Tortilla Soup and Existential Blogging: Begrebet Angest

I let my first C is for Kitchen invitation expire. I was very overwhelmed by the prospect. As the great Julia Child once proclaimed, you are what you cook! Am I savory or sweet? Sour or bitter? God, Am I Umami?? Am I an anti-animal rights barbarian or a baby-plant pamperer? Soon, posting had become no longer about trivial recipes but my entire self-definition! How could I possibly be expected to create something so substantive in the 14 months before the next blog invitation expired?!?!

And then, the economy crashed and Obama was elected president and I thought to myself, “Yes, I can!”

So, here’s to more productive moments of procrastination:

“Aztec” Soup or “Mexican Turkey Tor-tila Soup”

2 bunches scallions, trimmed and chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 jalapeno peppers, seeded and chopped and kept away from the eyes and nose
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon dried oregano
2 teaspoons ground cumin
Many corn tillas
8 cups turkey/chicken/ “vegetable” stock
1 28-ounce can plum tomatoes, undrained
3 tablespoons fresh lime juice (or more)
Salt
2 cups cooked turkey/chicken, a la julienne (optional for an easy plant-pamperer twist)
Numerous ripe avocados
½ cup fresh cilantro
Cheese (cheddar, Monterey jack, anything strong)


Saute scallions, garlic, and jalpeno peppers in heated olive oil in a large soup pot over medium-high heat. Add chile powder, oregano, and cumin and cook for one minute. Cut tortillas into small strips and add to the pot. Add stock, tomatoes and lime juice. Season with salt. Simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, cut more tortillas into thin strips and fry with (lots of) butter or oil until crisp!

Ladle into soup bowls and garnish with turkey/chicken strips (or not), avocado, cilantro, fried tortilla chips and cheese!

Existence precedes essence!