If you grow the Mexican herb epazote, this is a great dish to put it in. Epazote grows like a weed and smells like turpentine to some people. It is used medicinally to make a tea that gets rid of intestinal parasites, and it also supposedly takes the "gas" out of beans. But you can make this really good soup without the epazote if you can't find any.

TORTILLA SOUP

3 tablespoons corn oil

1 cup onions, finely chopped

2 cups tomatoes, finely chopped

1 tablespoon ground cumin powder

1 teaspoon chile powder

1 bay leaf

1/2 branch epazote

2 tablespoons tomato paste

4 cloves minced garlic

2 corn tortillas, chopped

Salt and cayenne pepper to taste

To add before serving:

1 cooked breast of chicken or leftover chicken, shredded into strips

1 ripe avocado, peeled and cubed

3 ounces cheddar or jack cheese, grated

3 corn tortillas, cut into very this strips and fried (I use scissors to cut them)

In a soup pot, heat the corn oil and sauté the 2 chopped corn tortillas with garlic, onions, and epazote. Add tomatoes, cumin, tomato paste, bay leaf, chili powder, and chicken stock. Bring to a boil. Add salt and cayenne pepper and cook for half an hour, more than simmering but less than really boiling. Put divided chicken, avocado, cheese, and tortilla strips in four warm bowls and ladle soup over. Serves four.