Chicken Tortilla Soup in the Instant Pot

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Busy weeknight?  I've gotcha!

Some nights I get home and cooking is the last thing I want to do after a long hard day at work.  We are all busy these days, running around doing errands, and a million other things that our days are full.  Getting a dinner that's healthy and tasty on the table just isn't always the easiest thing to do on weeknights.

I have a wonderful solution to that...the INSTANT POT!  This gadget is going to be your new best friend.  If you haven't gotten one yet, let me tell you it has enhanced my life so much in the last year, that it's becoming one of my most used appliances to date.  This is the one I use, and it works perfectly for me.  

The Instant Pot is the perfect tool to make soup, and on a weeknight soup and salad is just what the doctor ordered.  In 30 minutes you will have a filling and healthy dinner on the table!  The Instant Pot not only cooks your food faster it also concentrates the flavors, which makes for very delicious meals!

Bursting with Latin flavors, this healthy soup is one that you won't feel guilty about eating seconds!  The soup has tender pieces of chicken, corn, black beans, tomatoes, onion, and Latin spices to create a mouthwatering soup.  

So get yourself an Instant Pot and enjoy the freedom of cooking with a pressure cooker.  The dishes you can make are truly outstanding, just like this soup!

Enjoy!

Chicken Tortilla Soup in the Instant Pot

serves 6

1 Tablespoon of olive oil

1 yellow onion, diced

1 red bell pepper, finely diced 

1 lb boneless skinless chicken breast

1 quart chicken broth, low sodium 

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed 

1 14 oz can diced tomatoes, with their juice

1 cup corn, frozen or fresh 

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 tablespoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 lime

1/4 cup cilantro, chopped 

Turn on your instant pot to saute and allow to heat.  Add olive oil and heat for 1 minute.  Add onion and bell pepper and cook until softened slightly, about 3 minutes. 

Add the remaining ingredients except the limes and the cilantro.  Cover the pot with the lid and set the dial to pressure.  Press the manual button and set the time to 10 minutes.  When it has finished do a quick release.

Remove the chicken from the pot and shred.  Replace chicken in the pot.  Turn off Instant Pot.

Squeeze in the juice of the lime and stir in the cilantro.  Serve.

11 Healthy Soups to Eat This Winter

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Happy New Year!  

Are you off to a good start this year!  I've been trying to get out of the holiday goody mode myself.  We've been eating a lot of good food with all the treats thrown in as well.  Time to cut back and start back on a healthy eating track.

One way to do that is to eat healthy soups.  Winter time is the perfect time for soups.  They are comforting and warm and just soothe your soul.  Don't you crave a bowl of hot soup in the winter?

We just love hearty filling soups in our house.  We eat soup and salad for lunch or dinner quite a bit throughout the week.  
Today I've brought you 11 Healthy Soups you can eat all winter long.  Some are made on the stove, and some in the slow cooker, but all are hearty, healthy, delicious, and easy to make.

Enjoy a steaming hot bowl of soup!







Greek Style Lemony Chicken and Orzo Soup




Slow Cooker Turkey Tortilla Soup




Italian Style Roasted Chicken and Orzo Soup



Slow Cooker: Mexican Vegetable and Quinoa Soup



Chicken and Wild Rice Soup



Tuscan White Bean Soup 





Quick Taco Soup




Chicken Enchilada Soup




Romanian Lentil Soup




Easy Tomato Soup with Grilled Cheese Croutons 




Italian Chicken and Bean Soup

11 Best Dishes of 2018

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Happy New Year!

2018 was a year full of highs and lows but it seems that it went so fast that it was a blur.  The food we made was a full of variety.  The most popular dishes seem to have a comfort food theme with a little bit of restaurant flair thrown in.   

I've gathered the eleven most popular dishes (there was a tie for 10th place that I couldn't break) from 2018 in one spot for you to reference and enjoy!

Enjoy all the precious moments that 2019 will bring.  We only live once!

11 TOP RECIPES OF 2018

In no particular order...

Cajun Roasted Potatoes

Chili Lime Salmon with Roasted Vegetables

Baked Honey Soy Chicken Legs

Spicy Turkey Chili 

Garlic and Parmesan Crispy Oven Fried Chicken

Grilled Balsamic Chicken with Mediterranean Rice

Slow Cooker Italian Chicken Stew

Middle Eastern Chickpea Salad

Lemon Blueberry Muffins

Easy Cinnamon Peach Cobbler - Family Sized

Sheet Pan Beef Fajitas

There are plenty of dishes to come in 2019.  Lots of comfort food, weeknight meals, stir frys, southern dishes, and easy restaurant style meals.  Enjoy a prosperous holiday and I am so grateful for all of my followers.  I wish you the best to come in 2019 and will be talking to you in the new year!

Chili Lime Salmon with Roasted Vegetables

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So I have to admit that this is a rare posting of a "fishy" dish.  I don't eat fish but MGG loves it.  So I will on occasion make him fish while cooking a piece of chicken for myself.

Since I hadn't made him a salmon dish in quite awhile I thought it was time to do just that!  It just so happened that this particular salmon dish came out fabulously delicious that I had to share it all with you.  You are gonna love this.

Chili Lime Salmon with Roasted Vegetables

The flavors in this dish just POP!  The salmon is bursting with a chili lime seasoning and I use a searing and roasting method that produces a crispy fish on the outside and juicy and succulent on the inside.   This method is really easy to do and is perfect if you are cooking four or less fillets.  The best tool that you can use for this is a cast-iron skillet.  It cooks the fish beautifully!

