Arizona Tortilla Soup

Total Time: 1 hr Preparation Time: 1 hr

Ingredients

• Servings: 6
• 4 corn tortillas (6 to 7 in.)
• 3 tablespoons salad oil
• 1 onion, peeled and finely chopped (4 to 5 oz.)
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1 dried bay leaf
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon black peppercorns
• 1/2 teaspoon hot chili flakes
• 8 cups fat-skimmed chicken broth
• 1 avocado (about 8 oz.)
• 1 lime (about 3 oz.)
• 3/4 cup shredded monterey jack cheese
• salt and pepper
• salsa fresca
• 1 lb tomato
• 1 fresh jalapeno
• 1/4 cup finely chopped onion
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 3 tablespoons lime juice
• salt and pepper

Recipe

• 1 cut tortillas into 1-inch-wide strips. pour oil into a 5- to 6-quart pan over high heat. when oil is hot, add tortilla strips and stir often until crisp and lightly browned, 2 to 3 minutes. transfer tortilla strips to towels to drain.
• 2 add onion and garlic to pan. stir often over medium-high heat until onion is limp, 3 to 4 minutes. add bay leaf, oregano, peppercorns, chili flakes, and broth. bring to a boil over high heat and boil until reduced to about 6 cups, 20 to 25 minutes.
• 3 prepare salsa fresca while soup boils: rinse and core tomatoes and cut into about 1/4-inch dice; put the tomatoes with their juices into a bowl. rinse and stem the jalapeño; shake out seeds and cut out the veins. finely chop the chili. add it to the bowl, along with the onion, cilantro, and 3 tablespoons lime juice. stir gently to mix, and add more lime juice and salt and pepper to taste.
• 4 coarsely puree half the salsa fresca in a blender. pit, peel, and thinly slice the avocado. cut lime crosswise into thin slices; discard ends.
• 5 in wide soup bowls (at least 1 1/2-cup size), arrange equal portions of tortilla strips, remaining salsa, avocado slices, lime slices, and jack cheese.
• 6 pour puréed salsa into hot soup, season to taste with salt and pepper, and ladle over condiments into prepared bowls.