Tortilla Soup

I think this may be the best soup I have ever had. So delicious, filling, healthy (ish), and relatively easy to make. Many traditional tortilla soups are broth based. For this dish, I broke out the ol' immersion blender again which made for a rich soup with a delectable texture. I fried up the tortilla strips myself (thank you FryDaddy!), but you could certainly substitute store bought. This version is not too spicy. You could easily kick it up a notch with more peppers. This amount was good for 3 people to have a hearty bowl.

Ingredients:
2 Red bell peppers, diced
1 Green bell pepper, diced
1 Red onion, diced
2 Carrots, diced
3 Stalks celery, diced
~ 4 Cloves garlic, finely diced
1 jalapeno de-veined and de-seeded
1-2 T. Tomato paste
1/2 t. Dried oregano
1/4 t. Cayenne pepper
1 t. Cumin
2 Chicken breasts, poached in chicken broth and shredded
1 q. Chicken broth
2 limes
S + P to taste

Garnish:
Tortilla strips
Cilantro-lime sour cream
Diced avocado
Lime wedges
Queso fresco

1. Poach the chicken breast in a bit of chicken broth. Once cooked, allow to cool so that you can shred it comfortably.
2. Dice the veggies. My preferred onion dicing technique:

3. Over med-low heat, soften all of the veggies, garlic and jalapeno with a bit of olive oil and salt:

4. Once the veggies have softened, add the chicken stock, tomato paste and spices: oregano, cayenne pepper, and cumin.
5. Get your tortilla strips frying. Once to a golden brown, remove from oil to drain on a paper towel. Season with salt immediately.

6. Use your handy dandy immersion blender to blend into a smooth consistency:

7. Add your shredded chicken.
8. Add salt and pepper to taste. Add the juice of 1/2 lime.
9. For your Cilantro-lime sour cream, It is the juice of 1/2 lime, ~ 1 T. cilantro, finely minced, and a dollop of sour cream. It should be the consistency of buttermilk.
10. My preferred diced avocado technique... score it and scoop it out with a spoon:

11. Serve up the soup with a generous portion of the garnishes. Yum!!