And so, in just one weekend, there was salsa, there were nachos and there was soup. But not that old friend of grilled cheese, tomato soup. This was a shameful soup garnished with cheese and sour cream and hot peppers and shredded chicken and a bag of chips. But even with all the junk, the broth shone through - bright and spicy.

It takes some time to make, but worth it on a snowy wintery weekend.

Spicy Tomato Soup

Ingredients

8 plum tomatoes, halved
1 large onion (red or yellow), chopped
1 jalapeno, halved
1 cherry pepper, halved
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 ts chili powder (I used BBQ Billys rub)
2 ts cumin 
5 cups homemade stock + 1 cup, divided
15 oz canned San Marzano tomatoes, chopped with kitchen shears + their juice
Salt and pepper, to taste

Stock Ingredients

3 garlic cloves 
2 stalks celery
1.5 lbs chicken breast (approx 2, including bones)
water to fill pot

Garnish

Chicken breast, shredded
1/2 avocado, sliced
Tortilla chips
Cilantro, removed from stems
Sour cream or Greek yogurt
Fresh lime juice
Shredded cheddar 

Method

1. Place halved tomatoes and peppers on baking sheet covered in foil. Cook for 50 minutes at 350 degrees. Remove from heat, peel (if you feel like it - I only did half).

2. In the meantime, make your stock by placing chicken, celery, whole garlic cloves and water in large pot. Bring to boil and cook approximately 20 minutes, until chicken is cooked thru. Remove chicken and shred. Strain stock. Reserve garlic and shredded chicken.

3. Combine fresh tomatoes with canned tomatoes and garlic from stock and puree briefly with an immersion blender. Set aside.

4. In a dutch oven, saute chopped onion and garlic, approximately 5 minutes. Add cumin, chili powder and 1 cup stock. Cook another 5 minutes, then add tomato mixture and 5 cups stock to pot. Bring to a boil, then simmer 1 hour, until flavors mingle. Add salt and pepper to taste.

5. Garnish and serve.