Tuesday, December 20, 2011

Chili Spiced Soup with Stoplight Peppers and Avocado Relish

Perfect Pairing:  Sharp chef’s knife
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One of the best fall meals is a great bowl of soup.  It is so comforting and filling.  This soup is my new favorite.  It is full of flavor and incredibly healthy.  It makes a big batch but it just gets better each day.  This recipe tells you to make your own seasoning blend, which has a kick.  If you are not a fan of spice you may want to cut back on the chili powder.  When you are mixing it up it may seem like a lot of spice but it does not overwhelm, just adds great flavor. 
Don’t skip the relish that goes on top of the soup.  It really makes it special.  If you can’t find queso fresco you could use feta cheese.
The Perfect Pairing for this soup is a really great chef’s knife.  There is a lot of chopping involved in this soup, but it can be quite enjoyable if you have the right knife.  Good knives can be pricey, but think of it as an investment.  If I was told I could only take one thing out of my kitchen it would be my Shun knife set.  That may be cheating seeing as it is a set of knives… but I think of it as clever game-playing.  There are lots of great brands out there but I am a huge fan of Shun.  My brother and sister-in-law got them as wedding presents and as soon as I tried them out I knew I needed these knives.   While I was looking for the link to Shun I realized they are having a pretty good promotion right now on their knives, click here to see it.  They would make a great holiday gift for the cook in your family!


Chili Spiced Soup with Stoplight Peppers and Avocado Relish
Adapted by Lindsay at Perfecting the Pairing from Cooking Light

Ingredients:
Spice Blend
·         2 ½ tsp chili powder
·         2 tsp ground cumin
·         1 ½ tsp ground coriander
·         1 tsp dried oregano
·         1 tsp cracked black pepper
·         ½ tsp kosher salt
Soup
·         1 Tb olive oil
·         1 ¼ lb skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut into strips
·         1 large sweet onion, chopped
·         1 red bell pepper, chopped
·         1 yellow bell pepper, chopped
·         1 green bell pepper, chopped
·         4 cloves of garlic, minced
·         ½ tsp salt
·         1 small bag frozen corn (10-16 oz)
·         32 oz (one large container) reduced sodium chicken broth
·         28 oz (one large can) fire-roasted crushed tomatoes, undrained
·         Juice of one lime
Relish
·         ½ cup fresh cilantro, chopped
·         1 small bunch of green onions, chopped
·         Juice and zest of one lime
·         3 oz queso fresco (or feta), crumbled
·         1 avocado, diced
Directions:
In a small bowl combine all of the spices to make the blend. 
Heat half of the oil in a large pot over medium heat.  Add the chicken and about half of the spice mixture.  Sauté until chicken is cooked through, remove from pan and allow to cool slightly.  Chop into bite-sized pieces.
Add the other half of the oil to the pan; add onions, bell peppers, garlic and salt.  Sprinkle remaining spice mixture over the vegetables, stir to combine.  Sauté until the vegetables are tender, but not mushy.  Return the chicken to the pan along with the corn, broth, and tomatoes.  Bring to a boil and simmer for 15 minutes.  Add lime juice and stir to combine.
To prepare the relish, combine the cilantro, green onions, zest, and juice in a bowl.  Stir to combine.  Add the cheese and avocado, and toss gently.  Top each bowl of soup with a big spoonful of the relish.

1 comment:

  1. I love the color of this soup! And, I absolutely agree with you about Shun knives. Kyle got me a Shun knife last year for Christmas. It is insanely sharp and well worth the investment...especially if it's on sale! It makes chopping soooo much more fun.

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