Smoky Chipolte Chicken Tortilla Soup

This past weekend The Husband and I had our normal group of people over to say farewell to Summer.  Of course, none of us were too happy about summer ending.  For the women it was the end of seeing our husbands for a while.  For the men, it meant the hard work was just beginning and there wouldn’t be reprieve for another 16 weeks.  

Of course, when you bring in the Army, Navy and, of course, the Air Force to your home, the best way to feed such giant appetites our servicemembers have is with large cuts of meat that have been smoked to oblivion.  In true spirit of summer and all things manly, I grabbed two chickens and a pork loin that would make any man whimper.

My Security Clearance isn’t strong enough to ever be given the Top Secret code to “The Rub”.  It is my job to have all of the staple “smoking spices” stocked in the pantry as The Husband embarks on the manly duty.

The chicken and pork were great, a close second to the company we had on Sunday afternoon/evening.  The leftovers… well, the leftovers are almost like the post-party cleanup.  There is such a thing as too much of a good thing.  I loosely followed a Rachael Ray recipe to savor the smoky flavor of the chicken, but made it my own.  The soup was perfect for the rainy, dark weather we’re having in Kansas City these days.

Smoky Chicken and Tortilla Soup with Chipolte and Fire-Roasted Tomatoes
Adapted from Rachael Ray

4 slices center-cut bacon, cut into 1/4″ pieces (use a g-free bacon)
1 large onion, chopped
4-6 cloves garlic, chopped
2 poblano peppers, seeded & chopped
2 chipolte peppers in adobo sauce, chopped
2-3 c cooked and chopped chicken
2 (14 oz) cans Fire-Roasted tomatoes (Hunts makes a great one)
1 1/2 – 2 c chicken stock
Salt & Pepper to taste
Juice of 2 limes
2 T heavy cream
For Garnish:
Shredded Monterey Jack Cheese
Chopped cilantro
Tortilla chips
Sliced Avacado

Heat a stockpot to medium-high heat and cook bacon until crisp.  Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon and set aside.  Leave about 2 T bacon oil in the pan, discard the remaining.  Cook the onions, pablano peppers and garlic over medium heat until fragrant and the pablano is softened.  Add in chipolte peppers, chicken, fire-roasted tomatoes, chicken stock and season with salt and pepper.  Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce heat to low for about 10 minutes until thickened.  Stir in bacon pieces, lime juice and heavy cream and heat through.

Serve garnished with avacado, tortilla chips, shredded Monterey Jack cheese and cilantro.