Chicken and Blackbean Soup

I saw a crock pot recipe for a chicken, salsa and blackbean soup and decided that that was what I was going to have for dinner tonight. But I wanted to use my leftover rotisserie chicken and I didn't want to use the crockpot. So after unsuccessfully trying to find a recipe I wanted to use here's what I came up with. The ingredient list is kinda long...but if you have a well stocked pantry you should have most everything on hand.

2 cups diced cooked chicken (I just tore the chicken into smallish pieces)
2 cans chicken broth
1 can of water
1.5 tbs cumin
1 tbs chili powder
1 tsp mexican oregano (optional)
2 cans black beans rinsed
1 can corn
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
4 cloves garlic minced
1 tbs olive oil
1 tbs hot sauce (optional)
2 cups salsa (I used Old El Paso)
optional add-ins:
cooked brown rice
sour cream
shredded cheddar
chopped green onions

In a large pot saute the garlic in the olive oil for about 3 minutes. Add the chicken broth plus fill one can with water and add to the pot. Add the black beans. Using a potato masher mash the black beans to your preferred consistency (I also added 1 extra can of black beans I had run through the blender to make the soup thicker). Add all other ingredients except the add-ins. Bring to a boil then turn down the heat and let simmer for 30-45 mins. Put rice on the bottom of your bowl then spoon in the soup and top with sour cream, cheese, and onions. Enjoy!

NOTE- I made two seperate pots of this. Once I added everything but the meat I set aside a small pot for the Vegetarian. Instead of adding chicken I added 2 veggie bugers that I had cut up. In retrospect I would have just added one to such a small pot. Though honestly, it really didn't need anything extra since I had already added that extra can of beans. We all loved it. And the Veggie's friend ate 2 bowls...which is a big deal, this boy eats like a bird. My toddler loved it, and it didn't take near as long to have her finish her dinner than the usual days. This is definately something we'll make again.

Fire Roasted Tomato Chipotle Salsa

Absolutely delicious! An old friend got this out of a salsa recipe book and tweaked it a bit. He always told me that the easiest way to blacken the tomatoes was to use a torch. I picked up one from Wal-Mart for really cheap, but I'm sure you can blacken them any way that you'd like. Enjoy!

¼ Cup + 1 Tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 Onion Chopped
2 Pounds Roma Tomatoes Blackened
4 Clove Garlic Roasted & Peeled
½ Cup Cilantro
4 Chipotle Chile In Adobo Sauce (more or less depending on how hot you want it)
¼ Cup Red Wine Vinegar
1 Teaspoon Salt
1 Tablespoon Sugar

Preheat oven to 350, wrap garlic (skin on) in foil and put in the oven until the garlic is soft.
Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a sauté pan over medium heat until
lightly smoking, add the onion, and sauté until caramelized, about 10
minutes. Transfer the onion, half of the blackened tomatoes and garlic
to a food processor and pulse until finely chopped but not pureed. Add
the cilantro and chipotle chilies, and pulse again to mix. Peel, and
seed remaining tomatoes. Cut into chunks. Place in food processor and
pulse a few times but not so much as to puree. You want some chunks of
tomato left. Add remaining EVOO, vinegar, salt and sugar.

Mexican Cubed Steak

Ingredients

* vegetable oil cooking spray
* 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
* 4 cubed steaks
* 1 (8 ounce) jar picante sauce
* 2 tablespoons lime juice
* 1/4 teaspoon ground pepper
* 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro or parsley

Directions

1. Coat a large nonstick skillet with cooking spray; add oil.
2. Place over medium high heat until hot.
3. Add steaks; cook 2 minutes on each side Combine picante sauce, lime juice, and pepper; pour over steaks.
4. Cover, reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes.
5. Sprinkle with cilantro.