What's for dinner?

I decided that I am kinda sick of eating out all the time and perhaps eating at home would be a healthier and less expensive alternative. I also decided since i love to cook but am often just too lazy to make things from scratch that that would be one of the factors of the dinners this week, everything from scratch! So I made a list of the dinner I was going to make each night of the week and decided to try some stuff I haven't made before. I usually like to stick to simple and fast things when I cook dinner like beef stroganauff, meat loaf, steak & potatoes... the usual and I have been getting bored with that. So I went to the store with my list of groceries and when i walked out with everything I went in for I ended up spending close to $200!!! I guess I was wrong when I thought eating at home was cheaper then fast food every night, but the upside is that it is healthier and I will have left overs for lunch the next day.

So on Monday I made grilled steak and a grilled veggie salad. I give it 5 stars and a place in my recipe box. Tuesday I made chicken fajita tortilla soup, mmm. It was really good but i think i will leave out the extra jalapeño I threw in just in case it was too bland because it was almost to hot to eat. I think it gets a 4 because I want to modify it just a bit, but definitely it gets a spot in the recipe box. Well it was also really pretty in my soup bowl so i thought i would take a pic and post it in a blog. Funny how since i started a blog EVERYTHING inspires me to blog, I hold back though and just try to post the important things... like deciding to making dinner every night. :)
So sad I didn't get a picture of my grilled veggie salad, it was gorgeous and delicious too.

Chicken Fajita Tortilla Soup

1/2 or 1 lb Grilled chicken, cut into strips
1Tbs Olive oil
1/2 Tbs Coriander
2Tbs chopped fresh thyme leaves
1 large onion thinly sliced
1 bell pepper thinly sliced
1 jalapeño, seeded & thinly sliced
28oz canned fire roasted tomatoes
1/2 c fire roasted red pepper(from jar) sliced
1 can black beans
1C frozen corn
1/2c frozen diced carrots
1qt chicken stock
S&P

Heat olive oil in large skillet or sauce pan over med-hi heat. Add coriander, thyme,S&P to taste, onion, bell pepper & jalapeño cook 8-10 mins stirring frequently until tender. Add Chicken stock, chicken, fire roasted tomatoes, fire roasted red pepper, beans and frozen veggies, heat through.

Top bowl of soup with Fresh tortilla strips (I fry a corn tortilla in some veggie oil and cut into strips), avocado, pepper jack cheese, cilantro and some black olive slices.