Chicken Enchilada Soup

While on a date this past week, my date asked me what was one food/recipe that i could not live without. It was a no brainer but i had to ask clarify whether it was a type of food (i.e. Sushi, Thai, Chinese) or a particular dish. Well it turned out that it was a dish! After a few brief second for dramatic effect i stated enchiladas. 

Friends will attest to my love of mexican food. I worked at a mexican restaurant all through high school and then i would continue to make my favorite recipes through college and beyond. This week i thought that i would share a super easy recipe for Chicken Enchilada Soup that i made in the crock pot.

Chicken Enchilada Soup

Ingredients:

• 2 tsp olive oil
• 1/2 cup onion, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 cups chicken broth
• 8 oz can tomato sauce
• 1-3 tsp chipotle chili in adobo sauce (depending on the level of heat you want)
• 1 tbsp dried cilantro (if you have fresh cilantro use 1/4 cup)
• 15 oz can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 14.5 oz can petite diced tomatoes
• 2 cups frozen corn
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp dried oregano
• 2 8 oz skinless chicken breasts (16 oz total)

• 3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese 
• tortilla chips/strips

Heat oil in skillet over medium heat. Saute onion and garlic until soft (3-4 minutes). Add chicken broth,  tomato sauce, and chile in adobo sauce and bring to a boil. A little secret to the chile... pulse this in the food processor for a few times so that it will evenly disperse through your soup. 

While this is cooking, add your beans, tomatoes, corn, and chicken breast (i use frozen ones) to the crock pot. Pour your broth mixture over these items and into the crock pot. Add cilantro, cumin, oregano to the mixture and stir it up a few times. Cover and put on low heat for 4-6 hours. 

Bring the chicken breasts out of the mixture and shred with two forks. Add chicken back to the soup and you are ready to serve. Top the soup with your favorite toppings. cheese and tortilla chips/strips are what i had but this would also be great with sour cream and avocado as well.

Enjoy!