I had every intent of going to Jazzercise tonight, so we planned ahead and I got a crockpot of Chicken Chili Blanco all set up and ready to go last night. Little did I know that the weather would take a turn (for the cold and rainy) which would wreak total havoc on my head. When the weather changes, I get headaches… so there was no Jazzercising for me tonight. Oh well. It was quite nice though to have dinner DONE when I got home, and I took a MUCH better picture than the first time I made it!
Guess which is the new picture:
Were the new dishes a total giveaway? Guess I’ve actually gotten better at the whole taking pictures of food thing. The light is better in the kitchen than in the living room, where I used to take pictures, and thanks to some of Zesty’s photo hints, I think I’ve got the settings on the camera right!
We have another guest for dinner tonight! Wiggs (The Beholder) sent me a fantastic recipe, along with a hilarious post! So have a seat at my table, Wiggs, and share what you made for dinner!
When it comes to making soup, it’s time to shizz or get off the pot. Warm weather is just around the corner, so pretty soon we’ll be in full-blown salad season and delicious soups like the one I’m about to show you will be but a distant, faded memory.
Okay, scratch that. This crap is so good you’ll probably make it this summer and then sit there at your dining table, torn between your aversion to pitting out and your overwhelming desire to inhale the contents of the bowl before you.
I had a soup like this once at Pesos in Seattle and ever since then I’ve been dying to try recreating it. I actually like MY version better. Take THAT, Pesos, with your snobby waitresses and douchey clientele (anyone who’s been there before knows what I’m talking about here).
Wiggs’s Awesome Chicken, Avocado, and Lime Soup
The ingreeds:
- 1 large onion
- 2 tablespoons of garlic paste
- Roughly 1.5 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 quart chicken stock
- 1 skinless, boneless chicken breast…wait, maybe it was a half breast. All I know is it weighed about half a pound.
- Canned, diced tomatoes (or you could dice your own friggin tomatoes, but why would you subject yourself to such misery), drained
- Lime juice to taste – I ended up using like 1/3 cup, but I think most people would want about half that
- 1/2 tablespoon of cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon of paprika
- Dash of cayenne, if you like that sort of thing
- Salt & pepper to taste
- 2 tortillas (or, if you’re me, two pieces of light Flatout flatbread)
- 1-2 avocados depending on how many people you’re serving
- 3ish green onions (mine were like mutant onions and I only used two…so use your best judgement)
- Fresh cilantro, chopped, if you have any
First, thinly slice the onion. Throw the onion, garlic, and olive oil into the soup pot over medium heat. Add a little bit of salt and pepper.
While that’s cooking, preheat your oven to 400 degress and julienne the tortillas. What the eff does julienne mean, you ask? It just means that you cut them in long, thin strips. The easiest way to do this is to lay one on top of the other and roll them into a spiral. Then slice the spiral. It seriously takes, like, 45 seconds. So don’t whine about it.
Spread the strips evenly over a cookie sheet and stick it in the oven for about 6 minutes. Keep a close eye on them or you’ll accidentally leave them in for 10 minutes and have to throw their charred remains away while your fiance isn’t paying attention, because he yells at you when you waste food.
Once the tortillas are in the oven, cut the disgusting, raw chicken into small pieces. Consider asking your fiance to do it for you, but realize that he’ll see the burnt tortillas in the trash and make a fuss. Instead of touching the cold, dead, slimy meat, grab a pair of tongs and use them to hold the chicken in place while you cut it, gagging the whole time.
At this point, the onions should be soft and delicious-looking. Don’t let them get too brown…although that would probably taste delicious too. Throw in the chicken and tomatoes. Let the meat cook a little bit, then pour in the chicken broth and spices. Bring everything to a boil, then cover and reduce to a simmer.
While that’s happening, slice your green onions and cut your avocado into pieces. Toss the avocado in a bit of lime juice so that it doesn’t turn brown.
When the chicken is cooked through (about 6-8 minutes), add the lime juice a bit at a time, tasting frequently, until the broth is tart but not sour. Adjust the seasoning.
Let each person load up the soup with tortilla strips, green onions, and avocados. Also, fresh cilantro would have been amazing…but I didn’t have any. Bummer.
This serves four people for an entree, or six people for a side dish. Or…if you’re me and Dave, you’ll each eat half of the soup and call it a day. Each serving (if dividing the recipe by four) has about 285 dee-friggin-licious calories.
