turkey meatball tortilla soup

Welcome back, soup season!

turkey meatball tortilla soup

I try to make soups as often as possible during the winter for lots of reasons.

  1. They’re usually easy to make.
  2. A pot of soup goes a long way, leaving lots of leftovers for lunches, easy dinners, or servings to freeze for later.
  3. Is there anything better on a freezing cold night than a hot bowl of soup? I think not.

turkey meatball tortilla soup

Nick isn’t the biggest fan of soups, so I try hard to make ones that I think he’ll like. This usually means that they need to be super hearty (not thin and brothy) and I try to have some type of carb-y addition to the soup OR some bread / roll / crackers / sandwich on the side.

Some tortilla soups I’ve had in the past are pretty thin, so I knew I wanted this one to be different. I packed a lot of flavor into the meat itself and tried to add as much flavor into the soup without having to use too much liquid.

One way to make it heartier and add a punch of flavor? Instead of the typical shredded chicken, I mixed up some spiced turkey meatballs! It turned out like a turkey taco soup, and we loved it!

turkey meatball tortilla soup

Just over a year ago, I had the chance to visit one of the many turkey farms here in Virginia and I’m so excited to be working with them again this year! Shady Brook Farms and Honeysuckle White are our local brands, and all their turkeys are raised on 700 independent family farms, which is pretty cool. And I’ve seen the farms! Well, not all 700, but I’ve been to a few. These families are doing important work to help feed mine and yours – and working to provide not only a healthy option, but also one that is affordable.

One new thing on Shady Brook Farms packages is that they show you the farm where your turkey is coming from. I love this! It’s pretty cool to see a photo and the name of the farm, right there on your ground turkey. I could go into our local grocery store and find turkey that was raised on the farms I’ve visited. And you can find out more about the family farmers who raise the turkeys at 700 Reasons. It’s kind of like bringing the farmer to you, in a new way.

turkey meatball tortilla soup

If you normally make your tortilla soup with chicken or even ground beef, try swapping them for some lean turkey meatballs next time. It might be your new favorite!

Turkey Meatball Tortilla Soup

Looking for a new spin on your usual tortilla soup? Swap out your chicken for some spiced turkey meatballs - just as lean and healthy, but with an extra punch of flavor!

Ingredients:

  • 1 pound lean Shady Brook Farms ground turkey
  • 1 tsp garlic powder
  • 1 tsp onion powder
  • 1 tsp chili powder
  • 1 tsp paprika
  • 1 tsp oregano
  • 1/2 tsp cumin
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/4 tsp pepper
  • 1 Tbsp olive oil
  • 1 15 oz. can petite diced tomatoes
  • 2 cups chicken stock
  • 1 15 oz. can mixed beans (or your choice - kidney, pinto, black), drained and rinsed
  • 2 Tbsp tomato paste
  • 4 corn tortillas, toasted
  • 1 lime, quartered
  • 1 avocado, sliced
  • 1 handful cilantro, chopped

Directions:

  1. Heat a large pot over medium-high heat.
  2. In a medium bowl, mix the ground turkey with the garlic powder, onion powder, chili powder, paprika, oregano, cumin, salt, and pepper. Roll into 1/2-inch meatballs.
  3. Drizzle the 1 Tbsp olive oil into the pot. Cook half the meatballs in the pot, browning on all sides and cooking most of the way, about 5 minutes total. Repeat with the remaining meatballs until all are browned. Remove the meatballs from the pot.
  4. Pour in the diced tomatoes, chicken stock, beans, and tomato paste. Bring mixture to a simmer, and then add the meatballs back into the soup.
  5. Let the soup simmer for 20 minutes.
  6. Cut the toasted corn tortillas into little squares. You can either stir them all into the soup or add half of them and save the other half for topping the soup before serving.
  7. When ready to serve, squeeze some fresh lime juice onto each bowl of soup and top with sliced avocado and cilantro.

I’m excited to be working with Shady Brook Farms and Honeysuckle White as a brand ambassador this year! As always, all recipes and opinions are my own. Thank you for supporting brands that support us!