Ack! Sorry for the delay! I managed to be a good blogger through the first week of vacation, but the second week things just got away from me. Meals got made but pictures were not taken. Honestly I did not even turn my computer on the entire second week (!!).
We got back extremely late last night. I spent the day unpacking and baking a cake for an upcoming blogging event (stay tuned!). But for dinner, I chose to turn to one of my regular fallback meals for days that I am too busy or without fresh produce to make scratch meals. My family loves this dish; Sammy and I in particular never get sick of it and can eat it repeatedly. As a result, my pantry is stocked with the requisite canned soup so that I can make this easily when needed.
Wolfgang Puck’s Signature Tortilla Soup is an absolute must. No one is paying me to say that–although I wish they would–but I just think they got the flavor really right. But the bean soup is flexible. In the past I have used Amy’s Organic Black Bean Vegetable Soup but right now I am more likely to turn to Pacific’s lentil soup because I can get them in bulk at Costco. To these I add ground cumin 
and a heap (about 3/4 cup) of Garden Fresh Gourmet Jack’s Special Medium Salsa (but your favorite tomato based salsa will work). I serve it with sour cream, Monterey Jack cheese (tip: serve it in tiny cubes instead of shreds to enjoy the melting blobs) and crumbled tortilla chips (my favorite are the Garden Fresh Gourmet blue corn tortilla chips). And we enjoy a fantastic dinner despite my having not done a lick of work!
I love how this is a recipe but also not a recipe. I’m glad to hear you had so much fun on vacation!!