Chicken Tortilla Soup is about as good is it gets on a cold winter night. It’s creamy, spicy, zingy, and cheesy, with every spoonful. In my opinion, The Cheesecake Factory makes the absolute best Chicken Tortilla Soup so they were my inspiration for this homemade version and I think this recipe hits the nail on the head. What’s more, it’s a perfect recipe for your crock pot or slow cooker. There are a ton of chopped veggies in this recipe so I strongly recommend busting out your food processor.
Crock Pot Cheesy Chicken Tortilla Soup Serves 8
1 1/2 pounds skinless chicken thighs (The flavor of bone-in meat is always so much better but if you prefer boneless then go with 1 pound)
3 ribs of celery, finely diced
2 large carrots, finely diced
1 medium onion, finely diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 (14-ounce) can diced tomatoes with green chilis
1 (10-ounce) package frozen or canned corn
1 fresh poblano pepper, seeded and minced
1 fresh jalapeño, seeded and minced
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, finely chopped
1 teaspoon ground cumin
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon chili powder
2 cups water
1 lime, zested and juiced
1 (10.5 ounce) can chicken broth
1 pint fat-free half and half (If you really want the real thing, go for it, but fat-free tastes just as good in this recipe and that means you can go back for seconds!)
12 ounces Monterey Jack cheese, shredded (Plus extra for garnish!)
6 corn tortillas, cut into strips
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
Directions:
1. Lay the chicken thighs on the bottom of the crock pot. Layer celery, carrots, onion, garlic, tomatoes, corn, peppers, spices and seasonings on top.
Pour chicken broth, lemon juice, and zest on top and stir well.
2. Cook for 6-8 hours on LOW or 3-4 hours on HIGH. About 30 minutes prior to serving, switch the crock pot to warm and remove chicken and set aside to cool so you can shred it.
Add the half and half and cheese to the crock pot and stir.
3. Heat a large skillet to medium high and add the vegetable oil. Add the tortilla strips and fry until nice and crispy. Remove from oil onto a plate lined with paper towels. Set aside.
4. Remove chicken from the bones and shred. Add back to the pot and stir.
5. Ladle up bowls of soup and garnish cheese and tortilla strips. I also like to add more chopped cilantro, sour cream, or avocado to my bowl. When serving for a group, I’ll fill up bowls with all of these ingredients and let people customize their soup. Lots of fun and so good! Enjoy!
I love having lunch at Olive Garden with friends to enjoy their delicious soups and salad. Their Pasta e Fagioli soup (similar to minestrone) is one of my favorites so it was a fun challenge to recreate at home. I found some great copycat recipes online which I adapted a bit but the twist on the challenge was to recreate it for the crock pot. The result is truly phenomenal and is an exact flavor copy of Olive Garden’s version! I recently had a large group of friends over and served this recipe and they all agreed it was identical to Olive Garden’s soup. There also weren’t any leftovers…Boo!
Quick note: If you want to make a true copycat you’ll need to use the ditali pasta. However, it can be a little harder to find and is also more expensive so I usually swap it out for fusilli or another small pasta.
Crock Pot Copycat Olive Garden Pasta e Fagioli Soup Serves 6-8
1 pound ground beef
1 small onion, finely diced
2 carrots, julienned or shredded
4 stalks of celery, finely diced
4 cloves of garlic, minced
1 (15 oz.) can red kidney beans
1 (15 oz.) can great Northern beans
2 (14.5 oz.) cans diced tomatoes with Italian herbs
1 (28 oz.) can tomato sauce
1 (12 oz.) can V8 juice
1 tablespoon vinegar
2 teaspoons salt
1 tablespoons of Italian seasoning
2 teaspoons parsley
1/2 teaspoon pepper
At the end:
1/2 pound ditali pasta (you can also substitute with fusilli, macaroni, or any small pasta you like)
Freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Directions:
1. In a large skillet, brown the meat. Drain off the fat and transfer the cooked hamburger to the bottom of the crock pot.
