Using Cooking as a Mental Retreat: Creamy Chicken Tortilla Soup

Fall is a time for comfort foods, at the bottom of this article you will find a recipe card for Creamy Chicken Tortilla Soup!

Saturday Morning Mental Retreat

I love to take Saturday mornings as a kind of mental retreat. After a long week of work and class, Saturday morning is a time where I can focus on nothing. For me though, I often struggle to try to be mindless, so to achieve this relaxing retreat I throw all my energy into cooking. 

To do this, I choose an easy recipe that does not involve a lot of work and I pick either a playlist or podcast and use a speaker, with my phone as far away from me as possible. The idea is to focus primarily on the recipe, but also have some background noise so you don’t think about work-related things. Saturday mornings are meant for you to relax, and go back to feeling refreshed. I choose to cook because we all need to eat, so why not go all in and really refuel your mind and body. 

This is my game plan: Friday night I go grocery shopping. Then I clean my kitchen and arrange all my ingredients in an orderly fashion. Next, I review the recipe and jot down some notes so that the following morning I have everything in one place, and I don’t need to use my phone to find out the next step. 

The next morning I wake up, make some coffee or tea and pick a podcast. I stay in my pajamas and settle into the kitchen for a morning of cooking. I choose a simple, easy, mindless recipe that’s usually a comfort food. 

I love making comfort foods because you don’t have to do everything perfectly, this isn’t like baking where it’s chemistry to make sure it rises perfectly and what not. So, this particular Saturday I chose to make Creamy Chicken Tortilla Soup- one of my absolute favorite things to cook.

I turn on a good podcast and settle in for a mindless morning of cooking- my current fave is The Skinny Confidential: Him & Her, episode 217. How to Master Essentialism with Best Selling Author Greg McKeown- The Disciplined Pursuit of Less ( you can find this on Spotify or Apple Podcast App).

Screenshot of TSC Podcast from iPhone

Take this recipe slow, enjoy each step and take the time to focus on the food and not on anything else. I struggle with stress, so I enjoy listening to a podcast to help keep my mind off of the little daunting thoughts.

The Recipe

(find the exact recipe and instructions at the bottom)

I begin by cutting the onions and peppers into tiny pieces and set aside. The great thing about soup/ comfort food is that nothing is perfect- the sizes don’t have to be exact and uniform. You’re cooking to feed yourself and your soul. Enjoy the process and don’t stress about the little things.

Next, I take a large pot and drizzle in some olive oil, add in the garlic, onion, and pepper and turn the heat to medium. I love this part because it’s when the aromas really begin. You’ll cook this until it’s soft, probably 5 minutes. 

Image by Rose Lesko

After the onion and peppers cook down, add in the tomatoes (with juice), black beans (drained and rinsed), corn (optional- I don’t add this, but you can!), and finally, the chicken broth. Bring this up to a boil and let cook for another 5 minutes.

Image by Rose Lesko

Next, you will add in the shredded chicken, a large can of red enchilada sauce, and the spice mix. For the spice mix, you can use whatever you’d like! I normally use cumin, black pepper, and salt, but if you want the soup to have a spicy kick you can add in some chili powder! After you add these ingredients you’ll want to remove the pot from the heat and let it cool for a few minutes.

Image by Rose Lesko

After the soup has cooled down a little you’ll want to stir in your cheeses. Cut the cream cheese into tiny cubes to help make combining it a little easier. After the cream cheese is fully mixed in, add 1 bag of Mexican style cheese and stir.

Image by Rose Lesko

Put the pot back onto the heat and cook on low to medium-low for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally!

Serve with sour cream or tortilla chips and enjoy! 

This yummy soup is a wonderful fall recipe. It is super easy to make and definitely a crowd pleaser! I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I do! It is the perfect meal to prepare as a mental retreat. I hope you try out a Mindless Saturday Morning with cooking soon.

• easy recipes
• fall recipes
• soup