Chicken Enchilada Soup

Chicken Enchilada Soup

Cook 1½ lbs. boneless skinless chicken breasts in water.
Cool and cut into small pieces. Reserve the broth.

¼ cup oil
1 cup chopped onions
2 Tb. chicken base (not bouillon)
½ tsp. cumin
½ tsp. chili powder
½ tsp. garlic powder
¼ tsp. cayenne pepper

Sauté onions in oil until tender in large stock pot. Add soup base and spices and cook 2-3 minutes.  Cumin, chili powder and garlic powder can be increased if you like very spicy, strong soup.

1 cup masa (similar to ground corn flour)
½ qt. water

Blend masa and water in another sauce pan. Cook and stir until thick and bubbly. This gets very, very thick. Add to onion mixture, stir and cook until combined and smooth.

1½ qts. water (add water to reserved broth from chicken)
1 can diced tomatoes
¼ lb. Velveeta cheese or 1-2 cups grated cheese

Add the water and tomatoes. Simmer 10-15 minutes. Add cheese and stir until melted. Add cooked chicken. Add salt if needed. Serve with tortilla strips, chopped tomatoes, onion or cheese as a garnish.

Becky's Note: When we served this soup, one of my children said "How come I smell tamales?"  This is great use for masa (if you have a bag leftover from your Christmas Tamales:-)