I love soups because they’re an easy way to get in a lot of vegetables, and they are usually awesome leftover (whether they’ve been in the fridge or freezer). I am a big fan of serving easy dinners on busy weeknights and there is nothing easier than defrosting some soup out of your very own freezer. I especially love this soup because it comes with so many “accessories.” You could certainly eat it plain,
but it is amazing how the flavor suddenly changes when you pile avocado, grated cheese, sour cream, and cilantro on top. We even sometimes toast tortillas (to make them crunchy like chips) and throw them in the mix as well.
This is also a great dish to serve this week if you are participating in our third real food mini-pledge. Even though this dish is meatless it would still be great if you wanted to add a little raw chicken when you sauté the veggies (or even some leftover cooked meat at the end). Just like most of the recipes I post this one is super flexible. If you don’t have or like zucchini then use a different vegetable instead. If you randomly find a half container of mushrooms in your fridge…throw them in. Get creative and use what you have on hand to make this dish easy and budget-friendly!
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 onion
- 2 bell peppers (any color)
- 1 – 2 hot peppers (optional)
- 1 zucchini
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon poultry seasoning
- ¼ teaspoon chili powder
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- 1 cup frozen corn kernels (or fresh if it is in-season)
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1 28-oz can organic stewed tomatoes
- 1 8-oz can organic tomato sauce
- 2 – 3 cups chicken stock, depending on how “soupy” you like it
- Optional (but recommended) garnishes: avocado, grated cheese, sour cream, cilantro
- Chop the onion, peppers, and zucchini into ½” pieces. Dice the garlic.
- Heat the oil over medium heat in a large soup pot. Toss in the onions.
- After a couple of minutes add the peppers and zucchini. Flavor with the spices and stir the veggies until they start to soften.
- Add the frozen corn (no need to defrost) and garlic since these don’t take as long to cook.
- After the corn heats up add the stewed tomatoes, tomato sauce, and chicken stock.
- Bring to a boil then turn down to low. Simmer for a few minutes or until you are ready to eat.
- Ladle into bowls, top with garnishes, and enjoy!
[...] Tortilla Soup [...]
By tomato sauce, do you mean pasta sauce? And can you suggest an alternative for poultry seasoning? I live in the Netherlands and can’t seem to find that here.
If you search “poultry seasoning substitute” you’ll find a bunch of recommendations. Here’s one: http://www.thekitchn.com/from-the-spice-cupboard-poultr-131895
I’m not sure the exact difference between “tomato sauce” and “pasta sauce”. Generally, tomato sauce is a small 8 oz can of sauce. It’s very smooth. I generally think of pasta sauce as thicker and more seasonings. I’m sure a basic pasta sauce would work if that’s all you have. Here’s an example of a tomato sauce commonly avilable in the US: http://www.redgold.com/redpack/redpack-products/product-details?brand_id=2&product_id=1074
Thank you, Marie!
This soup sounds great. Will have to try it for kids’ lunches. How should I freeze leftover soup? Any special containers I should use? Any other ideas of how to best freeze leftover soup?
Hi Bryan. We use freezer safe glass jelly/canning jars. You can freeze individual portions or larger portions. You can find examples here: https://www.100daysofrealfood.com/2013/08/14/real-food-tips-10-recipes-to-freeze-for-school-lunches-which-makes-packing-a-breeze/. ~Amy
My 8 year old and I made this together today and the whole family loved it. It is so delicious and easy and we will definitely be making it again! My husband and I loved how many veggies there were.
Made this for the first time and everyone in the family loved it. It’s a great way to have lots of veggies for dinner that my boys won’t complain about eating. Even my husband who isn’t a big soup lover commented that this is one he could look forward to eating again. I’ll be freezing the leftovers for busy school nights.
Made this tonight and it was VERY good!! Everyone loved it!! Made a few changes because I did not have some of the ingredients. I had no corn or zucchini so I added chicken(from your chicken crockpot recipe), two celery sticks, 1 carrot, and black beans. We topped with avocado, cheese, cilantro, and tortilla chips!
I have a recipe that uses taco seasoning and ranch seasoning mix. I used to use the packets but have switched to making my own taco and ranch mixes. It also calls for black and pinto beans, carrots and chicken.
OMG this was even more delicious than I expected. SOOOOO yummy! Will definitely be adding this to the family rotation. Thank you so much for this recipe Lisa!!!
Made this last night for dinner and it was great. I combined it with grilled chicken and whole wheat quinoa (my boys complain if it’s not “filling”). It was a hit!!