Warm Those Frozen Bones

Did you guys know that the "bomb cyclone" is apparently a thing? A thing that is due to bring horrendously cold weather and general misery to large parts of our fair country next week. UGH. I feel like winter just ended and I'm 100% not ready to face another several months of frozen toes. Luckily, today's Tortilla Soup is a perfect remedy to darkness and freezing rain!

The only thing better than the warm, complex flavors of this soup is how easy it is to make. While it does require a bit of chopping, there's nothing tricky about the recipe and it only takes about 30 minutes to come together. Toppings aren't just advisable here - they're pretty much mandatory. Customize your bowl with lots of goodies and pretend you're somewhere sunny and warm, far from a world where below-freezing temperatures exist!

Tortilla Soup
Adapted from Minimalist Baker and Oh She Glows

Serves 6

For the soup:
4 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
1/2 onion, diced
2 tablespoons cumin
1 tablespoon chili powder
2 Anaheim peppers, chopped (you can also sub 1 bell pepper here!)
1 jalapeno, chopped
12 ounces tomato paste
1 cup salsa
2 cups vegetable broth
2 cups water
1 cup corn
2 cans black beans, drained
1 avocado, cut into cubes
olive oil to coat your pot
salt and pepper to taste

For the garnish:
chopped cilantro
avocado slices
tortilla chips
lime juice
crushed red pepper
plain coconut milk yogurt

Pour a little olive oil into a large pot over medium heat, and toss in the garlic and onion. Toast these smelly little guys up until the onion starts to turn translucent - make sure you don't crank up the heat too high so that the garlic doesn't burn. Add the cumin and chili powder, stir for 30 seconds so that the spices all stick to those garlicky onions, then add the Anaheim peppers and the jalapeno and saute for another 2 minutes.

Add the tomato paste and stir until it evenly coats all your veggies, then pour in the salsa, veggie broth, and water. Turn the heat up a little bit to medium-high and cover the pot so that your soup comes to a rolling boil. In the meantime, prep your garnishes!

A study in green.

Once the soup is boiling, toss in the corn and black beans. Lower the heat to medium again and let all this simmer for 5 minutes. Do a quick taste test on a piece of Anaheim pepper - it should be nice and soft. Add salt and pepper to your little heart's desire. Once you're satisfied with your soup's spice level, throw in the cubed avocado, turn off the heat, and cover the pot until you're ready to eat. Pile on the cilantro, avocado, tortilla chips, lime, red pepper, and yogurt, and enjoy this hearty, warming meal!