Rick, Deborah, and Julianna's Place

6 Servings

Vegetable oil for deep frying
8 thin corn tortillas, halved, cut crosswise into thin strips
1 small onion
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1 Tbsp. chili powder
2 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. dried oregano, crumbled
1 bay leaf
6 cups Vegetable broth
1 8 oz. can tomato sauce
1 tsp. sugar
1/4 tsp. ground pepper
1 1/2 cups fresh corn kernels (from about 2 ears)
or frozen, thawed
Sour cream
Chopped fresh cilantro
Finely chopped red onion

DIRECTIONS

Pour oil into heavy medium skillet to depth of 3/4 inch and heat oil to 350 degrees F. Fry tortilla strips in batches until crisp and golden, about 1 minute. Drain tortillas on paper towels.

Transfer 1 Tbsp. tortilla frying oil to heavy large pot. Add onion and saute over medium heat until tender, about 5 minutes. Add garlic, chili powder, cumin, oregano and bay leaf. Saute 1 minute. Add broth, tomato sauce, sugar and pepper and bring to boil. Cover pot and simmer for about 15 minutes.

Add 1 1/4 cup of corn to soup. Simmer until corn is tender, about 5 minutes. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate. Bring just to simmer before continuing).

Ladle soup into bowls. Garnish with tortilla strips, sour cream, cilantro, red onion and remaining 1/4 cup corn tortillas.

Source: Bon Appetit, March 1993, p. 78

Notes:

1. Instead of dealing with the tortillas, I put in fritos.

2. Tastes great with some small cubes of Monterey Jack cheese.