Ohhhh, it is a windy, blustery day here in East Central Oklahoma. In this state the wind is a physical entity! This morning one of my cats was playing with a page I tore out of a magazine. It was from Southern Living magazine from November 2015 and featured King Ranch Chicken Soup. It is a rift on the tasty Tex-Mex casserole. Bingo, I know what will be today’s main meal. I made a couple of changes to the Southern Living recipe. I didn’t have a deli roasted chicken. With a town run being a 40 mile round trip event, I used three 12.5 ounce cans of chicken. Their recipe called for a green pepper. I substituted two pablano peppers. I believe they have a more interesting flavor for a Tex-Mex dish. And instead of just putting the tortilla strips in the soup to thicken it, I reduced the amount of chicken broth and toasted the tortilla strips to use as a crispy garnish at serving. Several years ago I posted my Red Dirt Cooking version of that famous casserole. It was messy but good.  I hope you like this soup and of course make it your own.  

• 2 Tbsp Butter
• 1 cup chopped Yellow Onion
• 2 Pablano Peppers chopped
• 1 Garlic Clove minced
• 2 (10.5 oz) cans diced Tomatoes with Green Chiles
• 1 (10.5 oz) can Cream of Mushroom Soup
• 1 (10.5 oz) can Cream of Chicken Soup
• 4 cups Chicken Broth
• 1 whole deli roasted Chicken, skin removed, de-boned and shredded (or 3 (12.5 oz) canned Chicken don’t drain)
• 2 Tsp dried Oregano
• 2 Tsp Ground Cumin
• 2 Tsp Chili Powder (I used Spice Hunter New Mexico Red Chili Pepper Powder)
• 8 ozs Shredded Cheese of your choice
• 8 six inch Tortillas (corn or flour), cut into ½ inch strips cut in half (use soft or toast in oven until crispy)
• Salt and Pepper to taste
• Optional Garnishes Sour Cream, Cilantro Leaves, Green Onions  

Melt butter in a large Dutch Oven over medium heat. Add onions and peppers. Sauté for 6 or 7 minutes. Add garlic. Sauté for about 2 minutes. Stir in diced tomatoes and both soups. Mix completely. Add chicken and spices. Mix until thoroughly. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes. If you are using the soft tortilla strips, add them now with the shredded cheese. Season to taste and simmer for two minutes. Remove from heat, serve into bowls and add your garnishes. If using crispy tortilla strips garnish on top.