tomato, lime & tortilla soup

I’m glad that I have a little more time to cook these days, but I still have trouble thinking of what to make sometimes. I’m trying to get everyone in the family involved by having them choose one dinner a week. Jenna’s choice this week was tortilla soup. I remember making it awhile ago using the recipe from the Sundays at Moosewood cookbook. Here is my toned-down version – meaning not spicy – so that the kids might actually want to eat it. The only kind of soup they like eating are Asian soups with clear broths, and even then they would usually prefer a bowl of ramen. For some reason I thought they might like this (they didn’t, really), if only for the fact that it was garnished with crispy tortilla chips (they both asked for them on the side). Anyway, if you or your children like your soup spicy, just substitute some kind of chili powder for some or all of the paprika in this recipe.

tomato, lime & tortilla soup (serves 4-6)

1/4 cup olive oil
1 onion, chopped
6 cloves garlic, chopped
2 Tablespoons smoked paprika (substitute regular paprika or chili powder if you like)
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon oregano
8 fresh plum tomatoes, chopped
1 cup canned crushed tomatoes
6 cups chicken or vegetable broth
juice of 3 limes
salt and pepper to taste
Chopped cilantro for garnish
Crisp-fried corn tortilla strips for garnish (use crushed tortilla chips if you don’t feel like frying your own)

Heat the olive oil in a soup pot. Add the onion and garlic and saute for several minutes. Add the spices and fresh tomatoes and cook for a few minutes more, until the tomatoes start to break down. Add the canned tomatoes and stock, plus salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a simmer and cook for about 10 minutes, until the fresh tomatoes have softened. Add the lime juice, check the seasoning again and serve, garnished with the crisp tortillas and cilantro.