M.A.D.'s Chicken Enchilada Soup

I have quite the treat for you today!  My Mom's cousin just shared her recipe for Chicken Enchilada Soup with me, and gave me permission to share it with you!  I need to grab a couple of things from the store before I can make it, but I couldn't wait to share it with all of you!  Enjoy! :)  And thanks again to M.A.D.!!

Chicken Enchilada Soup:

1 onion chopped small - or 1 leek chopped small
2 ribs of celery sliced in pieces
2 carrots peeled and sliced in "coins"
Saute in some olive oil until tender.
Add 1 can chicken broth and 1 can water
1 can enchilada sauce 
1 large can (13 oz.) canned chicken (like from Sam's) including broth and broken up
2 t ground cumin
1/2 t thyme crushed or crumbled

Cook for at least 30 minutes.
Mix another 1/2 can water with 1/2 cup masa harina**. Mix until smooth. You might need more water to moisten all the masa. Gradually add all the masa mix to the above simmering mixture. You may need to add more liquid depending on how thick you want the soup.
Cook for at least 15 more minutes.
While hot take off the heat and add 1 C shredded cheddar cheese and stir until blended. Do not return mixture to heat as cheese will curdle.
Serve with tortilla chips.
*Note: We like lots of vegetables with our soup so that amount can vary - or you can add no veggies. Depending on the amount of liquid you add, it makes about 4 bowls of soup. One bowl is plenty for a meal and it keeps in the fridge and re-heats very well. 
**Note:  You can buy a 5 pound bag of it (which is a LOT) and now there is a smaller 2-3 pound bag available. Since I make it often, you can portion it out and put it in ziplock bags in the freezer to keep it fresh. And of course you can put the whole bag in the freezer. It's good for making homemade tamales!

Chili's Chicken Enchilada Soup

I recently had a request for Chili's Chicken Enchilada Soup.  So, when I decided I wanted to make it today, I thought I'd ask my Mom for her input.  She directed me to one of the cookbooks that we have called "Our favorite Recipes" and it was put together and sold by Zion Lutheran Church in Brighton, CO.  There are a couple different recipes that sound like they could taste like Chili's soup.  But one in particular seemed like a better starting point.  With that in mind, I went to get the ingredients....

Random shout out to my new tote I just made yesterday... I was rather impressed it could hold this much!  The bagger had more faith in it than I did...but it did make it home and was comfy to carry...even though it was rather heavy!  :)

The original recipe is called Chicken Tortilla Soup on page 180 of that "Our Favorite Recipes" cookbook I was talking about.  That is where I started, but I ended up changing it some so it would be more similar to Chili's and also so my mouth wouldn't burn up while eating it.  :)

Chili's Chicken Enchilada Soup:

4 c. Water

4 c. Broth

1 lb. Chicken Breads, boneless and skinless

1 can Rotel, regular

1 can Cream of Chicken Soup

1 c. Milk

1 c. Onions, sautéed

1 tsp. Garlic Powder

1/2 tsp. Chili Powder

1 tsp. Salt

1 tsp. Pepper

12 oz. Velveeta Cheese, cubed

Pico:

Roma Tomatoes, diced

Jalepeno, finely diced

Onion, finely diced

Cilantro, roughly chopped

Tortilla Strips:

Corn tortillas

Oil

Salt

1.  In a large pot cook chicken in the water and broth.  Once it is cooked take it out and cut it into small bite-sized pieces.

2.  Add the cut up chicken, rotel, cream of chicken soup, milk, onions and seasonings to the broth. (It will look like the pic below.)  Stir and let simmer for a few minutes.

 3.  While you are waiting for the soup to simmer you can start on the pico.  I'm not really including a recipe because we all like it different.  So just add your tomatoes, and then the pepper, onions and cilantro until it is the way you like it!  :)  This is how we like it here.....

 4.  Once you are done with the pico, it will be time to work on the soup again!  Now just add the cubes of velveeta and keep it on medium low, stirring occasionally until it is all melted and combined! It will look about like Chili's soup at this point!
5.  Now, on to the tortilla strips!  Just take some of the corn tortillas and slice them thinly....

 6.  Then cut them in half, so some aren't super, duper long!  :)

 7.  In a pan heat some oil for frying these little goodies.  Once it is hot, gently place some strips in the oil.

 8.  They are little, so it will only take about a minute to cook them....

 9.  So once they are slightly, I mean very slightly golden take them out of the oil!  (They will continue to cook for a little bit anyway, plus they are really, really little pieces.)  Place them on paper towels and salt.  Continue with the rest of your strips.  Make as many of these as you'd like, by the way!  :)

 10.  Assemble!  Just dish some soup into a bowl, then put some strips and pico in the middle of the top!  There you have it!  Delicious soup!  :)

 And boy was that good.  :)  Very good.  Ok, maybe not exactly like Chili's...but very close.  The taste is very similar to Chili's but it is not as thick.  So, you can try omitting the 4 c. of water in the recipe.  I think I will try that next time!!!  Either way, enjoy!!!!!!!! :)