Tortilla Soup

I'm making an effort to clean out the deep freezer which is so disorganized. Does anyone have a clue how to keep one in order? Two bags of pheasant equalling about a pound were just begging for me to make a soup so here we go. Pheasant is so dry I added two slices of bacon, this gives the soup a nice smokey flavor and of course a little fat : ) I wrote the recipe for future using chicken thighs but I'd keep the bacon, it won't hurt anything!

What you need:

1 lb of boneless skinless chicken thighs

1 small onion, finely chopped

1 bell pepper, finely chopped

1 carrot, peeled and chopped

2 slices of good quality bacon, sliced into 1/2 inch pieces

1/2 tsp onion powder

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp smoked paprika

1 tsp crushed chipotle chiles

2 tsp cumin

1 1/2 tsp chili powder

1 tsp dried oregano

salt and pepper

28 oz tomato purée

1 quart low sodium chicken broth

*Tortilla chips, grated cheese, sour cream, and hot sauce, fresh cilantro and avocado also great additions (The Chipotle Tabasco is great in this soup).

Begin by sautéing the peppers, onion, carrots, and bacon with a pinch of salt and pepper until the bacon begins to crisp up (about 5 minutes). Scoot to the outside and toss in your chicken and all of the spices. Brown chicken on all sides and then add the tomatoes and broth. Stir to combine. Bring to a simmer and allow to cook for 20-30 minutes. Shred the chicken with a fork. Serve with crushed tortilla chips, and your favorite accompaniments. Even better the second day!

**You could easily do the sautéing and browning in a pan and then transfer everything to a slow cooker