Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery

Every town has its historical fixtures.  New York has the Statue of Liberty, San Fransisco has the Golden Gate Bridge, and San Antonio has the Alamo.  While each of these are attractions that easily make it on postcards, each town has its local fixtures that have as much (or more) history than the iconic attractions.  Growing up in San Antonio, my family always ate at the Alamo Cafe.  While I can't say that the same tastes I remember as a child still exist today as the restaurant has evolved and changed hands, one dish at the Alamo Cafe seems to have stayed closed to the original recipe I recall as a child.
The tortilla soup they serve has to be one of my favorite comfort foods of all time.  I always order it with an a la carte beef fajita taco and a small bowl of their amazing chili con queso.
A trip back to San Antonio almost always requires a stop on the way back out of town to pick up a gallon of the soup, some queso and their tortillas (some of the best I have had) so we can freeze them and ration them out in between trips.
I have tried many times to copy the recipe for the tortilla soup and I think my last attempt is the closest I have ever been to the real thing.  Other tortilla soup recipes are either heavy chicken broth based or tomato broth based.  I stepped away from those two bases and opted for an onion base this time and I think it is what was missing all along.

Onion Tomato Broth

• 3/4 large yellow onion quartered
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 ½ lb. Roma tomatoes, half peeled and chopped, and half not peeled and chopped
• ¾ C. water
• ½ C. fresh cilantro
• 6 C. hot water
• Puree ingredients in a blender until very well incorporated.
• Add puree to a large stock pot
• Pour in 6 C hot water
  
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 1 Tbsp Light Chili Powder
• 4 Tbps Knorr Chicken bouillon
• 1 box (32 oz) Swanson Chicken Broth
  
• Add dry ingredients and chicken broth to base, cover and bring to a boil over high heat.

Chicken

• 4 large boneless/skinless chicken breasts
• ¼ Cup Light Chili Powder
• ¼ Cup Kosher Salt
• ¼ Cup Garlic Powder
• ¼ Cup Black Pepper
  
• Heat large skillet with water over high heat
• Mix dry ingredients well and spread evenly on a plate.
• Dust chicken in dry rub
• Place chicken in water and cook for 20 minutes on one side.
• Turn chicken over and cook for another 10-15 minutes or until chicken is well cooked.
• Once chicken is cooked, remove from skillet and discard broth.
• Using two forks shred the chicken and place it in the onion/tomato broth above.
• Bring soup to a boil and cook for 30 minutes

Optional:
Cut 4 or 5 corn tortillas into ¼ inch strips and drop into hot oil until crispy.  Serve on top of soup with shredded Monterrey jack cheese.

Preheating the Oven

Preheating the Oven - The 1st post.

Well, I have been reading blogs for many years now and find part of my daily ritual is to check all my RSS feeds to see what my favorite bloggers were up to that day and I find myself now drawn to start my own blog. So I figured I would write about something I love doing in this blog and that is.. well.. cooking. From the time I was very young, I loved cooking. I think my first solo attempt was eggs on the stove at the ripe age of four (If I remember my mom's story right). I have had many hobbies in my life but those hobbies seem to come and go. What has stuck with me all my life is cooking and I think one reason is because there can be so much depth in cooking. It can be a meal or it can be a way to connect with your past. The tastes, the smells you remember and how you felt in those times. For me it is times where I can remember my grandmother and great grandmother in the kitchen cooking during a holiday, times when I remember looking into the kitchen while practicing piano to see my mother cooking in the kitchen with my father sitting watching Wheel of Fortune or Jeopardy. But besides being able to connect to your own past, you can learn something from someones cooking. Recently Shannon cooked her mom's chicken francaise and it was delicious but there was something special about her cooking that meal for me. Thomas Wolfe has said 'There is no spectacle on earth more appealing than that of a beautiful woman in the act of cooking dinner for someone she loves' and while it was amazing watching her cook that meal and then sitting down together to eat it there was so much more to it than the flavor. Food can be just about flavor but when it is cooked with love, with a purpose, it can tell a story, warm your heart and even give you a glimpse into the past.

Aside from heritage and comfort, I enjoy cooking because of the pleasure I get in cooking something that people enjoy and the unity it brings to a group. I think the bigger the kitchen the better when it comes to a house. You can entertain and watch movies in a family room, play games in the game room but there is something magical about a party centered around a kitchen. As the Irish saying goes, "Laughter is brightest in the place where food is".

So what will I write about in this blog? Food. Plain and simple. Hopefully I will be able to elicit responses from you all, get your ideas and have you share your love of cooking as well.

Kyle