Nothing warms the soul like a warm bowl of soup.  And my favorite way to make soup…the crock pot!  At our house, we do Crock Pot Wednesdays.  Mike and I are really into golf and during the winter months we take part in an Indoor Golf League on Wednesday nights.  Doing Crock Pot Wednesdays allows us to go out and enjoy ourselves…and hopefully win our match (we’re not competitive at all ;))…and come home to a delicious smelling house with supper already made.  All we have to do is serve it up!

I’m a big fan of crock pot recipes because they are so easy and, best of all, you can make them when you have time in the morning or over your lunch hour, and they are ready to go that night. Here is one of my favorites. It is so easy because all you do is throw all the ingredients in the crock pot, stir them together, and hours later these ingredients are magically transformed into a warm and yummy meal 🙂

Crock Pot Chicken Tortilla Soup

2 10-oz cans of Chicken packed in water (you could always cook and shred your own chicken, but I love canned chicken because it’s simple and tastes just as good)

1 can (14.5 oz) Diced Tomatoes

1 can (10 oz) Enchilada Sauce (sometimes if I don’t have enchilada sauce, I substitute salsa or picante and it works just as well)

1 medium Onion, chopped

1 can (4 oz) Green Chile Peppers, chopped

2 cloves Garlic, minced

2 cups of Water

1 can (14.5 oz) Chicken Broth

1 tsp Cumin

1 tsp Chili Powder

1 tsp Salt

¼ tsp Black Pepper

1 Bay Leaf

1 package (10 oz) Frozen Corn

1 tbsp Cilantro, chopped

2 Tortillas (I LOVE La Tortilla Factory’s Smart and Delicious -Whole Wheat – Low Carb Tortillas. They only have 80 calories a tortilla…big cut from traditional tortillas that usually have between 180-210 calories. The only place I have been able to find them is Walmart.)

Spray Butter (0 calories)

Sour Cream

Shredded Cheddar Cheese

Directions:

1. Place chicken, tomatoes, enchilada sauce, onion, green chiles, and garlic into crock pot. Pour in water and chicken broth, and season with cumin, chili powder, salt, pepper, and bay leaf. Stir in corn and cilantro. Cover and cook on Low setting for 6-8 hours or on High setting for 3-4 hours.

2. About 20 minutes before serving Preheat oven to 350 degrees

3. Spray both sides of tortillas. I use a pizza cutter to cut them into strips that are about ½ inch wide and 2 inches long, then spread them on a baking sheet. Bake for about 20 minutes.

4. To serve, take a dollop of sour cream and place in middle and top with a piece of cilantro (so pretty!), surround the dollop with the tortilla strips, and sprinkle with cheese.

A yummy meal to warm your house and soul 🙂