Crockpot Tortilla Soup

Last week one day I had a long day, but wanted to make sure that I had cooked dinner and had something for Cody and I to come home to.  I found this recipe on Pinterest and thought it would be worth trying.
It turned out being great and I was able to put in a lot of veggies, making it healthier.

Crockpot Tortilla Soup

from a Year of Slow Cooking

Ingredients

--3 cups of chicken broth (I had enough broth leftover from cooking the chicken)

--1 1/2 cups cooked chicken (I cooked a bunch of chicken over the weekend, so it was ready for the recipe and the Chicken and Spinach Bake)

--1/2 onion

--1 cup frozen roasted corn

--2 green onions

--28 oz can of tomatoes and juice

--1 cup chopped up vegetables that you have on hand (celery and carrots)

--4 cloves of garlic

--1/4 t crushed red pepper flakes

--1/2 t cayenne pepper

--1 t cumin

--salt to taste

optional garnish:

--tortilla chips

--parmesan cheese

--sour cream

Directions

1. dice all veggies into fine chunks

2. dump everything into the crockpot (It's okay if you have frozen stuff.)
3. totally okay to assemble the night before. (Which I did since I have a tendency to run behind in the mornings)
4. cook on low for 8-10 hours, or high for 6 or so.

Before serving, add whatever garnish you choose.

Vegetable Soup

Vegetable SoupIngredients
1 pound(s) carrots, sliced
3 medium (1 1/2 pounds) onions, chopped
4 stalk(s) celery, sliced
2 large cloves garlic, crushed with press
2 can(s) (28 ounces each) whole tomatoes in juice
1/2 small (1-pound) head green cabbage, thinly sliced
3/4 pound(s) green beans, trimmed and each cut into thirds
1 can(s) (48-ounce) chicken broth
6 cup(s) water
1 teaspoon(s) salt
1/4 teaspoon(s) ground black pepper
3 medium (1 1/4 pounds) zucchini, sliced into half-moons
2 bag(s) (6 ounces each) baby spinach leaves
1 lb beef or venison
Directions
1.Coat 12-quart stockpot (or 2 large saucepans) with nonstick cooking spray. Over medium-high heat, add carrots, onions, celery, and garlic; cook 8 minutes or until vegetables soften, stirring occasionally.
2.Add tomatoes with their liquid, breaking up tomatoes with side of spoon. Add cabbage, green beans, broth, water, salt, and pepper; heat to boiling over high heat, stirring occasionally.
3.Reduce heat to low; cover and simmer 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Increase heat to high; stir in zucchini and spinach and heat to boiling. Reduce heat to low; cover and simmer 10 minutes or until all vegetables are tender.
*I followed all steps except for 3 and allowed it to cook all day in the crockpot. I then added everything in step 3 as well as 1 lb of ground venison that I had browned and allowed it to cook a little bit longer.