2. Pour the remaining items, except for the pasta and Parmesan cheese, over the hamburger.
Stir everything together.
Cook on LOW for 7-8 hours or on HIGH for 4-5 hours.
3. During the last 30 minutes of cooking, add the dry pasta to the crock pot and stir to incorporate. Stir every ten minutes or so to make sure the pasta doesn’t stick and that it can absorb enough liquid.
4. Pour soup into bowls and garnish with Parmesan cheese and serve along garlic bread. Enjoy!
Spices are like shoes for me. I have way too many! Unlike my shoes, with as much as I cook and bake, I get plenty of uses out of my spice. One life hack that I’ve recently discovered is making my own spice mixes. I’m sensitive to monosodium glutamate (MSG) which is in just about everything nowadays so I love that I can eliminate MSG from my seasonings, limit the amount of salt that goes into them, and save a ton of time and money all at the same time. Seriously, how often have you run to the store to pick up a packet of taco or Italian seasoning because a recipe called for it and you were out? Chances are you actually already had all of the spices needed in your cupboard! Even better, if your family really loves an herb or spice (in my house it’s garlic and parsley) you can add extra to your spice mix to create a truly unique family blend. Use empty spice containers or small mason jars to hold your spice mixes. As long as you place these spice mixes in an airtight container, they should keep for six months.
So here are my top 7 spice mixes or blends which you can make at home. Don’t forget, be creative! If you don’t like something then don’t add it. If you really like something else then add even more! Treat it like a fun home experiment. 🙂
#1: Taco Seasoning Recipe This is a great substitute for your store-bought taco seasoning packets like Old El Paso and McCormick. This recipe equals one ounce of taco seasoning or one packet of taco seasoning mix. Use for tacos, fajitas, or anything you want to add a little zip to.
Ingredients:
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
Directions:
Mix all of the above ingredients in a bowl. Store in an airtight container.
#2: Italian Seasoning Recipe I use A TON of Italian Seasoning in my house so finding my own recipe was a must. This is a great copycat of the pricey bottled variety which never lasted long in my home.
Ingredients:
3 tablespoons dried basil
3 tablespoons dried oregano
3 tablespoons dried parsley
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon dried rosemary
1 teaspoon dried sage
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
Directions:
1. Place the ingredients in a food processor and pulse a few times until the herbs are uniform and thoroughly mixed. Store in an airtight container.
#3: All Purpose Seasoning Recipe I love a good all purpose seasoning and is great on meat, fish, veggies, and pasta. Basically great on anything savory. 🙂
Ingredients:
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
2 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon red pepper
¾ teaspoon dried oregano
½ teaspoon ground bay leaves
¼ teaspoon chili powder
Directions:
Mix all of the above ingredients in a bowl. Store in an airtight container.
#4: Apple Pie Spice Recipe As soon as the leaves start to turn my family starts to crave some homemade apple pie and pumpkin bars. Those teeny tiny bottles of apple pie spice can cost $3-$4 but what’s really in them? Just a few standby spices you already have in your spice cupboard! 🙂
Ingredients:
1 Tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon of cardamom (optional)
Directions:
Mix all of the above ingredients in a bowl. Store in an airtight container.
#5: Seasoned Salt Recipe If you like Lawry’s Seasoned Salt then you’ll love this MSG-free copycat substitute. Great on just about everything.
Ingredients:
2 Tablespoons kosher salt
2 teaspoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon turmeric
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon cornstarch
Mix all of the above ingredients in a bowl. Store in an airtight container.
#6: Dry Zesty Italian Dressing Recipe Dry Italian Dressing is one of those items that’s called for in a lot of my favorite crockpot and pasta salad recipes but it’s pretty pricey and always seemed to be that one item I never had on hand. Not anymore! This is a great copycat recipe for “Good Seasons” and MSG-free!
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons dried oregano
1 tablespoon garlic salt
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 tablespoon white sugar
1 tablespoon dried parsley
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon celery salt
Mix all of the above ingredients in a bowl. Store in an airtight container.
