Summer Soup is not an Oxymoron-Mexican Summer Squash Soup

Hi friends!  I am so busy with trying to get these houses in order, juggling a social life and looking for a new dog that I have no time for blogging!  I ate some leftovers out of the freezer of this recipe last night and it made me want to post it.  I miss blogging, but ain't nobody got time for that around here!  Luckily I had this one ready to go.  I plan on having a house, dog and life update for you soon!  

When you have a CSA during the summer, one thing is for sure, you are going to get inundated with squash.  Now trust me, I like squash; especially sautéed with garlic and onion.  But after having that week after week, you get a little sick of it.  Plus, it is not worth a blog post!  But you know what is?  This Mexican Squash Soup!

I also got two big heirloom tomatoes and a green pepper in this share so I used them for my purpose of tweaking the recipe I found on the internet, as I am wont to do.  I also couldn't bear to spend money and useless calories on Velveeta, so I decided to use regular cheese instead.  All of these substitutions worked like a charm!

Soup in the summer sounds kind of weird, but this felt perfect with all the bright summer flavors!  I brought some for lunch and got lots of compliments on the smell when I was heating it up in the break room.  Make this, you will love it!  Full recipe to follow the montage.

Look at all the yummy goodness!

The cast

Saute up those veggies!

Add your main ingredient!  I love the colors!

Add the necessary liquids and you have soup!

Doesn't that just make you want to pin it and make it for yourself?!

Mexican Summer Squash Soup (Adapted from All Recipes)

Ingredients
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 chopped onion

1 chopped green bell pepper
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 carton chicken broth
1 (14.5 ounce) can Mexican-style stewed tomatoes (I just roasted two big heirloom tomatoes)
4 medium yellow squash, halved lengthwise and cut in 1/4 inch slices
1/4 cup chopped jalapeno (I used jarred)
12 ounces Mexican cheese blend (about a bag and a half)

2 cups shredded cooked chicken (I used pulled rotisserie chicken from Costco)
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro for topping

Heat the olive oil in a large pot, and saute the onion, bell pepper until tender. Add the garlic and cook for one minute.  Season with salt and pepper. Add squash and cook for 5 minutes. Mix in the chicken broth, jalapeños and tomatoes. Bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to low, and simmer 10 minutes, or until the squash is tender.  Add the cheese a little at a time into the soup and mix well. Add in chicken. Continue to cook and stir until cheese is melted and combined, about 5 minutes. Season with pepper. Mix in the cilantro just before serving.

Happy Cooking!

Missy