Tortilla Soup

Tortilla Soup has been a staple in my life since the first time I snagged the recipe from my sister. It has been the center of MANY a band dinner, Super Bowl party, my own personal craving, and really just any "group" meal. It is so easy to make and you can make a lot at once for a big group. :)

I made it again this last Super Bowl and I had a request to post the recipe (Thank Brittany!)

My church in Columbia, Tn (FUMC) hosts "The People's Table" every Tuesday night and Friday afternoon. The People's Table is a ministry that provides meals for anyone who may have trouble providing meals for themselves. It has grown so much since they started. They consistently have over 100 people at each one.
The people come in and go into the clothes closet (donated from church members and anyone else who wishes to help) and are welcome to help themselves to articles of clothing.
Publix donates bread that is just a day or so past the date on the package - loaves of everything! French, Italian, hotdog buns, you name it! And there's usually enough for each person to grab 1 or 2 loaves of what they want.
And then church members provide a full meal including enough for "take home" plates.

This last Friday my parents were in charge of the meal... and guess what they cooked?? I am very proud to say, Tortilla Soup!!! YAY!!!! Yum. That stuff is so good. And they said it was a hit. I think the People's Table is such a great way to help out the community, and I know a lot of communities have similar programs.
I had Mamma send me some pics :)






Tortilla Soup has also made it into a Cookbook as "Natalie Stovall's favorite recipe". I don't remember if that was a Country Musicians specific cookbook or what. I never saw it! I just remember my manager asking me to send in my recipe of my favorite meal to cook! :)

Here it is!

Tortilla Soup:

1 lb ground hamburger or ground turkey
1 packet of Taco Seasoning
1 can Corn
1 can Kidney Beans (I usually make a double recipe and do 1 can of dark red and 1 can of light red kidney beans - that's the best!)
1 can Black Beans (I usually only put in 1 can for a double recipe.... just started adding those in. They are really good in there!)
1 8oz can of Tomato Sauce (I prefer Hunt's)
1 Large can (28oz) Diced Tomatoes (Again I like Hunt's for this recipe)

I LOVE making this with Ground Turkey - it's not quite as heavy for an already very hearty meal. And many times I will buy the packages that are a little over a pound to get more - you can't have too much meat!

Cook meat and season with Package of Taco Seasoning. I also season with red pepper flakes and Tony's Cachere's Creole Seasoning. It all depends on how spicy you like it.

Dump the rest of the ingredients into a large pot - including the juice from the cans. DO NOT DRAIN the cans. Add in cooked, seasoned meat. The impatient or pressed for time can eat as soon as it is hot. But of course, it is best to let the juices simmer for a couple of hours. It is GREAT left over, so don't worry about cooking too much. I would say one pot serves around 4 people.

I serve with shredded Mexican Cheese, put a dollop of sour cream in my bowl and tortilla chips. I usually eat half of it with a spoon and half of it like a dip with my Tostitos. But that's just me. :)

This is such a fun recipe to play with! So have fun and happy eating! Let me know if you ever make this meal. :) It will make me proud!

Peace, Love, and Tortilla Soup
From somewhere on the road in Arkansas...