Serve along a combination of roasted potatoes, green beans, and butternut squash.  A great combination that turns out to be the perfect side dish to the fish. 

This is one easy weeknight meal, that is perfect for the fish lover!

Enjoy!

Chili Lime Salmon with Roasted Vegetables

serves 4

2 tablespoons of butter
4 salmon fillets
2 Tablespoons chili lime seasoning (such as Mrs. Dash)
3/4 lb fresh green beans
1 1/2 lb baby gold potatoes (halved or quartered)
1 lb cubed butternut squash
olive oil
salt & pepper

Heat the oven to 450 degrees. On a sheet pan place the butternut squash and potatoes, spreading them out so they don't overlap too much. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste. Toss to coat and spread out again on the pan.

Cook the vegetables for 15 minutes, remove from the oven and toss and add the green beans. Cook an additional 10 minutes until golden brown. Remove from the oven and cover with foil to keep warm.

Turn the oven down to 400 degrees.

Sprinkle the seasoning over the salmon fillets. In a cast-iron skillet over medium high, melt 2 tablespoons of butter. Add the salmon fillets, skin side down and cook for 3 minutes over to brown the skin. Spoon some of the melted butter over the top of the fish as it cooks.

Transfer the skillet to oven. Roast until fish is just cooked through, 8 to 10 minutes.

Sheet Pan Beef Fajitas

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I just love sheet pan meals, don't you?

The are so easy to put together because the whole meal cooks on the same sheet. That's right, meat and vegetables, (chicken, beef, pork, and fish) can be combined on the same tray and roasted in the oven! It's a new marvel and I'm loving it! This is the perfect weeknight meal.

Today we are going to take a walk on the Latin side. How about some delicious, sizzling fajitas? Sounds great, right! All those caramelized onions and peppers mixed with your choice of meat, wrapped up in a hot fluffy tortilla. Oh man!

So today I'm craving steak, so lets make Sheet Pan Beef Fajitas.

With this easy supper, slices of sirloin steak, bell peppers and onion are roasted together, then tucked inside warm tortillas and served with Mexican rice and slices of lime. 

Since it all cooked on one pan, clean up is a breeze!

Sheet Pan Beef Fajitas



serves 4

1 lb. sirloin steak, left whole
1 red bell pepper, seeded an thinly sliced
1 yellow bell pepper, seed and thinly sliced
1 yellow onion, thinly sliced
2 Tbs. canola oil
2 Tbs. fajita seasoning
1 tsp. kosher salt
8 flour tortillas
Mexican rice for serving
Lime wedges for serving

Preheat an oven to 425°F

Place bell peppers, onion, and steak on a baking sheet. Steak should be in the middle surrounded by the vegetables. Drizzle oil over peppers, onion, and steak. Tossing to coat. Sprinkle fajita seasoning over the steaks, both sides, and rub in to cover surface area.

Place in the oven and roast, stirring the vegetables once halfway through, until the steak is cooked through and the vegetables are tender, 12 to 15 minutes.

During the last 5 minutes of cooking, wrap the tortillas in aluminum foil and place in the oven.

Remove the steak from the pan and allow to rest 5 minutes, then slice thinly Plate steak slices and vegetables. Serve with flour tortillas, Mexican rice (optional) and lime wedges.

Lighter Burrito Bowl

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Christmas is over and it's time to look forward to the new year. 

I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday filled with family and friends.  Oh, the food and indulgence of the holiday is always rampant but it's time to start looking toward some lighter food. 

Let's talk burrito bowls!  The new phenomenon that's taken the food world by storm.  So why go to your favorite fast food joint when you can make one that tastes 1000x better and is healthier. 

Making a burrito bowl at home allows you to make a dish that is healthier, using the freshest ingredients. That's so much better than takeout.  We make this healthier, first off, by using brown rice.  Brown rice is full of nutrients and fiber and tastes wonderful in this dish.  The use of turkey meat instead of beef adds another healthy touch by reducing the fat content.  Using my homemade taco seasoning up the flavor profile, along with the fresh vegetables and wonderfully flavored black beans.  This dish has soooo much flavor!  It's definitely a keeper.  You are  your family are sure to love this dish.  It will have you craving Mexican food to a whole other level.

Enjoy!

Lighter Burrito Bowl

serves 4

1 cup yellow or sweet onion, diced
1/2 pound ground turkey (7% lean)
1 cup brown rice (10 min. instant rice)
1 1/4 cup low-sodium chicken broth
1 cup salsa
2 teaspoons taco seasoning (homemade or store bought)
1 (15 oz) can black beans, drained
3/4 cup frozen or fresh corn kernels
1 cups cherry tomatoes, diced
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 cup cheddar cheese, shredded

Garnish: (Optional) diced tomatoes, cheese, sour cream, green onions, avocado

In a skillet over medium heat add the onion and the ground turkey. Cook until turkey is cooked through and no longer pink.  Use a wooden spoon to break up the turkey into small crumbles as it cooks.  Push the turkey mixture to one side of the skillet and add the rice and toast for about 1 minute.

Add the broth, salsa, diced tomatoes, taco seasoning, corn, and the beans. Stir together making sure the rice is submerged in the liquid.  Bring to a boil then lower the heat to simmer.  Cook 10-15 minutes, or until the rice is tender. Season with salt and pepper. Turn off the flame and add the cheese.  

Serve each portion in individual bowls and garnish if desired.  

Note:  This recipe calls for instant brown rice, if using regular long grain brown rice you will need to increase the cooking time to around 45-50 minutes to ensure the rice is fully cooked.  Instant brown rice is suggested.

adapted from skinnyms.com