chicken tortilla soup

• 1 ripe avocado, cut into small pieces
• 2 ancho chili peppers, seeded
• 5 large tomatoes
• roasted chicken, torn into bite sized pieces
• 1 white onion, chopped fine
• cilantro, chopped fine
• 1 can tomato soup
• tortilla strips

In food processor pulse tomatoes and peppers until smooth. Combine mixture with tomato soup and cook over a medium low flame for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Combine avocado, chicken, onion, cilantro and tortilla strips in bowl, pour soup mixture over it and serve immediately. Note- if you can't find tortilla strips in the supermarket, look in either the produce section or near the salad dressings.

The dish: It's common to say that when people move from New York to points south their blood thins. I never saw evidence of this fact quite as astounding as when I was in Fort Lauderdale last August and had dinner with a good friend who is an empire state expatriate. As I was trying to battle the heat in shorts and sandals, he sat coolly in jeans and ordered the soup. I thought he was nuts until it was brought out; a bowl of fresh ingredients was placed in front of him as the attentive waiter poured a steamy tomato based liquid from a ceramic basin. It looked and smelled delicious enough that I immediately ordered my own bowl, and was amazed at the taste. We were sitting in Bar Zen, looking out on the rain forest garden that was home for the resident swans at the Hyatt Regency Bonaventure. Real life returned for my friend who had to go home and go to work the next day, but Kim and I hung around awhile longer; me reading by the pool while she got pampered behind the red door. Our stay was just what we needed to re-charge and relax, and the Bonaventure did a great job of making sure we did just that. We had many great meals there, and they all began with a bowl of tortilla soup. We've since been to a few other Hyatts and have tried the tortilla soup when it's available, and they're all good, but the Bonaventure is the best. I suspect that the chef at the Hyatt skips using Andy Warhol's favorite subject and instead achieves a velvety texture by adding crumbled corn tortillas to the simmering tomatoes, but I'm not sure. Either way, this was made on a weeknight when my own real life beckoned and I had to take a short cut. It was enjoyable, but certainly not as good as the Bonaventure's. We're booked to return for a long weekend in January, so I'm sure on those chilly Florida winter nights when it dips into the 60s, we'll enjoy many bowls of tortilla soup.

vegetable beef soup

• 3 cans tomato soup
• 1 box good quality beef stock
• 1.5 pounds stew beef, cut into bite sized pieces
• 1 large bag of frozen mixed vegetables (or two small ones)
• fresh or dried green herbs

Place all ingredients in crock pot, season with salt and pepper, cook on low for 8+ hours. If using fresh herbs, wait until the last hour to add them. I used a little dried basil and fresh parsley.

The dish: Congratulations, you just made the easiest dinner that you'll love and everyone will swear you put in much more effort than simply combining ingredients. There's really no need to brown the meat ahead of time on this one as it picks up some nice flavors and comes out really tender. This soup is my version of the great vegetable beef available at Denny's. It took a few batches to perfect, but close to equal amounts of beef stock and tomato soup is the key here.

split pea soup

• 1 pound dried split peas
• 4 carrots, diced
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 8oz ham stock
• 32oz ham stock
• 1 cup cooked ham, cubed
• dried oregano
• fresh or dried parsley
• bay leaves
• adobo

Either soak peas in water overnight or boil for 10 minutes. Combine all ingredients in a slow cooker (or crock pot for those of you that are cool with disrespecting intellectual property) and cook on low for 8 hours. Leftover ham on the bone works the best here, but I didn't have any so I went ghetto and chopped up a ham steak. Garnish with some nice croutons.

The dish: I think every kid is predisposed to liking pea soup because it gets a shout out from Yukon Cornelius in the Rudolph movie. Which is odd, because even as an adult, it's really not too attractive to look at. This is the first time I've tried it with the ham stock and it added a nice flavor, but it's just as good without.

kale and friends winter soup

• 1 bunch of kale, torn into bite size pieces
• 1 cubed butternut squash
• 2 cans cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 cup cooked chicken, diced
• 4+ cups of high quality chicken broth
• assorted green herbs

combine all ingredients in large slow cooker (or "crock pot" if you just don't give a damn about trademarks), season with kosher salt and fresh black pepper, cover, cook on low for 8 hours. Add more broth if it appears to not have a soup-like consistency. I used leftover rotisserie chicken, but any will work. If using frozen squash, wait until the final 20 minutes of cooking to add.

The Dish: This is a hearty soup, great for those busy and freezing winter nights (of which we've had many this year). I've done it several times using both fresh and frozen squash and I've determined that fresh tastes better, it's just a pain in the ass to cut something the shape of Grimace into cubes. I had leftover rosemary and parsley on hand and they added nicely to it, but just about any green herb would work, although I'd avoid dill. Good chicken broth is key here, I had some frozen homemade stuff and I supplemented it with Rachel Ray's brand, the only stock with cleavage!! I have a 4.5 quart crock pot and this recipe makes plenty for us to have at least two meals. Great when served with hot garlic bread, or my favorite: Hannaford garlic toast, Texas style.