Chicken Enchilada Soup

A few months ago, I was recovering from surgery and my friend, Julie, brought us dinner. It was enchilada soup and it was pretty much one of the best things I had ever tasted. Up to this point, the easiest soup I could throw together, was taco soup. I have to admit, since she shared this recipe with me, I haven't made taco soup once. If you know how to open cans, you can make this soup. It is that easy, and besides being ready to eat in about 15 minutes, it is delicious down to the very last bite.

One of the things that makes this soup so special, is the crunchy strips on top. This is something that I added to the recipe, it is a little trick that I learned from my sister, who is an amazing cook. She is one of those people that can make recipes up as she goes along. Put in a little bit of this and a little bit of that...not me. I do much better following the recipe. Anyway, my sister showed me how to make crunchy tortilla strips. Take a stack of four or five corn tortillas and use your pizza cutter to cut thin strips (about 1/4 of an inch) then dump them into a hot frying pan coated with olive oil, cook until crunchy, drain on paper towels.

I don't like soggy tomatoes (stewed or bottled,) so I cut up a fresh tomato and add to my soup when I add the garnishes. I like to garnish this soup with a little dollop of sour cream, a sprinkle of cheddar cheese, diced tomatoes, diced avocado, and of course lots of the delicious crunchy strips. Thank you to my good friend Julie, you have lightened my life in more ways then just this delicious soup!

Ingredients:
15 oz can white kidney beans (I use great northern beans)
15 oz can dark red kidney beans
15 oz can pinto beans
15 oz can of golden corn (I use frozen corn)
1 28 oz can of petite diced tomatoes
1 10 oz can medium diced tomato and green chilies ( I don't add this)
1 4 oz can diced green chilies
2 chicken breasts cooked and shredded (I use the large can of chicken breast from Costco, very easy)
1 can of chicken broth ( I use one tsp of better than bouillon paste dissolved in a cup of hot water)
1 can green chili enchilada sauce
1 jar of pureed bottle tomatoes (optional)

Directions:
Open and drain the cans, dump into a large pot and heat through. I usually add a little more chicken broth if the soup needs to be thinned out a little. While the soup is heating, fry the tortilla strips and get garnishes ready. Top soup with your favorite garnishes.

*recipe from Julie B.