Hello all, Amy here on a cold November evening. Lately I’ve been living off soups and here is tonight’s tortilla soup, red and savory from Mano Y Metate Pipian Rojo powder. My soup turned out mild, but you could make it with Pipian Picante to make it medium spicy.

I got the idea from a longtime customer and Desert Botanical Garden staff member last weekend at the annual Chiles and Chocolate Festival in Phoenix. My mom, sister and I had a great time, seeing old friends and talking about food and recipes.

 

Tortilla soup usually starts with tomato, but I had Tucson CSA tomatillos. They all went in the stove top cast iron grill pan, some for the soup and the rest for salsa tomorrow.

Once charred, I coarsely chopped and set them aside. This step makes the tomatillos so much more flavorful and mellow. For red or other colored tomatoes, the charring would be an optional step.

Then I cut the kernels from an ear of sweet corn. The shucked ear could be charred first if you wanted more toasty corn flavor.

Then I browned a chopped white onion, a few cloves of sliced garlic and the corn in a little oil.

To that I added a tablespoon Pipian Rojo powder, about a cup of chicken (or veggie or turkey) broth and chopped tomatillos. After simmering for a few minutes, it smelled great.

Then I fried corn tortilla strips in hot oil until lightly brown and very crispy.

In each bowl, cilantro and green onion from the CSA share went over the soup, as well as a sliced avocado and the crispy tortillas.

I sprinkled on chopped Oaxaca cheese, which melted into the hot broth. Oaxaca cheese is made by stretching, similar to mozzarella, and it melts like it, too. Chicken in bite sized pieces would be very nice, but I’m using it for another soup, and I didn’t miss it here. Finally, a drizzle of cultured crema and a squeeze of ripe lime (or any tart citrus) finishes it. !Buen provecho!

Tortilla soup with Mano Y Metate Pipian Rojo

Quantities of all ingredients are to taste

 

Onion

Garlic

Sweet corn

Pipian Rojo powder (1 tablespoon per 1 cup broth)

Tomatillos

Chicken (or veggie or turkey) broth

Salt to taste

Oil as needed

 

Garnishes:

Tortilla strips, fried crunchy and light brown

Cilantro

Green onion

Avocado

Oaxaca or mozzarella cheese

Crema or sour cream

Lime squeeze