Copycat Cafe Rio's Chicken Tortilla Soup

This soup is really good. I don't think any copy cat recipe is ever as good as the real thing but this one is really good! You definitely don't want to take any short cuts here. Make the pico de gallo, it is wonderful!

Cafe Rio's Chicken Tortilla Soup

• 1 onion, diced
• 1 Tbsp. vegetable oil
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• a dash (or two) cayenne
• 1/2 tsp. chili powder
• 5 c. chicken broth
• 3 Tbsp. fresh cilantro, finely chopped
• juice of 1/2 lime
• pepper, to taste
• 1 can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
• 2-3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 2 Tbsp. taco seasoning
• 1 Tbsp. paprika
• vegetable oil (to taste)
• pico de gallo (click HERE)
• 2-3 avocados, diced
• 2 c. pepper jack cheese
• tortilla strips (Click HERE)
• cilantro (for garnish)
• lime wedges (for garnish)

Instructions

• In a small skillet, saute onion in 1 Tbsp. oil until onions become slightly soft. Stir in cumin, cayenne, and chili powder and saute an additional minute or two.
• Transfer seasoned onions to a small crock pot (or medium-sized saucepan). Add chicken broth, cliantro, lime juice, pepper and pinto beans to onions and simmer on low-heat for at least 2-3 hours.
• In the meantime (when you are close to serving), combine taco seasoning and paprika. Brush chicken with oil and rub with taco seasoning/paprika mixture. Grill chicken over medium-heat until cooked through (try to turn only once during the grilling process). Remove from grill and shred.
• In individual bowls layer chicken, about 1/3 c. pico de gallo, 1/3 c. diced avocado, and 1/3 c. pepper jack cheese. Ladle about 1 cup of chicken broth directly over the layers. Top with tortilla strips and garnish with cilantro and lime wedges.

Recipe and photo source: Favorite Family Recipes (This is a great website for recipes)

Beef Stew

A great hearty warm meal for a cold January day.

Beef Stew

Brown well 2 lbs. of stew meat in hot bacon grease (you can just use oil but the bacon grease gives the meat a lot of flavor)
Add:
2 quarts water
1 Tbsp. lemon juice
1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp. garlic salt
2 tsp. salt (or to taste)
Pepper to taste
2 bay leaves
1/2 tsp. paprika
dash of allspice
1 tsp. sugar

Simmer together until tender, stirring occasionally.

Add:
4-5 cups of carrots
1 medium onion, chopped

Cook until the carrots are just about done, then add 8 cups of potatoes (approximately 4 lbs). Cook until tender. Thicken liquid with approximately 5-6 Tbsp cornstarch mixed with cold water.

Chicken Noodle Soup with Homemade Noodles

I love thick noodles in my chicken noodle soup. None of those tiny shoestring noodles here.

Chicken Noodle Soup with Homemade Noodles

1 precooked rotisserie chicken
2-3 Bay leaves
3-4 whole peppercorns
1 medium onion, quartered
2-3 Chicken bullion cubes
Carrots to your liking, chopped into small pieces
Celery to your liking, chopped into small pieces
Salt and Pepper

Remove all usable meat from your precooked rotisserie chicken and set aside. Discard any skin or fat. Place the chicken carcass/bones in a large stock pot. Fill pot with water until the whole carcass is covered. Add 1 medium onion that has been quartered, bay leaves, and peppercorns. Simmer for about 2 hours. Add 2-3 bullion cubes and let dissolve. Remove chicken carcass and pull off any usable meat that might still be attached. Strain broth into a large bowl. I strained mine a couple of times just to make sure I got everything out.

In a large skillet, add a couple tablespoons of olive oil or butter and precook your carrots/celery. You will want to get the vegetables to a semi tender stage which takes about 10 minutes. Add the vegetables and the shredded chicken that you removed before cooking the carcass to your pot of broth.  Bring to a simmer. Add noodles and cook until noodles are tender.

