Tortilla Soup- Southwestern Style

Ingredients:
​2 ears corn, cut off kernels to make 1 cup
2 Tbsp butter
2 cloves Garlic, minced
1 cup diced onion
1⁄2 cup Carrots, diced
1⁄2 cup Anaheim chili pepper, seeded, chopped fine
1 Tbsp. Ground cumin
1 1⁄2 tbsp. Chili powder
1 tsp. Dried oregano
1 1⁄2 cups Tomatoes, Diced
4 Cups (1 qt.) Chicken stock
1 bunch Cilantro, chopped
1 1⁄2 cups Chicken, cooked and diced or shredded (I prefer the shredded)
Salt and Pepper to taste
2 cups Tortilla chips, broken into small pieces
1 cup Monterey jack cheese, grated

Directions:

• Cut raw kernels off of corn cob with a sharp knife. If you don't have fresh corn, frozen works just find.  But be sure and try it sometime when you have fresh corn; you won't believe how good it tastes!
• In a large saucepan, melt the butter over moderate heat, add the garlic, onion, celery, corn, carrots, and Anaheim chili and cook for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the onion is translucent.
• Stir in the cumin, chili powder, and oregano and continue stirring another minute to toast the spices. Add the tomatoes, stock, cilantro, and chicken, bring mixture to a boil, and simmer for 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
• To serve, distribute the broken tortilla chips equally in the bottom of soup bowls, ladle the soup over them, and garnish each bowl with a tablespoon of cheese. And as a little something extra you can add a squeeze of lime and a bit of avocado to make it especially tasty.                                     ....Did I tell you this might be my favorite soup of all time!