This is a recipe for rich and robust Vegetarian Tortilla Soup. Rich in both flavor and color, this is a can’t stop slurping this tortilla soup that gets a kick from Chipotle pepper and earthy with mushrooms and goat cheese.
I accidentally made something vegetarian this week.
We’re pretty much meat and potato folks around here but there are times when I prepare a dish that is so full of flavor and comes complete with a meatless “chew factor” that I find myself questioning the morality of our carnivore habits.
You know … that guilty nag about taking a life to nourish myself.
I could blame my parents. All meals growing up consisted of meat, potatoes and a vegetable side.
But I’ve always claimed that if I had to kill my own food, I’d be a vegetarian. On the other hand, I love hamburgers so much that I’d probably kill cow to to have one.
And speaking of my favorite meat, have you ever noticed that cows like to stare? And when I look into those gigantic friendly eyes, I have to remind myself that if a cow could eat me…it would.
And it probably wouldn’t kill me very humanely…and probably wouldn’t wonder it it were right or wrong. With that said, I think I’ll stick with my “want it…then eat it” mentality.
This vegetarian tortilla soup definitely falls into that “want it…then eat it” category.
A broth rich with onion, garlic, shiitake mushrooms and tomatoes is ladled over chopped avocado, watercress, chipotle chile and tangy goat cheese.
Your chew factor is satisfied with thick wonderful pieces of shiitake mushrooms. Topped with home baked tortilla strips you’ve got a fabulous version of tortilla soup. So delicious that I wouldn’t feel guilty about ripping those mushrooms from the comfort and safety of their decaying tree trunk homes.
A recipe adapted from Rick Bayless, let’s take a look.
Recipe for Vegetarian Tortilla Soup with Chipotle Chile and Goat Cheese
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Mushroom Tortilla Soup with Chipotle Chile and Goat Cheese
Ingredients
- 1 ½ tablespoon vegetable oil or lard
- A little oil to spray or brush on corn tortillas
- 4 cloves garlic peeled and left whole
- 1 small sweet onion sliced
- 1-15 ounce can chopped tomatoes in juice or 4 – 6 plum tomatoes, rough chopped
- 6 cups vegetable broth or chicken broth
- 8 ounces mushrooms full flavored (shiitake preferred) cleaned and sliced
- Salt to taste
- 6 corn tortillas
- 2 to 3 canned chipotle chiles en adobo removed from canning sauce, seeds and veins removed if you want less heat
- 4 ounces goat cheese broken apart into ½ inch cubes
- 1 inch large ripe avocado pitted, peeled and cut into ½- cubes
- 1 leaves large bunch of watercress only, rough chopped
Instructions
- In a medium large saucepan heat the oil or lard over medium. Add the garlic and onion and cook, stirring regularly until golden. About 7 minutes.
- Use a slotted spoon to scoop up the garlic and onion, pressing them against the side of the pan to leave behind as much oil as possible and transfer to a food processor or blender. Set the pan aside. Add the tomatoes to the garlic and onion and process to a smooth puree.
- Set the saucepan over medium-high heat. Wen hot, add the puree and stir nearly constantly until it has thickened to the consistency of tomato paste, about 10 minutes. Add the broth and mushrooms and bring to a boil, them partially cover and gently simmer over medium to medium low heat for 30 minutes. Taste and season with salt, usually ½ teaspoon depending on the saltiness of your broth.
- Heat oven to 375 degrees. Cut the tortillas in half, then cut crosswise into ¼ inch strips. Spread the tortilla strips in a single layer on a baking sheet and spray or lightly brush with oil and toss to coat. Set in the oven and bake, stirring around every couple of minutes or so, until lightly browned and crispy. About 8 minutes.
- Serving the soup. Cut open the chipotle chiles and scrape out the seeds. Cut the chiles into thin strips. In each soup bowl place a portion of the cheese and cubed avocado, a generous sprinkling of the watercress leaves and a few strips of the chipotle. Ladle the broth into the bowls and top each with a handful of crispy tortilla strips.
- Serve immediately.
Nutrition
Vegetarian Tortilla Soup with Mushrooms, Chipotle Chile and Goat Cheese…It’s what’s for Dinner.
Why Trust These Recipes? Lea Ann Brown has lived, worked and played in Colorado for 45 years. She has immersed herself in the Colorado Culinary space, is a Culinary School Graduate and publishes her Colorado food Blog, Cooking On The Ranch.
Lea Ann, I’m going to try this recipe – Bob and I are eating more plant based for health reasons. I’ll sub organic vegetable broth for the chicken broth. I’ve actually found some (Pacific low sodium organic) that’s quite flavorful. Hope you’re enjoying your fall weather. Our fall colors are over in the mountains and temps are lowering.
I do not think of it that way, I always tell my kids that we give animals a better life as it changes from being an animal to being a human – if that is considered a better life- hahahaha. Thanks for the recipe, Face booking this right away.
Love it Amira.
I love meat! But I could easily be a vegetarian — there are so many good, satisfying vegetarian dishes out there. Although I agree about the burgers — would be tough to give those up! Anyway, this soup is terrific. Tons of flavor, tons of texture. Who needs meat? 🙂
Thanks John. I love a fellow burger lover. 🙂
Love this spicy variation of chicken tortilla soup. I am a fan of mushrooms — and I can imagine how flavorful this soup is. This is a complete meal! Wishing you and your family a wonderful Thanksgiving!
Thanks so much Denise. And Happy Thanksgiving to you.
Tortilla soup is a favorite of mine and I love your new version…it sounds quite delicious.
Thank you Karen.
What a great soup! I love shitakes and you never miss the meat with them in there! My grandfather was a butcher and we had meat constantly. Yes, I may have given up meat, but I sure miss the smell of a good roast in my oven!
I had a cousin that had a butcher shop. I just read about the incredible health benefits of shiitake’s. I must buy them more.
Hi Lea Ann, I think the best kind of vegetarian dishes are the ones you don’t even miss the meat, they are so good, this definitely sounds like that dish.
Thanks Cheri, I agree.
Meat and taters girl – sounds like someone who grew up on a farm in Kansas. The soup sounds totally delicious and your presentation looks very pretty. Are you enjoying your first snows?
We’ve had about three good snowstorms. And by good, I mean 6 + inches. You don’t hear me complaining – yet. 🙂
PS Your “if a cow could eat me, it would” made me laugh — that’s what my husband says about our cat! 😀
I agree with him about that cat. Too funny.
Lea Ann, this soup looks sooo good! I’ve been vegetarian at several points in my life and, ideally, would be vegan. My excuse is my husband. No matter how careful I was about getting a lot of protein into him, he did not thrive on even a vegetarian, let alone vegan, diet. And I just don’t have the time or energy to cook two different meals. My “answer” is buying only humanely raised and “harvested” grassfed/pastured meats.
I agree, I do buy my meat products with exactly that in mind. I actually took an eat no farm raised chicken challenge in September. It’s hard to do when you eat out alot.
It would be very hard from me to give up my meat-eating ways too, although I try to serve a good dose of fish much more often that my mother ever did. That being said, I don’t think I would miss it at all in this tasty bowl of soup!
I try to eat fish once a week. Thanks for stopping in Susan, always good to hear from you.
It’s so funny, I agree with everything you said about meat eating vs vegetarianism. I blame my mom, too, (don’t we all?) she made such a good meatloaf 🙂
ohmygosh – now you have me craving meatloaf. 🙂