Homemade Egg Noodles

2 eggs, beaten
4 Tbsp. water
1 tsp. salt
1 1/2 - 2 cups. flour

Combine egg, milk and salt. Add flour to make a stiff dough. Roll out thin on a lightly floured surface. Cut into strips with a pizza cutter.

Let dry about 2 hours, turning after 1 hour. Don't worry too much about letting them dry the full 2 hours. Just adjust the cooking time of the noodles. The longer they dry the longer they take to cook. Keep in mind that noodles expand and will soak up a lot of your liquid in the soup. Just add more water and a bullion cube or a can of chicken broth to even out the liquid to noodle ratio.

Chicken and Vegetable Dumpling Soup

This was just the thing I needed on a cold day and feeling under the weather. It was a little more labor intensive but in the end it was worth it. Nothing like a hearty hot soup when you are sick. 

Chicken and Vegetable Dumpling Soup

*Serves 6

Chicken and Broth:
4 cups chicken broth
4 cups water
2-3 chicken breasts (about 1 1/2 pounds)

Vegetables:
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
2 stalks celery, chopped
2 large carrots (6-7 baby carrots), chopped
1 onion, chopped
1 ½ teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/2 cup frozen peas

Dumplings:
1 cup flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme or sage
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup milk
1 tablespoon vegetable or canola oil

In a large pot, boil the chicken broth, water and chicken breasts until the chicken is cooked through and tender (about 15 minutes). Remove the chicken from the pot, reserving the broth in the pot, and shred the chicken with two forks. Set the chicken aside and keep the broth warm on the stove.

While the chicken is boiling, in a large skillet, heat 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the celery, carrots and onions. Saute for about 6-7 minutes until the vegetables are tender. Add the vegetables to the hot broth in the pot after the chicken has been removed. Add salt, thyme and pepper to the vegetable/broth mixture and stir to combine. Heat the soup to a simmer.

In a small bowl, blend ½ cup cold water and 1/4 cup flour with a wire whisk until smooth. Whisking vigorously, slowly add the flour mixture into the hot vegetables and broth and whisk until well combined. Add ½ cup frozen peas and the reserved chicken and cook, stirring gently for one minute.
For the dumplings, in a medium bowl, stir together the dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, combine sour cream, milk and oil. Add the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir just until combined (don’t overmix, it is ok if there are a few dry spots of flour here and there).

Heat the soup to boiling and drop teaspoonful amounts (the dumplings should be fairly small, they’ll expand while cooking) of dumpling dough into the boiling soup, covering the entire surface of the soup (don’t make more than one layer of dumplings). Reduce the heat to simmering, cover and let the dumplings cook for 15 minutes. Do not lift the lid of the pot while the dumplings cook.

When the dumplings have cooked fully, remove the lid and gently stir the dumplings to break them apart. Serve.

Source: My Kitchen Cafe

Tortilla Lime Chicken Soup

I got this recipe from a friend many many years ago. This was my introduction to cilantro. At the time I had no idea what it was. So thanks for introducing me to one of my favorite spices. You know who you are.

Tortilla Lime Chicken Soup

4 c. chicken broth
1 1/2 c. chicken, cooked and shredded
1/4 c. lime juice
1/4 c. cilantro, chopped
1 large can hominy
2 c. lime flavored tortilla chips, broken

In a large saucepan, simmer broth, 1 can water, chicken and juice for 2 minutes. Add cilantro, pinch of black pepper and hominy. Serve with crushed tortilla chips on top.

*You may need to add a little salt depending on how many tortilla chips you have in your bowl.

Baked Potato Soup - a lighter version

I love when I find recipes that allow me to substitute full fat ingredients for reduced fat or reduced calorie. I love baked potato soup but because of the heavy creamy texture I don't make it very often. I found this recipe on Our Best Bites, one of my favorite blogs. It uses skim milk instead of whole, and light sour cream and you get very similar results...a very tasty soup.

