Ersatz Taco Soup

Ever have an idea that was funnier in your head? I thought some black and white dithering would be funny.  Oh well. Too late now! Getting Friday Night Mexican back to its roots as an easy to prepare meal on a Friday is something that we've obviously struggled with.

It can be done however.  You just need to be prepared to sacrifice words like 'authentic', 'fresh', 'honest', and 'Mexican'.  Those words are all overrated anyway.  So if you've got limited time and energy and you want to phone it in like I'm obviously doing, print off the recipe and get to work on Taco Soup!

Soup N' Salad 2: Forget Old Mexico

Because this week we're taking our recipes from New Mexico; Santa Fe to be more specific.  They still have the same feel and vibrancy as our other dishes and nothing came out of an Old El Paso box, so I figure we're still in the clear.

On the agenda we've got Corn Soup with Poblano Chiles, followed by Santa Fe Slaw with Caramelized Pecans.  These recipes come from Seasonal Southwest Cooking by Barbara Pool Fenzl which is an absolutely beautiful cookbook to look through.  It also contains some great contextual information about the recipes which I find really makes or breaks a cookbook.  Be warned: there are pictures missing this week, so you'll have to use your imaginations for some of this.

Soup N' Salad

That photo makes me want to lick my screen!

Every week here at FNM we're pushing boundaries and trying new things.  This week it's Tortilla Soup and Ceviche Salad (Mexican Everyday).  The last time we did fish it turned out quite well and this week's guest is responsible for turning me on to all of the AYCE sushi restaurants in Ottawa, so ceviche seemed more than fitting.

But man cannot live on fish alone, so I made sure that the tortilla soup had lots of chicken in it.  So tighten the straps on your straight jackets and let's see what happens!