Wiggs did a full out post of this with many more pictures here. Thanks for coming over for dinner! Do you want to be a guest at our table? Simply send me an email at mara@imadedinner.net and I’ll fill you in on the details!
The time has come to have a mini sundae and veg out… it’s an exciting day at work tomorrow! My sister is coming to do some pastry/baking demos and classes with some of the students! It should be fun! She’s finally going to get to try our favorite sushi place for dinner too!
Have a wonderful night!
Oooh can’t wait to read about your workday tomorrow!!
VeggieGirl´s last blog post..Satisfying Reader Requests
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Yay! Thanks for posting my recipe! And your photos are getting so amazing. It’s funny – if I had seen the old picture without the new one next to it, I wouldn’t have thought that it could be done better!
Wiggs (The Beholder)´s last blog post..Half-marathon training: Days 50 & 51
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Look how good. New pics on the right. Love the dishes!
I swear by my crockpot. It makes SO many of our weekly meals.
Erin´s last blog post..A few more
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I haven’t used my crockpot in ages. I think it’s about time to use it again, and your recipe sounds really good….
What another great guest you had over for dinner! I love limes and avocados and the recipe sounds great, and the post is sooo funny…
Andrea@WellnessNotes´s last blog post..Weekly Meals
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Great looking recipe! And I love the side-by-side photo comparison. Zesty taught me about the lovely macro setting too. My photos are still “eh” but I think that’s mostly because by the time my food is done, I wanna EAT so I don’t take the time to set up a pretty shot
Hallie´s last blog post..Seasonal Selections: Hoppin’ Jalapeños
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That soup looks awesome! I think I might make it this week…
Matt´s last blog post..Getting Stuff Done
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the NEW photo of your dinner looks fab! did you get a new camera?
Pearl´s last blog post..Almond Brittle
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Hope you are feeling better and love the dinner guest and chili!
Erin´s last blog post..Musings and 8 Things
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nice pics!!! Love those new bowls!
coco´s last blog post..Day 9: I’m human, I’m not perfect!
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wow, amazing what a difference in lighting and location can do to a pic! both soups look amazing!
Sophia´s last blog post..Sushi on a Pizza
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That is a great picture! And the chili sounds delicious!
Danielle´s last blog post..Half Way There
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This meal looks great.
Sorry you couldn’t go to Jazzercise. The weather messes with my head sometimes too.
Rose´s last blog post..Starving, Cravings Kind of Morning
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My hubby gets migraines when the weather changes, too!
Don’t crock pots rock???
Krista´s last blog post..Magic Bullet Wonders
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Love the chicken chili blanco – looks AMAZING!
AlliJag´s last blog post..Hot Sauce is Universal
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mara, your new photos are awesome!! MUCH BETTER — nice work!
that chicken, avocado, lime soup looks delicious. thanks wiggs!
p.s. sadly, utica is about 250 miles from the city!!! i wish it were closer
Sarah (Tales of Expansion)´s last blog post..Eggspansion
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[...] Her recent creation, ‘Chicken, Avocado, and Lime Soup’, grabbed my interest, and included a baked element, so it was immediately added to the dinner lineup. The soup is magical, and has contributed to her pending world fame, displayed at ‘What’s For Dinner?’ [...]
People, you all must make this soup tonight!
I’ll have to check out those photo tips as well, your second photo looks like it is out of a cookbook.
jennk/cinnamonquill´s last blog post..Wiggs Makes Dinner! And then feeds the world…
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That soup looks awesome, and your chili looks fabulous too. It’s certainly cold enough here today for a bowl of warm coziness. I’m sorry the weather changes bothered your head. I just hate being confused about what to wear every morning. Ugh.
Nicole (Sweetie Pie)´s last blog post..Back On Track
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[...] Sister So I mentioned yesterday that my sister, Leigh, was coming to do some baking adventures with some of the kids at school. [...]
I’ve been meaning to break out my crockpot for some time, its such a great time saver! Great looking dinner!
Jessica´s last blog post..Buitoni Wild Mushroom Agnolotti
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[...] 2009 in Recipe | Tags: food ***UPDATE*** Nice one, Wiggs. I forgot to tell you guys about how Mara at What’s For Dinner originally put this soup on her totally flippin’ sweet blog – that was when the seed of [...]
[...] The Vegetarian Edition Like last week when I re-made my Chicken Chili Blanco, tonight was an “oldie but goodie with a prettier photo-y.” Of course, I couldn’t leave well [...]