Baked Potato Soup

2 Tbs butter
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 C flour
4 1/2 C low-fat or skim milk
1 14oz can chicken broth
4 medium baking potatoes (about 2 1/2 pounds) baked*
2 C grated cheddar (or sharp cheddar) cheese, divided
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1 1/2 C  light sour cream, divided
1/2 C chopped green onions, divided
8 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled, divided

*don't have time to bake potatoes in the oven?  Just pierce them with a fork a few times and then pop them in the microwave.  Cook in 5 minute intervals until a knife easily pierces through them.  It usually takes 5-10 minutes.  To bake in the oven, pierce each potato with a fork and place directly on oven rack.  Bake at 375 for 45-60 minutes.

Melt butter in a stock pot over medium heat.  Add garlic and saute for 30-60 seconds until fragrant.  Add flour to pan.  Slowly add milk a little at a time while whisking constantly to eliminate lumps.  Whisk until smooth and then add chicken broth.  Bring soup just to a simmer and heat until thickened, stirring often, about 5 minutes.

Once soup is thickened, turn heat down to medium-low.  Cut potatoes in half length-wise and use a spoon to scoop out potato flesh into the pot.  Use a wooden spoon to smash potatoes, breaking up large clumps.  Add 1 1/2 C grated cheese and salt and pepper and stir until cheese is melted.  Remove pan from heat and stir in 3/4 C sour cream, 1/4 C green onions, and 4 strips of the crumbled bacon.  Add additional salt and pepper to taste. Ladle into bowls and top with each serving with the remaining sour cream, onions, cheese, and bacon.
  

Tomato Bisque with Parmesan Croutons

While on a trip to the Pacific Northwest last year, I ate at a place called BJ's Brewhouse. I immediately fell in love with their food specifically their Tuscan Tomato Bisque in a Sourdough bread bowl.  BJ's is a national franchise but is not located in Utah. Becasue of this I had to try to recreate a copy cat dish at home. This is what I came up with:

Tomato Bisque with Parmesan Croutons

4 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 tablespoon minced bacon (about 1/2 ounce)

1 Spanish onion, chopped

1 carrot, chopped

1 stalk celery, chopped

4 cloves garlic, minced

5 tablespoons all-purpose flour

5 cups chicken broth, homemade or low-sodium canned

1 (28-ounce) can whole, peeled tomatoes (with liquid), roughly chopped

3 parsley sprigs

3 fresh thyme sprigs

1 bay leave

1 cup heavy cream

1 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper

Heat the butter in a large soup pot over medium-high heat. Add the bacon and cook, stirring, until crisp and most of the fat has rendered, about 1 minute. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the bacon to a paper towel-lined plate and set aside. Lower the heat to medium, add the onion, carrots, celery, and garlic and cook, covered, stirring occasionally, until soft and fragrant, about 8 minutes.


Stir in the flour and cook, stirring, for 3 minutes. Pour in the broth and tomatoes and bring to a boil while whisking constantly. Tie the parsley sprigs, thyme, and bay leaf together with a piece of kitchen twine and add to the pot. Lower the heat and simmer for 30 minutes. Remove from the heat and allow to cool.


When the soup base is cool, remove and discard the herb bundle. Working in batches, transfer the mixture to a blender and puree until smooth. Using a sieve over a large bowl, strain the tomato puree. Return the puree to the pot and reheat over medium heat.


Whisk the heavy cream and salt into the soup and season with pepper to taste. Divide among warm soup bowls and serve immediately.

Recipe by: The Food Network

Parmesan Croutons

4 large slices of hearty bread (I used sourdough)
1/4 c. grated parmesan cheese
olive oil to coat
garlic salt

Preheat oven to 300. Brush bread on one side with olive oil. Cut into cubes and spread out on an ungreased baking sheet, oiled side up. Sprinkle lightly with garlic salt. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Bake for 20-30 minutes or until bread is crispy.

