Cooking in Cashmere: Tortilla Soup-a-Loop

A couple of weeks after we adopted our youngest cat Pastrami, I noticed he was acting all weird and hiding from me, so naturally I brought him to the vet. After a painful amount of money spent, X-rays, you name it (because I am psychotic) the vet comes back in. She says to me… well, it looks like your little guy is just really…FULL. FULL. He was full. He had literally made himself sick by eating too much. Wanna know why this is relevant? Because apparently its genetic… you don't have to figure that one out, don't think into it too much. This week, on my adult snow day, I ate myself into illness. I have been nauseous and achey for the past three days because I ate through the walgreens boxed cake options, OK?! Ok. So. Today was the first real day I have been able to consume solid morsels of human food, so I wanted to make something that didn't taste like air but still would be gentle on ma tummy. Soup… Tortilla Soup. Oh-f-ing-lay. (thats Ole- i know theres an accent there but you know…autocorrect will do as it does). This soup is so easy to make, and only requires some very commonly found Mexican ingredients; a jalapeño pepper, 1 can of chipotles in adobo sauce, and some spices. Cmon- these are commonly found goods here, give me a break. It's mild but solid heat, good for ma ultra-Jews who get that heartburn (I am not alone here). A lot of dietitians suggest spicy food because it can be an appetite suppressant, only because when your mouth is on fire you can't eat that much. Shocking I know. There's nothing gluttoness about this recipe, so eat to your hearts desire. Add some crunchy tortilla chips, fresh avocado, some lime, some greek yogurt or melted cheese and some bright crunchy scallions and you're good to go.

Tortilla Soup
1 small yellow onion, diced
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded, ribs removed (USE GLOVES) diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 of a SINGLE chipotle in adobo, seeds removed (a bunch come in a can- store them for later use- if you like it hot, add the whole thing- but REMEMBER- you can ADD HEAT but its nearly impossible to REMOVE HEAT)
1 tbs cumin
1 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp dried oregano
1 14 oz can crushed tomatoes
2 1/2 cups chicken stock
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 lime
Fixin's (diced radish, cotija cheese, diced scallions, greek yogurt, chunks avocado, tortilla chips)

Step 1: Preheat your pot on medium-low heat, add some neutral oil (vegetable or grape seed oil works fine) add your onions and cook for about 3 minutes, then add your jalapeño, another minute, then your garlic, for an additional minute.

Step 2: Add your chipotle in adobo and your spices, stir to combine, add your tomatoes and stir for another minute, then add your stock, turn down the heat and let simmer for about 10-15 minutes.