This thick, flavorful Southwestern soup comes together easily using pantry items.

　　

Ingredients

serves 4 to 6, yields 9 cups

　　3 cups diced onions

　　2 teaspoons olive oil

　　2 teaspoons ground cumin

　　1 teaspoon dried oregano

　　1 quart vegetable broth (see page 295)

　　1 28-ounce can of diced tomatoes

　　2 teaspoons minced canned chipotles in adobo sauce (see page 286), or more to taste

　　1 1/2 cups crumbled corn tortilla chips

　　

Step 1

In a soup pot on medium heat, cook the onions in the oil for 5 minutes or until softened. Add the cumin and oregano and stir for a minute. Add the broth, tomatoes, and chipotles, cover, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for about 10 minutes.

　　

Step 2

Pulverize the tortilla chips in a blender. Add about 3 cups of the hot soup to the blender and purée until smooth. To make pouring easier, add another cup of hot soup and whirl on low speed. Stir the purée into the simmering soup pot. Serve hot.

　　

Serving & menu ideas

Step 3

Garnish the soup with chopped avocados, sour cream, grated cheese, and/or chopped fresh cilantro. For a complete Mexican-style supper, pair the soup with Bean & Cheese Quesadillas (page 141). Assemble the quesadillas while the soup cooks. Serve natural lime frozen fruit bars or Mango Coconut Sorbet (page 271) for dessert.

　　From Moosewood Restaurant Simple Suppers: Fresh Ideas for the Weeknight Table. Copyright © 2017 by Moosewood Collective. Published by Clarkson Potter, an imprint of Penguin Random House, LLC. Buy the full book from ThriftBooks or Amazon.