White Bean and Chicken Soup with Salsa Verde

Mariana -- you and I have recently had some chats about complaining. In order to recap for those who haven't been privy to our conversations, complaining isn't good. But we do it anyway, even (perhaps especially) when we are trying to restrain ourselves. And we might even enjoy it -- correct me if I'm inadvertently misrepresenting our conversations. My personal, possibly all-time favorite, subject to complain about is the weather, specifically the cold weather. Having grown up in Arizona that means anything below 60 degrees. Truthfully, weather is one of the worst topics to complain about though, it is cliched and most of all boring -- if you are going to complain, I suppose it should be about something fun and gossipy.

What does any of this have to do with food? Not a lot, except this soup with chicken and white beans makes the cold weather just a little bit better and makes me want to complain just a little less. It's easy, spicy, and delicious. AND despite using pre-made ingredients (i.e. salsa verde and chicken broth) it tastes fresh. In my opinion what elevates this to delicious as opposed to plain tasty are the toppings -- jalapeno, cilantro, avocado slices, a splash of lime juice and some plain yogurt -- all contribute to the "freshness" and complexity of the soup. Though this soup is more "southwestern-style" than Mexican, it reminds me of a friend I had while living in Mexico. This friend claimed that Mexican cooking is all about the "accessories" -- the sauces, toppings, and other little additions. And while I'm not prepared to stand behind this statement 100%, it is certainly true for this soup that the accessories make it awesome.

White Bean and Chicken Soup with Salsa Verde

I adapted this recipe from one of my mom's and I encourage you to fiddle around with it as well -- for example, onions and radishes would also make lovely toppings.

Ingredients

Soup

• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 12-oz jar of salsa verde
• 3 cups cooked chicken pieces
• 1, 15-0z can of cannellini beans, drained
• 3 cups chicken broth
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1/4 cup cilantro
  

Garnish

• sliced avocado
• plain yogurt
• jalapeno, finely chopped
• cilantro, finely chopped
• 1 lime

Saute the chopped onion in a large sauce pan until translucent. Add the salsa verde and cook 2 minutes over medium heat. Next add the broth, chicken, beans and cumin. Bring to boil, then simmer for ten minutes, stirring occasionally. About 2 minutes before removing the soup from the heat, add the cilantro. Remove from heat and serve, garnishing each bowl individually to your personal taste.