Instant Pot Chicken Tortilla Soup

When there is Tortilla Soup on the menu, I'm the first person to notice and there's a pretty high chance I will order it, no matter the weather. I've been in love with Tortilla Soup for as long as I can remember. 

Despite my appreciation for what is a really simple soup, I've never mastered making it at home — I always over think it, adding something extra or missing some key ingredient.

But I’ve done lots to try to learn the magic sauce, and each experiment gets closer and closer. What I’ve learned: simple poblano chilis, sautéed with the onions and garlic, and freshly made chicken broth. Oh, and not over thinking it. Tortilla Soup should be simple, like a tortilla.

It’s comfort in a bowl for me — this cozy bowl of broth-y goodness and full of Mexican flavor.

And the best part of any tortilla soup? The toppings! Cheese, avocado, crispy tortilla strips (or tortilla chips, which is much faster and less labor intensive), cilantro, and on and on.

Instant Pot Chicken Tortilla Soup

Published September 24, 2016 by Caitlin Sherwood

Serves: 4   |    Active Time: 45 minutes

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Ingredients:

1 tablespoon coconut oil

1 poblano chili pepper, diced and seeds removed

1 yellow onion, diced

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 pound boneless chicken breasts

1 28-ounce can diced fire roasted tomatoes

2 tablespoons minced cilantro, plus more for garnish

6 cups bone broth

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 tablespoon lime juice

1/4 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste

Optional: 1 16-ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed

Optional, for serving: avocado, cheddar cheese, corn toasted tortilla strips or chips, lime wedges

Directions:

1. Heat coconut oil in the bottom of an Instant Pot on Sauté setting. Add diced onion, minced garlic, and poblano pepper.
2. Add chicken, tomatoes, broth, cumin, lime juice, cilantro and optional black beans to pot and stir. Place lid on Instant Pot and turn to slow cooker setting (to use soup setting instead, see step 4). Set timer for 10 hours with vent turned to the sealed position.
3. When soup is done, open Instant Pot. Use tongs or a slotted spoon to remove chicken from soup and place in a bowl. Use a fork to shred chicken, and then return to soup and stir. Season with additionl salt to taste, and serve hot with toppings of choice.
4. To make this soup more quickly, use the soup setting instead of the slow cooker setting: In step 2, set Instant Pot to “soup” setting and set timer to 10 minutes with the vent in the sealed position. When timer goes off, release pressure, and the move on to step 3.

Salmon Taco Salad with Peach Salsa

Blackened salmon and peach salsa were made for each other. The combination of spicy and savory mixed with the sweet and fresh makes them a dynamic duo; beautiful counterparts that when combined. Avocado rounds out the trio, rich and creamy. Those three alone could make a meal-- just some salmon, topped with peach salsa salsa, and a bit of avocado.

It started on a hot afternoon, when my coworkers and I walked out from a skyscraper onto the streets of downtown Denver. Denver, while only a few miles away from where I live, is not somewhere I venture often. It feels like there is aways something new to explore when I visit. 

With lunch as our mission, we set off around town, until we found ourselves at a taco joint with menu items such as "The Dirty Sanchez" and "Mr. Pink". I ordered a "Mr. Orange," a taco with salmon and peaches, and found a table. 

That's where my salmon taco phase began. The very next week, I made salmon tacos at home, testing out a pineapple salsa. It was the next day that I laid my eyes on the peaches sitting in our fruit basket, and a light went off. Peach Salsa. That's what my tacos have been looking for. And, well, the rest is history. 

Salmon Taco Salad with Peach Salsa

Published August 16, 2016 by Caitlin Sherwood

Serves: 4   |    Active Time: 35 minutes

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Ingredients:

For the Salmon:

4 6-ounce fillets of salmon

1 teaspoon chili powder

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon ground paprika

Pinch salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1 teaspoon cooking oil (coconut or avocado)

For the salsa:

2 ripes peaches, diced

1 jalapeño, minced

1/4 of a red onion, diced small

1/4 cup cilantro, minced

1 clove garlic, minced

Juice of 1 lime

Salt & pepper to taste

For the taco salad:

6 cups romaine lettuce, shredded

1 avocado, sliced

1 bell pepper, sliced

1 Roma tomato, diced

Optional: 1/2 cup each black beans or corn kernels

Optional: 1/4 cup Cojita cheese, crumbled

For serving: 4 lime wedges

Directions:

1. While the salmon cooks, make the salsa. Combine diced peaches, minced jalapeño, onion, cilantro, garlic, and lime juice in a bowl. Stir to combine, and season to taste with salt and pepper.
2. Assemble taco salads: Add romaine to serving plates. Top with avocado, bell peppers, and tomato. If using the black beans and corn, add them at this time. Lay one salmon fillet over each salad. Top with peach salsa and optional cojita cheese and serve with lime wedges.

Mediterranean Salad

It started when I was in high school: my core group of friends began doing dinners together for special occasions--birthdays, prom, etc. Most dinners had a similar landscape, including a main pasta dish with some sort of protein, a salad, and dessert (cheesecake). And Being a lover of cooking and feeling at home in the kitchen, I helped with all three dishes. But, one of those nights, I was proclaimed the Official Salad Maker. 

Now I sort of thought, salad... boooooring. But they said look, you can even make salad taste good, and that's crazy! So I moved on with no complaints. I guess it was a compliment.

Flash forward to 2016 and I'm the first to bring a salad to a party. No one is bringing salad? Don't you worry! Official Salad Maker to the rescue! (I no longer use that title, but somehow, I can't help but be the salad bearer to this day).

I have left many of my old hat tricks for salads in the dark and moved on to more innovative efforts. Candied pecans are out and extravagant ingredients from the antipasti isle are in. So are homemade vinaigrettes. Those jarred roasted red peppers in the ethnic foods section? To die for! Why don't we put those on more things? This salad doesn't last long on a table.

Mediterranean Salad

Paleo, Gluten-Free, Grain-Free,    |   Caitlin Sherwood    

This salad has so many delicious ingreidents--it will be everyone's favorite!

Serves: 5   |    Total Time: 15 minutes

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Ingredients:

• 1 heart of romaine
• 1/3 cup roasted red peppers, sliced thin (found in near the olives and pickles or in the Italian section in the store)
• 1/3 cup Kalamata olives, sliced
• 1/2 english cucumber
• 1/4 cup feta, crumbled
• Sprinkle of dried oregano
• Sprinkle of dried basil
• Roasted red pepper dressing (I used a store-bought version)

Directions:

1. First, wash and dry the romain using a salad spinner. Then, chopped the ingredients: chop the romaine into bite-sized pieces; drain and dice the red peppers, drain and halve the olives; if you prefer, peel the cucumber, and then dice.
2. Arrange the ingredients on a serving tray in rows, including 1 row for crumbled feta cheese. Lightly sprinkle salad with herbs.
3. When serving, drizzle with dressing to taste, and then toss salad until everything is well mixed.