If you’re like me when planning a party, then you’ll probably make too much food. You’ll also choose things that all need to go into the oven at once, are too time-consuming, and keep you in the kitchen while everyone else is waving their Terrible Towel at the tv.

I’ll be trying to avoid that problem on Sunday by including an enormous, hearty bowl of chili on the menu.

This “Santa Fe Soup” recipe was given to me by a co-worker at a previous job. I normally don’t go wild for chili, but the chili’s great look and smell won me over when he brought it in for lunch one day. Unfortunately he didn’t tell me where he got the original recipe, and when I googled it I came up with hundreds of variations. I did, however, make a few changes.

The recipe I was given called for 2 pounds of ground round, but I substituted beef for rotisserie chicken. I also substituted chunky stewed tomatoes and tomato paste for crushed tomatoes. The recipe called for two packages of Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing dry mix and one package of taco seasoning mix for seasoning, but I decided just to recreate these mixes using the spices in my kitchen and season it myself. I also halved the recipe, and it still almost filled my spaghetti pot.

This chili is excellent – spicy but not too spicy, thick, and full of variety. I hope you’ll consider it either for your Super Bowl party or a cold winter night!

Sante Fe Soup with Chicken
(recipe below is a half batch, which still makes enough for several dinners for two!)

1/2 cooked rotisserie chicken, cut into bite size pieces (you could also use 1 pound of chicken breast cooked using a method of your choice)
1 chopped onion
4 cloves garlic
1 can black beans
1 can kidney beans
1 can pinto beans
1 can white niblet corn, canned
1 can Rotel tomatoes
1 can stewed tomatoes
1 can tomato paste, 6 oz.
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon cayenne
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon oregano
1/2 teaspoon marjoram
15 saltines, crushed
1 tablespoon Nature’s seasoning
1 tablespoon parsley flakes

Combine all ingredients, beginning with beans and cooked chicken, in a large pot on medium low heat. Simmer approximately 20 minutes, but the longer the better. Top with tortilla chips, sour cream, or grated cheese to serve, or enjoy it “plain!”

Tags: bean, chicken, cooking, dinner, easy, entertaining

You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.