Vegetarian Tortilla Soup

With all the cold weather we’ve been having lately, I have really been in a soup mood. This hearty and flavorful tortilla soup features corn, black beans, and red peppers. It’s very easy to make and requires minimal prep time. This soup is all about the toppings so don’t be afraid to pile them on!

Prep time: 10 minutes Cook time: 25-30 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 medium yellow onion, diced

• 4 cloves garlic, minced

• 1 red bell pepper, seeds removed and chopped

• 1 small jalapeño, seeds removed and minced (optional – adds a kick!)

• 2 (14.5 oz.) cans black beans, drained and rinsed

• 2 (14.5 oz.) cans fire roasted diced tomatoes in juice (I used Hunt’s)

• 1 (14.5 oz.) can sweet yellow corn, drained and rinsed

• 5 cups vegetable broth (I used Better than Bouillon no chicken broth)

• 2 teaspoons ground cumin

• 1 tablespoon chili powder

• Juice from 1 lime

• 1 small head of chopped fresh cilantro

• Avocado oil for frying (may use grapeseed or any high heat oil you prefer)

• Salt and pepper, to taste

Optional Toppings

• Tortilla chips

• Diced avocado

• Diced green onions

• Shredded cheese

• Sour cream or plain Greek yogurt

Directions

Step 1: Coat the bottom of a large soup pot with avocado oil and heat on medium-high. Add the onion, red bell pepper, and jalapeño pepper and sauté for 4-5 minutes or until softened. Add the garlic and sauté for another 1-2 minutes until fragrant. Be careful not to burn!

Step 2: Add the beans, corn, diced tomatoes, cumin, and chili powder and stir. Add the vegetable broth. Bring soup to a gentle boil, then reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for 15-20 minutes until fragrant and vegetables are heated through and softened.

Step 3: Uncover soup and add the lime juice and fresh cilantro. Taste the soup and add salt and pepper if desired. (Note: I did not add salt to this because I didn’t think it needed it, but if you use low sodium broth you may need to).

Step 4: Spoon soup into bowls and top with tortilla chips and any additional toppings you desire. Enjoy!

Note: I like to give credit where credit is due, so I adapted this recipe from a slow cooker tortilla soup recipe from Two Peas & Their Pod (available here).