Cozying up with a large pot of soup...

The snowfall here as increased tremendously covering the entire place with a thick white blanket. This kind of cold harsh weather definitely calls for a large pot of soup simmering on the stove. With hubby away at work, and me stuck alone at home with the TV on, I decided to put on a big pot of comfort and bask in its steaming aroma! When I came across VK's Spicy Tomato Chicken Soup, it reminded me of Mom's simple tomato soup that she would often make. Our favourite combo, was to eat it with plain boiled rice and fried chicken. That gave me an idea! Spicing things up my way, I came up with this soul-soothing recipe. Perfect for a cold winter day! I always make sure I have a good stack of chicken broth lying around, especially in winters, no matter if its home-made or store bought. Store-bought broths are not all that bad! I always get mine low-fat and with less sodium content, and spice it up to my liking. This recipe was a delight to make as awell as slurp. Serve it over soft-boiled flat rice noodles or vermicelli and feel it warm your soul! Hot and Sour Tomato-Chicken Soup Ingredients: 4 cups chicken broth 1 large chicken breast 2 stalks lemon grass, sliced diagonally into 2-inch sized pieces 1 2-inch chunk of ginger 3-4 large cloves of garlic 2-3 large red chillies, sliced in 1-inch pieces 1 medium-sized onion, thinly sliced 2 medium-sized tomatoes, chopped 1/4 tsp red chili powder 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice 1/4 tsp turmeric powder 1/4 tsp coriander powder salt, to taste 1/2 tsp crushed black pepper fresh chopped cilantro leaves for garnish 1 tbsp cooking oil Method: Marinate the chicken breast in turmeric, chili powder, lemon juice, salt and black pepper for about half an hour. Fry the marinated chicken in a little bit of oil in a thick bottomed pan, till brown on both sides. Cut chicken into thin pieces and set aside. In the same pan, add the remaining oil and fry sliced onions till transparent. Add chopped tomatoes and cook till tomatoes pulp and form a thick consistency. Add chicken broth, ginger, garlic, lemon grass, red chillies, salt and pepper and let it come to a boil. Add chicken pieces and let soup simmer for 10-15 minutes. Garnish with fresh chopped cilantro leaves and enjoy over soft-cooked noodles!