*The final touch to recreate the BJ's version is to spread garlic butter on the lid of the bread bowl and broil it on low for about 4-5 minutes until slightly browned.

Pasta e Fagioli Soup

If you have ever had the soup at Olive Garden, you will recognize this soup. Of the copy cat recipes I have tried there are few that are as good as the real thing. This is one of them. It tastes the same as if you were to order it at Olive Garden.

This recipe makes a lot of soup so it is a good idea to put some in the freezer for future use. 

Pasta e Fagioli Soup

1 lb. ground beef
1 small onion, diced (1 cup)
1 large carrot, julienned (1 cup)
3 stalks of celery, minced
2 (14.5 oz) cans diced tomatoes
1 (15 oz) can red kidney beans, with liquid
1 (15 oz.) can great northern beans, with liquid
1 (15 oz.) can tomato sauce
1 (12 oz.) can V-8 (I actually use a 46 oz. can of vegetable juice because I like my soup with lots of liquid. Also, as it cooks it reduces drastically, especially when you add the pasta.)
1 Tbsp. white vinegar
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. oregano
1 tsp. basil
1/2 tsp. pepper
1/2 tsp. thyme
1/2 lb. ditali pasta (or any other small shaped pasta)

In a large sauce pan or stock pot, brown the ground beef over medium heat. Drain off fat. (If you prefer not to use ground beef, just make sure to add a couple tablespoons of oil to your pot before you saute the vegetables.

Add onion, carrot, celery and garlic. Saute for 10 minutes.

Add remaining ingredients, except pasta, and simmer for 50 minutes. In a medium saucepan, cook pasta to al dente. Leave it a little firm because it will continue to cook when it is added to the soup. Drain. Add pasta to soup and continue to simmer for another 5 to 10 minutes.

Serves 8

Creamless Creamy Tomato Soup

I am always on the look out for good tomato soup recipes and this one has been my favorite so far. I like to double the recipe and store it in the freezer for when I need a quick meal. 

Creamless Creamy Tomato Soup

¼ cup extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for drizzling

1 medium onion, chopped (about 1 cup)

3 medium garlic cloves, minced or pressed

1 pinch hot red pepper flakes

1 bay leaf

 2 (28-ounce) cans whole tomatoes in juice

 1 Tablespoon brown sugar

 3 large slices good-quality white sandwich bread, crusts removed, torn into 1-inch pieces

 2 cups chicken broth (or vegetable broth, to make it vegetarian)

 2 Tablespoons brandy (optional)

 Salt and pepper to taste

 ¼ cup chopped fresh chives

Heat 2 tablespoons oil in Dutch oven over medium-high heat until shimmering.

Add onion, garlic, red pepper flakes, and bay leaf. Cook, stirring frequently, until onion is translucent, 3 to 5 minutes.

Stir in tomatoes and their juice. Using a potato masher, mash until no pieces bigger than 2 inches remain.

Stir in sugar and bread; bring soup to a boil. Reduce heat to medium and cook, stirring occasionally, until bread is completely saturated and starts to break down, about 5 minutes. Remove bay leaf and discard (don’t forget this step!)

Transfer half of soup to a blender, add 1tablespoon olive oil and process until soup is smooth and creamy, 2 to 3 minutes (See notes). Transfer to a large bowl and repeat with remaining soup and oil. (Or use an immersion blender)

Rinse out Dutch oven and return soup to pot. Stir in chicken broth and brandy (optional). Return soup to a boil and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Sprinkle each portion with pepper and chives or basil and drizzle with olive oil.  Serve (of course) with grilled cheese sandwiches.

Notes:

Be extra careful when putting hot liquids in the blender.  Never fill past 2/3 of the way full, and put a dish towel over the top just in case to protect your hands from getting burned by any hot liquid splashing up.

Recipe source: America's Test Kitchen