Italian Salad Dressing Recipe:
2 Tablespoons of Dry Zesty Italian Dressing (Recipe Above)
1/4 cup vinegar
1/2 cup oil
2 Tablespoon water
#7: Dry Ranch Seasoning Recipe This is a great copycat and MSG-free version of a packet of dry Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing and equals one packet. I see these packets called for in a lot of casserole and crock pot recipes so it’s great to have a home-made version for the seasonings instead of buying all of those packets.
Ingredients:
1 teaspoon dried parsley
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon dried thyme
Mix all of the above ingredients in a bowl. Store in an airtight container.
Ranch Salad Dressing Recipe:
Dry Ranch Seasoning (Recipe Above)
1 cup of mayonnaise
1 cup of buttermilk
Directions:
1. Mix ingredients in a medium bowl and chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve with salad.
Ranch Dip Recipe:
Dry Ranch Seasoning (Recipe Above)
1/4 cup buttermilk
1 3/4 cups sour cream
Looking for other great recipes and ideas? Be sure to subscribe to my blog for the latest updates or see a few of my favorite previously published recipes and ideas below:
As soon as the leaves start to turn and that delicious crisp bites the air I start dreaming of soups, stews, and chilis. A number of years ago, my best friend and I got together and craved some Panera Bread Broccoli Cheddar soup but wanted to make it at home. We scoured the internet for recipes and found one that sounded great so we gave it a whirl. The recipe was full of heavy cream and butter so we trimmed it down and crossed our fingers. We were both shocked and delighted at the result: Amazing Panera Bread Broccoli Cheddar Soup that was every bit as good as from the restaurant.We’ve both made our recipe many times over the years, sharing it often with friends and family. More recently, I wanted to change the recipe again, this time making it a no-fuss crock pot version. This version is just as bit as good and makes life so much simpler by dumping everything in and setting the crock pot on low. You come home to a delicious pot of home made Broccoli Cheddar soup, without the extra calories or the bill! You can still accept tips from your family, though. 🙂
Crock Pot Copycat Panera Bread Broccoli Cheddar Soup Serves 4-6
***This is a GREAT “dump in the crock pot and run out the door” recipe. When making this recipe, I will often buy shredded carrots and bagged pre-cut fresh broccoli florets to make this recipe even quicker and save on chopping.***
1 pint (2 cups) fat-free half-and-half (If you really want the real thing, go for it, but fat-free tastes just as good in this recipe and that means you can go back for seconds!)
16 ounces shredded sharp cheddar cheese
Directions:
1. Place the broccoli, onion, carrot, and garlic in the bottom of a large crockpot. Pour chicken stock over the veggies. Add the nutmeg, salt, and pepper and stir.
2. Set the crock pot to LOW and cook for 6-8 hours or HIGH for 3-4 hours.
3. Cream the soup. The easiest way is with an immersion blender but you can also transfer to a blender and then transfer back to the crock pot. If you prefer a more chunky soup, you can also use a potato masher so don’t let not having a blender or immersion blender stop you. You are dealing with hot liquids so be careful!
4. Immediately prior to serving, add the half-and-half and shredded cheese and stir. Allow the cheese to melt and garnish with extra cheese and serve. Yum! My family loves this recipe paired alongside my garlic knots or honey wheat crescent rolls or served inside a bread bowl.
Looking for other great copycat or crock pot recipes? Be sure to subscribe to my blog for the latest recipes or see a few of my favorite previously published fall and winter recipes below:
Chicken Tortilla Soup is about as good is it gets on a cold winter night. It’s creamy, spicy, zingy, and cheesy, with every spoonful. In my opinion, The Cheesecake Factory makes the absolute best Chicken Tortilla Soup so they were my inspiration for this homemade version and I think this recipe hits the nail on the head. What’s more, it’s a perfect recipe for your crock pot or slow cooker. There are a ton of chopped veggies in this recipe so I strongly recommend busting out your food processor.
