I learned to cook through spending time in the kitchen with my parents and through watching cooking shows on Saturday mornings on PBS as a kid. Yep , I wasn’t watching Spiderman as a kid I was watching Julia, Jacque and Graham. In fact right now I’m watching cooking shoes on tv and I’m not talking about the watered down reality shows you see on food network.
I’m not sure when and where I first learned this recipe while sitting in front of the TV but one thing is for certain it sure is tasty and really easy to get on the table. 30 minutes from start to finish, minimal chopping and clean up make for an awesome mid week meal. Along the way I’ve taken some creative liberties and short cuts to make it my own.
Ingredients
- 1 TBS olive oil
- 1 onion roughly chopped
- 1 Jalapeno sliced. – ribs and seeds removed
- 5 cloves of garlic smashed
- Cilantro stems finely chopped
- 4 large ripe tomatoes
- 1 quart of stock. Chicken or vegetable
- Tortilla chips
- 1/2 tbs cumin powder
- Optional toppings- diced avocados, pumpkin seeds, shredded chicken, cotija, finely diced cilantro leaves
In a medium sized soup pot heat the olive oil over a medium heat and sauté onions for 2-3 minutes or until starting to turn a light golden brown and then add the jalapenos and cook for another 1-2 minutes. Follow with the smashed garlic cloves, cilantro stems and cumin powder and cook for another minute or so. Add your stock of choice, the tomatoes and a handful and a half of tortilla chips and cook for 10-12 minutes or until tomato skins have started to peel off. This next step can get a little dangerous so just proceed with caution! Transfer a 1/3 of the mixture into a blender and leave the lid cracked just a little, cover with a clean kitchen towel and give it a 30 second blitz or so. Transfer to another sauce pan and repeat until all of the soup has had its chance in the blender and allow to come back to temperature over medium heat for a few minutes.
When ready to eat, add 6-8 tortilla chips to a bowl and cover with the soup. At this point you can add your desired toppings and go to town on this bowl of deliciousness.
Advanced version
The above recipe is amazing but if you want to push it over the edge here are a few suggestions. Roast your tomatoes, onions and jalapeno in the oven with a gentle rub of olive oil for 30 or so minutes at 375. Or if your really feeling adventuress or have the grill going fire roast and then set off the vegetables to the side of the grill for a gentle smoking.
Subjects to change 