Fiesta Soup

As I begin to share my adventures with food and my family, we are celebrating Christmas tomorrow and I know we will have LOTS of leftover turkey. This soup was my mother's solution for making a meal after the holidays even though we were tired of turkey. It is so easy and can also be made with chicken breasts and store bought broth. Mama and Papa spiked it liberally with some habanero hot sauce but the little one LOVED it.

FIESTA SOUP

leftover turkey meat

   OR 2 chicken breasts, boneless and skinless

homemade turkey stock made by simmering carcass in water overnight in crockpot

   OR 32 oz chicken broth, organic and low sodium

12 oz favorite salsa, I use Trader Joe's organic tomatillo and roasted yellow chili

15 oz corn

15 oz kidney beans

15 oz black beans

Simmer meat in broth (until cooked if using raw chicken) until tender. Add remaining ingredients, cook on medium and by the time you heat the tortillas it will be ready. I love frying handmade corn tortillas (TJ's again) in organic olive oil until they are chewy. Garnish with cilantro, avocado and queso fresca.

Bagna Cauda on the Merriest of Christmas Eves

As for the recipe... it comes from my absolute favorite cookbook for cooking in the bay area, Simply Organic by Jesse Ziff Cool We shop at the same farmer's market so I can go home with my loot, look in the index and have an amazing dinner ready in minutes. Not only does Jesse use local, seasonal and sustainable ingredients, each recipe has very few ingredients so it is simple to make but with incredible results. As we were eating her Chicken with Capers, Cherries and Chilis last night, my husband and I both commented that it was like we were eating at The Flea Street Cafe--her high end restaurant in the bay area-- but it was made with love at home and we were able to enjoy it at our family table. She is the most talented chef in that she can use less than ten ingredients to create a meal that leaves me speechless.

As for the tradition...I grew up eating bagna cauda on Christmas Eve. In part because my nana Katie (a true Italian grandmother if not biologically, definitely in spirit) also grew up eating this delectable dish on Christmas Eve. On the other hand, my mom probably welcomed this new tradition to our family because what could be better to eat on the day before Christmas (the day in which you eat your weight in food) than a huge platter of raw or slightly steamed vegetables, slices of fresh bread that you use as a plate (creating fewer dishes than on the day in which you eat on your weight of dishes) and a warm, communal pot of anchovies simmering in olive oil, butter and garlic? It was my favorite meal of the year growing up and I was astounded when we went on a special date to Flea Street and bagna cauda was one of Jesse's appetizers. I had never seen it outside of my home kitchen. Now, I just hope that the little one loves it as much as we do. In our home, our holiday, our tradition.