Beef Nacho Soup

In their most basic form, nachos are simply corn tortilla chips and melted cheese. This soup takes the seasoned beef, cheese, tortillas, tomatoes and chili peppers and combines them in a bowl of steaming yumminess. That is too a word.

Anyway, there is one version of beef nacho soup that seems prolific across the web. Everyone posts it and it seems that everyone "owns" it, but it's exactly the same recipe. Beef, taco seasoning, cheese soup, diced tomatoes with green chilies and milk.

I have an aversion to canned soups in recipes. I've done it. I mean, I have 7 kids, of course I use shortcuts! But, when it comes to a soup blog, I can't conscionably tell you to use a canned soup in the preparation of another soup. That even sounds weird.

So, rather than use a highly processed can of soup, I used a highly processed block of cheese. Yep, I used Velveeta. I often use Velveeta for macaroni and cheese (it's killer - trust me) and it ads the right creaminess without separation like real cheddar.

Here's the recipe, with baked tortilla chips on top - because I had to assuage the Velveeta guilt somehow -  and fresh cilantro, sour cream and black olives as well, although you can top this soup however you top your nachos.

Beef Nacho Soup
Printable Recipe
Serves 6
Total Time: 30 minutes

1 pound ground beef
1 Tablespoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 clove garlic - minced
3 cups beef stock
1 can Ro-Tel Diced Tomatoes and Green Chilies
8 ounces Velveeta - cubed
Salt to taste
6 ounces tortilla chips
Garnishes such as: sour cream, black olives, fresh Cilantro, salsa, shredded cheese or sliced jalapeños.

1. Brown ground beef in a medium soup pot and drain off fat. Add spices and stir well.
2. Pour in stock and tomatoes. Heat over medium-low heat for 20 minutes so flavors can meld.
3. Add Velveeta and stir until melted and smooth. Salt to your liking.
4. Serve in bowls with toppings.