Today we are Sharing the Love at the office in honor of Customer Service Appreciation Week.  Sharing the love for our amazing group generally involves food.  

Food makes us happy.  Had a request for Chicken Tortilla Soup….a recipe we perfected a couple years ago. 

My oh my it’s good. 

Also sharing my Italian Wedding Soup because it’s one of my all time favorites.   And enjoying delicious Chicken BBQ thanks to Bethany. 

Great day!!

Chicken Tortilla Soup is built upon a Roast Chicken and the amazing broth that follows.  A base of a simple mirepoix of onion, carrot, celery combined with a few quick adds (Rotel, hominy, mild green chiles, and frozen corn).  Season with some classic Mexican flavors like cumin, chili powder, oregano, and cayenne.  Serve with grated cheese, sliced avocado, fresh cilantro, and tortilla strips.

On Monday we were treated to the most amazing pot of chili and homemade Tamales.  Tamales have now been added to my list of things I must attempt to make from scratch. 

I’ll have to do a little Sabina sweet talking and see if I can sign up for one of her International cooking classes. 

Thanks to my Foodie Friend Jenn, I already have “from scratch Egg Rolls” on the calendar in November and Canning with Cindy next Summer.  We shall call these cooking sessions our Share the Love Series :)

All my best,
xo Libby

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Chicken Tortilla Soup

This soup has all the flavors of classic Mexican Comfort Food.

Course Soup

Cuisine Mexican

Servings 4

Author Libby with Lemony Thyme

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup onion diced
• 1/2 cup carrot diced
• 1/2 cup celery diced
• 2 cloves garlic minced
• 1 tsp. cumin toasted ground cumin seeds are a great add
• ½ tsp. ground oregano
• ½ tsp. chili powder
• dash cayenne
• salt & pepper to taste
• 1 Tbl. flour
• 4 cups good chicken stock
• 1 can Rotel w/liquid
• 1 can Hominy drained
• 1 sm. can mild green chiles diced
• ½ cup frozen corn
• 1 ½ cups cooked chicken
• adjust spices to taste
• Serve with cheese avocado, cilantro, tortilla strips

Instructions

• Saute onion, carrot, celery in heavy pot or dutch oven until tender.
• Then add garlic and spices and stir to combine.
• Dust vegetable mixture with flour and stir to coat, then add chicken stock, Rotel w/liquid, Hominy drained, mild green chiles, and frozen corn.
• Simmer for 15 – 20 minutes.
• Add cooked chicken and heat through.
• Adjust spices to taste.
• Serve with shredded cheese, avocado, cilantro, tortilla strips

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We, like most families, go through “What’s for Dinner” ruts from time to time.  Last week frankly was a bit of a challenge.  Thank goodness our Ahi Tuna Salad with the amazing Creamy Avocado Cilantro Lime Vinaigrette came through at the end.  And it’s funny because that salad never really knew where it was headed until the very last minute.  Besides the dressing, the other ingredient that stood out was the baked tortilla shell.  And so we decided that Taco Salads were in our near future.  To be exact, we agreed Roast Chicken {Mexican Style} on Tuesday and Chicken Taco Salads on Wednesday.  Looks like it’s going to be a good week!!

We have a basic never fail Roast Chicken recipe we follow that incorporates fresh herbs tucked under the chicken skin with some simples seasonings.  The beauty of having a base recipe of any kind is you can easily change up a few ingredients and create some wonderful new flavors.  We finely chopped fresh oregano, thyme, and cilantro and blended them with a little chili powder and butter.   Then we spread this mixture under the breast skin and seasoned the entire bird with an in-house spice blend of salt, pepper, oregano, cayenne, chili powder, paprika, and garlic powder.  Tonight we cooked our chicken in our Tumbleweed Pottery Bodacious Chicken Roaster.  Which essentially is a pottery beer can chicken roaster.

We served our Roast Chicken with a side of Mexican Green Bean & Potato Salad.  It was good…sorry Lilah, not a bite to share.

Related Posts…

Leftover cooked chicken = Chicken Salad with Avocado & Cilantro in a Tortilla Shell.

Roast Chicken in the Romertopf Clay Baker

The post Bodacious Roast Chicken {Mexican Style} appeared first on Lemony Thyme.

A couple of weeks ago, while perusing the isles of my local thrift store, I scored this amazing Romertopf Clay Baker. 

I knew at that moment my first dish baked in this vessel would be Roast Chicken. 

As I’ve commented on in the past we cook a whole chicken almost every week.  We change up our recipes and cooking methods and it’s always delicious.

After doing suitable research on cooking in a clay baker we decided our first chicken should be kept simple so that our ‘success measure’ was judged based on the cooking method.

One word.  MOIST.  Okay maybe two words.  MOIST & JUICY.  The clay baker delivered as promised.  And the presentation was beautiful as well.

First rule with a clay baker is to completely submerge the top and bottom in water and soak for 30 minutes prior to cooking.  We then layered the bottom with onion, garlic, potatoes, carrots, mushrooms, and fresh herbs.  Sage, Rosemary, Lemony Thyme, and Oregano Sprigs.

I love when I’m able to photograph dishes in outdoor natural lighting.  And I love my backyard this thyme of year.

We allowed our washed and dried chicken to come to room temperature before placing in baker on top of veggies and herbs. 

This can take an hour or so and will insure even cooking.  Sprinkled with salt & pepper and covered.  Placed baker in a cold oven and then turned temp. to 450 degrees.  Baked covered for 1 1/2 hours or until skin was browned and chicken was done. 

As always let stand at least 15 minutes before carving (or picking).  Wonderfully moist and juicy Roast Chicken one pot meal.  We’re going to turn up the spice for our next Romertopf Clay Baker dinner….any suggestions?

This Roast Chicken in a Clay Baker is my #1 viewed recipe for a reason. It comes out perfectly juicy with crispy skin every time! If you’re fortunate enough to own one of these clay bakers I hope you’ll give this recipe a try.

Don’t forget to follow us @LemonyThyme on Instagram and Facebook! And check out our latest TikTok videos and Pinterest boards too!

All my best,
xo Libby

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Roast Chicken in a Clay Baker

Wonderfully moist and juicy Roast Chicken one pot meal.

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 1 hour hour 30 minutes minutes

Total Time 1 hour hour 40 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Author Libby with Lemony Thyme

Ingredients

• 1 4-5 lb. whole chicken
• 6-8 small potatoes cut in half
• 4-6 garlic cloves peeled and left whole
• 10 + baby carrots
• 1 lg. onion cut into 1/8ths
• 8-10 mushroom caps
• 2-3 sprigs fresh lemony thyme
• 2-3 sprigs fresh sage
• 2-3 sprigs fresh oregano
• salt & pepper

Instructions

• Completely submerge the top and bottom in water and soak for 30 minutes prior to cooking.
• Wash and dry chicken. Allow to come to room temperature (or about 70 degrees) before placing in oven, about 1 1/2 hours.
• Put veggies and herbs in baker and place chicken on top. Sprinkle with salt & pepper.
• Place baker in a cold oven and then turn temp. to 450 degrees. Bake covered for 1 1/2 hours or until skin is browned and chicken is done.
• Let stand for 15 minutes before carving.

Notes

Avoid drastic temperature changes with a clay baker. Always presoak baker for 30 minutes and always allow to cool before cleaning. Never use soap, only warm water and baking soda if necessary.
Based on reader feedback, I have adjusted the cooking temperature to 450 degrees.

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