Mama Pea's Tortilla Soup

Mama Pea is a bit of a celebrity in the blog world. A one-time lawyer, she left her job to stay home with her adorable daughters, and transitioned her family from a conventional to a vegan diet. This is not the land of fake food, however, her recipes are varied, flavorful, filling, and satisfy everyone. Plus, she shares awkward things like how she spends all day wearing old yoga pants. I do too. And she never fails to make me laugh. She has a cookbook coming out this week, which I desperately want, but in the meantime I will keep cooking from the fantastic recipes she posts on her blog. One such recipe is this tortilla soup. I love tortilla soup, but do not always love dealing with chicken, so this was a perfect alternative. I changed it very slightly just based on the veggies we had on hand, and also to add a mini cheese quesadilla for dipping, because we eat cheese around these parts.

Tortilla Soup
very slightly modified from Peas and Thank You

Ingredients:
1/2 large onion, chopped
1 large bell pepper, chopped
1 bunch green beans, cut into 1/2 inch pieces (my addition based on the abundance of beans from our CSA this week)
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1 Tablespoon cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder (that was my addition, I like the heat)
1 14 oz. can diced tomatoes, in juice
1 14 oz. can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 4 oz. can green chiles
1 qt. vegetable broth (I ended up using just over 2 cups for a slightly thicker soup)
salt and pepper
toppings: lime and chopped avocado

Instructions:

In a large pot that has been sprayed with cooking spray or oil, sauté peppers, onions, and beans over medium high heat for 3-4 minutes.
Add garlic, cumin and chili powder and sauté for an additional minute, until aromatic.
Add tomatoes, chiles, beans and vegetable broth and bring to boil.
Lower heat and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes.

I served mini cheese quesadillas on the side for dipping.

I liked the soup a little thick, because I love chili, and also because I didn't use a large enough pot and it would have boiled over if I had added the full quart.

Comments

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