I make chicken tortilla soup different ways, depending on what I have on hand. Sometimes I use left-over rotisserie chicken, sometimes I used canned chicken, and sometimes I stew chicken breasts on the bone. (I always skim any fat off the broth if I stew the chicken.) Here’s the recipe:

• 1 can of chicken broth (or broth from stewed chicken)
  
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 1 large can of chicken breast (or left-over chicken)
• 1/2 – 1 cup salsa, depending on how spicy you like it
• 1 can diced tomatoes
  
• 2 cans of beans (black beans & red kidney beans)
  
• 1 cup frozen corn (or 1 can of corn, drained)
• 1 cup sliced carrots (I slice baby carrots or you can use canned)
• 2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1/2 teaspoon fajita seasoning, optional
  
• 1/2 – 1 teaspoon cilantro
• 2 tablespoons parsley
  
• fresh ground pepper
• salt to taste

Cook the onion, baby carrots, and spices in the broth for ten minutes. Add everything else and bring almost to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer. Serve in bowls and top with grated cheese, chopped avocado, and tortilla chips (broken into bite-sized pieces).

My mother passed away in 2000. But I can remember while I was growing up and while she was still able to cook, she would fix this salad at Thanksgiving and Christmas. Mix the following for a refreshing salad:

• 1 cup pineapple chunks (if you use canned, be sure and drain)
• 1 cup mandarin oranges, drained
• 1 cup miniature marshmallows
• 1 cup sour cream (if you don’t like sour cream, you can use Cool Whip)
• 1/3 cup coconut (if you don’t like coconut, leave it out)
  

At Christmas time, it looks pretty to add some maraschino cherries on top.

I didn’t feel good at all on the day I wrote this post. My husband’s been sick, and I’ve been fighting off his sick germs. I felt like I wanted some really good homemade soup, but I didn’t have the energy to make it all from scratch. So I used four cans of soup plus some chopped onion, herbs, and frozen veggies, and the soup turned out so good. I made enough for us to have soup the next day, but we ate most of it right after I made it. I felt a lot better after I ate two bowls of the soup. I hope I can remember exactly how I made it. I’ll try to remember, so here goes:

• 1 can chicken broth
• 2 cans reduced sodium chunky chicken noodle soup (this is what I had on hand and actually used: Campbell’s Chunky Healthy Request Chicken Noodle Soup & Progresso 50% Less Sodium Chicken Noodle Soup)
• 1 can 98% fat free cream of mushroom soup
• 1 onion chopped (1 to 1 1/2 cups of chopped onion)
• 4 teaspoons of dried parsley
• 1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
  
• fresh ground pepper (1/4 teaspoon or so)
  
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 8 ounces of frozen peas and carrots

First, I put the broth in the pan. Then I chopped the onion and added it to the broth along with the parsley, rosemary, and pepper. I let that simmer for 10-15 minutes with the lid on, and then I added the 3 cans of soup, olive oil, and peas & carrots. I stirred well and let it simmer until we were ready to eat which was probably around 45 minutes, then served it with crackers.

(I’m posting this recipe so I’ll remember how I made this soup and can make it again sometime. lol)

I got this recipe from my daughter, Christi, and it’s really good!  It uses stuffing mix which makes it flavorful.

• 2 tablespoons margarine or butter, softened
• 2 of the 3-ounce packages of cream cheese with chives
• 1 1/2 cup cubed, cooked chicken (or canned chicken, drained)
• 1 of the 8-count packages of crescent rolls, separated
• 3/4 cup melted margarine or butter
• 1 cup seasoned stuffing mix (or seasoned bread crumbs)

Cream the softened butter and cream cheese together. Add the chicken, mixing well. Spoon 1/4 cup of the chicken mixture onto each roll. Wrap dough to enclose filling, sealing well. Dip each roll into melted butter. Coat with stuffing mix. Place on baking sheet. Bake at 375 degrees for 20 minutes.