This yummy soup is perfect for a chilly January day such as today, and it's super easy too! The warmth and spice will warm you from the inside out.
First I boiled some boneless, skinless chicken breast tenders this morning in a large pot for about 5-7 minutes. Then took them out of the water and set aside while I rinsed out the pot and began to add the ingredients for the soup back into the same pot (why dirty another dish?). Then while step 1 was heating I shredded about 6 or 7 chicken tenders by simply using two forks to pull apart the meat. I test-tasted the soup after I added the chicken and thought it was much spicier than I had anticipated, so after dishing up my portion I decided to add a generous dollop of sour cream. I am glad I did. It was perfectly spiced and the sour cream adds a nice smoothness to the soup. YUM!
Chicken Tortilla Soup
Ingredients:
2 cans (10oz each) RoTel mexican diced tomatoes with lime and cilantro, undrained
1 can (16oz) Rosarita no fat green chili and lime refried beans
1/2 cup frozen whole kernel corn
2 cans (14oz each) reduced sodium chicken broth
2 cups shredded cooked chicken
Fried corn tortillas or chips
shredded cheese, optional
sour cream, optional
Directions:
1) Place undrained tomatoes, beans, corn and broth in medium saucepan and heat over medium high heat. Stir until combined. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and simmer 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
2) Add chicken; heat until hot. Serve topped with tortilla strips, cheese and sour cream if desired.
Makes 6 servings! (so who wants to come over and help me eat it?) :)
(Recipe courtesy of the can of Rosarita refried beans)
As Thanksgiving day quickly approaches I wanted to let you know just how grateful I am for each and every one of you who has played a part in allowing me the opportunity to go to Haiti, and to update you on my experiences there. Some of you gave financially, some of you supported me in prayer, some of you gave me the time off of work, and some of you picked up the slack and worked extra while I was away. In your own way you have blessed me so much, for it was because of you and your gift that all of this was made possible. When you gave, you became part of our team and helped us to be the hands and feet of Jesus to bring hope and love to those in need.
I have struggled these last couple of months with how to put into words such an overwhelming week full of emotions and experiences. How do I portray a true sense of what it was like and what we did and not write a ten page letter? My answer in part: a slide show.
The following video is my hand made dvd slideshow full of photos that I hope will give you a clearer idea of what it’s like in Haiti, and what we experienced. They say a picture is worth a thousand words, so this might just be a billion worth. Still, I don’t think any photo could adequately portray the stories told, or the lives changed, or the sounds and smells. But if you’d like a more full-effect while viewing this, take a weeks worth of rotting trash and sewage into a 90-plus degree sauna and sit there until you’re dripping sweat. Then throw in a swarm of mosquitos, 3 inch cockroaches and some dust and you might be close. As disgusting as that sounds, I miss Haiti. I would absolutely go back in a heartbeat. Why? Because what I saw was heartbreakingly beautiful. Because of the people, and because they need so much. Because they are beautiful and have blessed my life more than I feel I blessed theirs. Because a piece of my heart is still there. And most importantly, because God is at work there, among the people.
Created using iPhoto**
Everywhere we looked there is destruction and devastation, but we also saw beauty. There is much despair but we also experienced and heard stories of hope. Every single person has experienced grief and loss, yet we caught glimpses of joy.
Each day we spent in Haiti was full of service projects: We cleared a tent-city block full of the worst kind of garbage imaginable and leveled it for future homes. We built benches, cleaned and painted the interior of a future hospital, treated the sick and injured in a small and limited medical clinic, played soccer and jump rope with the orphan boys and girls, and fed hundreds and hundreds of children. More importantly we took time to build relationships with the people and involved them in everything we did.
It was evident from the beginning that these people who had absolutely nothing were giving to us so much more than we could give them. It was in the widow that gave every one of our 28 member team a hug and kiss as we entered her home.
Photo Courtesy of Bob Craddock.
It was in the guards that spent night and day, 24/7 watching over our team and belongings. It was in Pierre, an 8 year old boy who gave me a perfectly drawn flower on crisp, white paper while I picked up the dirtiest, most foul trash imaginable.
Fleur by Pierre.
It was in a sweet, shy 10 year old orphan girl named Regina who offered to share her candy with me even as we had just given it to her as a special treat and how she gave me a hug and kiss on the cheek when it was time to leave.
Me and Regina.
It was in a 12 year old boy named Simon asking if I knew Jesus and if I loved him and saying to me, “May the Lord bless you”, while he waited patiently for a bowl of rice, possibly his only meal for the day. It was in the way three ladies assisted in washing my hands and cleaning flour off my clothes after preparing fish for The Lord’s Kitchen feeding program.
And through it all God was showing me that it’s not about me or what I can do. For it’s abundantly clear that the massive brokenness and devastation of Haiti is far beyond what any human effort could solve. That being said, it is easy to lose heart and despair over the realities of what are the worst conditions in the world. But God reminds us in Ephesians 3:20 that He is able to do immeasurably more than we could ever ask or imagine. God has a plan for this country, and I believe He is using this devastation to change the hearts and minds of its people. And God has changed my heart in the process as well. Through His grace He continues to break my heart for the things that break His, and open my eyes to see people through His eyes. He is re-sensitizing me to the things that matter, the things He hates, and the things and people He loves.
I am so thankful for that. And I am so thankful for each and every member of my team. We went in as strangers and returned as a family of brothers and sisters united by a shared experience and love of Jesus and his children. Each one of us certainly met the least of these, as Jesus speaks of in Matthew 25:35-40, while in Haiti, and my heart was strengthened and made glad by how I saw our team pour love into these hurting peoples lives.
And so with a grateful and changed heart I say “Mesi” (Thank You)! Thank You for supporting me. Thank you for what you gave. You have made all of this possible and I am blessed because of it.
Thank You.
Grace and Peace,
Christin
PS: God’s plans are continuing to play out in Haiti through organizations like Forward Edge International, and the Jeune family of Grace International at Grace Village who are in it for the long term. Please keep them and Haiti in prayer. To find out how you can continue to support their efforts visit http://www.forwardedge.org./
**Special Thanks to Rayna and Josh Cleland for their help with the slide show. Check out their own blogs listed in my friends links.
