October's Cover - Tortilla Meatball Soup

Well, Cooking Light made it after all with their Tortilla Meatball Soup.  When I got my October copy, I wasn't too enamored by the soup on the cover, but two of my other magazines featured front porches and the pork roast on Bon Appetit seemed a little out of my league and budget.

When I looked more closely at the soup I saw that it had the potential to be a kid favorite. It has some elements of our favorite - chicken tortilla soup - and it has meatballs. Win win? Not so much.

It was fun to make - not quite the "five hour (blank)" that we have become accustomed to but enough steps to take about 2 hours. The large amount of onion and corn that it called for made it come out pretty sweet in the end. Roasting the bell peppers added to the sweetness. I should have added more chipotle peppers to the meatballs to kick up the heat, but it's really hard to judge seasoning in raw meat. I used to actually taste the hamburger I was seasoning when I was a kid . . . before we were as well informed as we are now. Can you believe that? But I digress . . .

The soup is good, but more sweet than spicy. The chunks of veggies in it make you feel all healthy as you are eating it. But my kids are purist. They like their tortilla soup to taste like our old standby and their meatballs to have spaghetti under them.

Here's the tortilla soup recipe and Grandma Prusa's meatball recipe, maybe they will become your standby's too.

Grandma Prusa's Meatballs
Chicken Tortilla Soup

Chicken Tortilla Soup

My kids really, really love this soup!  We make it twice a month from October to Summer.

1 cup chopped onion
1 tbsp canola oil
2 garlic cloves - I use jarred garlic for convenience (I fully understand that freshly pressed garlic is best, though)
2 cups cooked chicken breast
1 cup frozen corn
1/4 cup dry white wine (optional - just add a little more broth)
1 tbsp chopped jalapeno - I use the jarred kind for convenience
1 tbsp cumin
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp chili powder
1 can condensed tomato soup, undiluted
2 cans chicken broth
1 can petite diced tomatoes

Heat the oil in a dutch oven.  Add onion and garlic and saute for two minutes.  Add everything else and bring to a boil.  Simmer for one hour and garnish to your heart's delight!

Garnishes -- these make it awesome -- sour cream, avocado, cheese, tortilla chips, cilantro

Grandma Prusa's Meatballs

2 lbs ground beef
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1/2 cup parmesan cheese (from the can)
2 eggs
1 tbsp dried parsley
2 tbs finely chopped onion

Mix all in a large bowl and form into 1-inch meatballs.  Place on a rimmed cookie sheet covered with foil.  Bake in a 400-degree oven for about 15 or 20 minutes or until cooked through and slightly browned. 

Plop as many as needed into a saucepan and add jarred spaghetti sauce.  Simmer for about 20 minutes and server over spaghetti.

You can freeze the meatballs and just take out as many as needed.  Simmer the frozen meatballs in the sauce for 30 minutes on low heat.