Roasted Pepper Potato Soup

"Incredibly flavorful" was the first thing my hubby said when he tasted this.
Then he made that happy little face people make with their eyes closed.
That's a good feeling when you cooked what they're loving.
I can see where this would be a great family, or crowd pleaser for an easy and inexpensive meal.

This is a bunch of simple ingredients that really do come together with an awesome flavorful.  Not spicy, just flavorful.  I have to admit, when I saw this good recipe online, I really wondered about adding cream cheese to soup.  However, I must say this really made it delicious and creamy.  I only used half a package in the soup, attempting to reduce the fat a bit, but you could easily add the whole package if you desired. I changed up some of the ratios to the original recipe above, mainly because I had larger cans in my pantry and I really didn't want leftovers.  I really am a lazy cook...

This one is a keeper, I will make this one again for sure.

Serves 6
Ingredients

2 medium onions, chopped

2 tablespoons canola oil

1 jar (12 ounces) roasted sweet red peppers, undrained and chopped

1 can (7 ounces) chopped green chilies, drained

1- 2 tsp ground cumin

1 teaspoon salt, or to taste

4 cups potatoes, peeled and diced

4 cups chicken, vegetable or beef broth

2-3 Tbsp minced fresh cilantro

1 Tbsp lemon juice

1/2 cup (1/2 pkg) cream cheese, cubed
Pepper to taste

In a large saucepan, saute onions in oil until tender. 

Stir in the roasted peppers, chilies, cumin, salt and coriander. Cook and stir for 2 minutes. Stir in potatoes and broth; bring to a boil.

Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 10-15 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Stir in cream cheese, cilantro and lemon juice. Using a stick blender, blend until about half of the soup is smooth. If needed, add a bit of water or broth to thin the soup if too thick. Return all to pan and heat through.

Below is a picture of the soup before I blended it.  Blending it makes it creamy, but leave some chunks.

Homemade Red Enchilada Sauce

Enchilada sauce isn't really that expensive, but it never seems to be on hand when you need it. Plus, if you consider what's in it, it's so much easier and cheaper to make it yourself. 

This tastes so much better than the canned stuff and you know exactly what's in it.


Pictured above- I also use this sauce to make my Heuvos Rancheros,
 

Makes about 4-5 cups

Ingredients

3 Tbsp. vegetable or canola oil

1 onion, chopped

4 corn tortillas, rough chopped

2 Tbsp chili powder

2-3 garlic cloves, chopped

1 tsp salt
2 tsp smoked paprika

1 tsp. cumin

1  tsp. oregano

4 cups broth (chicken, beef or vegetable)

Heat oil in a small saucepan over medium-high heat, add chopped onion and cook until softened and slightly colored. Add garlic and stir together over the heat for couple minutes. Stir in the remaining seasonings (chili powder through oregano). 

Then gradually add in the broth stirring to combine, add cut up corn tortillas cook for 5-10 minutes over a medium low heat.  It looks something like this.
Add to a blender, cover top with a towel and blend until smooth. Return to the pan, reduce heat and simmer to thicken as thick as you like, OR go ahead and use it right away.
Use immediately, freeze or refrigerate in an air-tight container for up to two weeks.