dough to about 10” x 15”. Place the dough on the prepared baking sheet. Fold the edges of the dough over to make a crust. Use a fork to gently poke holes throughout all of the dough. Bake in the pre-heated oven for 10 – 12 minutes or until golden brown.

In the meantime, heat oil in a pan, add garlic and saute quickly, add thawed spinach and cook for 3-4 minutes on low heat till all the water evaporates. Keep aside.
Remove the dough from the oven and spread spinach mixture on the top left corner in a square pattern. Drop mozzarella cheese bits in between the spinach patch to make it look like stars :)

Spread the marinara sauce evenly on the pastry dough.  Add mozzarella cheese and place the turkey-pepperoni in 3 straight lines. 

Place the baking sheet back in the oven for 8 more minutes or till cheese melts. Broil for a minute to get that nice brown spots on cheese.
Enjoy your 4th of July Flag Pizza with your family!

njoY!! happY cookinG!!

recipe idea adapted from Giada Laurentiis.

Lentil Dosa 'Flag'

Wishing you all a very Happy 4th of July! Our weekend morning starts with a very healthy Vegan lentil Dosa breakfast decorated with fresh strawberries and blueberries.  Instead of angel cakes loaded with cream cheese frosting, I decided to go desi style making a "Dosa Flag", celebrating the love for the country, unity, peace, freedom and harmony! All these emotions make me so proud!

Cheers to the U. S. of A.

Here is the look at the recipe:

Link to Plain lentil Dosa, all you have to do is instead of making a circular motion, make a square dosa. Then at the top left corner, line up blueberries and add dots of cheese. Then make parallel lines of sliced strawberries. Sprinkle any dry chutney lightly and when you serve you can add some jam or syrup.

--Express, Stand Up for Yourself, Love the Freedom, Respect Views--
--Always Hoping for a better tomorrow--

njoY!! happY cookinG!!

Mumbai's Special Masala Sandwich

If you ever visit Mumbai, the heart of India and go out on the streets under the hot sun (or otherwise) you cannot miss this street food that you will need after an exhausting shopping spree :) It literally makes you walk to the stall/store and order for one sandwich :) I say an apt healthy snack in between your tiring, exhausting shopping sprees 😜

Now you can make it at home within minutes with all the staple food that you have in your pantry ready.
So here goes the recipe: (to make 1 masala sandwich)

Ingredients:

• 2 slices of bread (big size preferably)
• 2 tsp room temperature butter (salty or unsalted)
• 1 tbsp shredded cheese (optional)
• 1 single sheet(slice) of any cheese
• 6 slices of cucumber
• 2-3 slices of big tomato
• few sliced red onion rings
• few julienned bell pepper(capsicum) slice
• 1-2 tsp mint/cilantro chutney
• 1tsp chat masala
• salt and pepper as per taste
  
  
  

Preparation:

• Keep 2 slices of bread beside each other.
• Apply butter on both sides of the bread slice.
• Start layering one side of the bread with cheese slice, cucumbers, tomato, onion ring, bell pepper.
• Sprinkle chat and add the shredded cheese
• Apply mint/cilantro chutney generously on the other slice of the bread and cover it over the layered slice of bread.
• You are almost there, now grill this sandwich on a griddle(on med flame) or panini press, for few minutes till the cheese starts to melt. 
• Serve with tomato ketchup and some fun drink.

njoY!! happY cookinG!!