Taco Bean Soup

My cute sister-in-law has a fun site Edible Experiments. I think she posts some great stuff! A little while back, she made some Taco Bean Soup that just had to go on the menu plan. I was glad I tried it out- it was quite creamy and delicious. I even liked the chili's in it and I usually can't handle much spice. My only beef was with the name- it just didn't seem like your typical "Taco Bean"- maybe I would call it "Creamy Chicken and White Bean Soup... with a kick" but then that might be too long. :) Thanks for the recipe sis! Keep up the good cookin'!

Taco Bean Soup (From Amy Jo's Edible Experiments)
5 C. of water
6 tsp. chicken bullion
3-4 Carrots, chopped
2 cans of Great Northern white beans, drained
1 can greed chilies
1 can cooked chicken
1/2 C. frozen corn (optional)
onion powder to taste
2 TBSP Butter
2 TBSP Flour
1 C. Milk
1 C. Sour Cream
Shredded cheese
Frito corn chips

1. Mix together the water and bullion in a large pot and boil. You can also use chicken stock in cans or whatever. I think it is just easier to add the bullion to water. I think the rule is 1tsp for every cup of water, but I always add a little bit more. Taste it to see if you need anymore.
2. While the water is boiling, chop and peel your carrots. Add them to the water and let them boil for a while.
3. While the carrots are boiling, start opening and draining you cans. Then add the beans, chilies, and chicken. My mom didn’t use corn, but I threw some in because my husband likes it. It was good. Season with onion powder to taste. A note about the chilies: you can buy them diced, but if you use whole ones you can slice them open and scrape out the seeds before you chop them up. I honestly don’t know which is better. My mom claims that whole with no seeds is the way to go, but I have never noticed the seeds in the diced kind. Either way is good.
4. While the soup is cooking, mix up a roux in a smaller pot. Melt the butter and then stir in the flour. Slowly add the milk, constantly stirring. Once it thickens, add it to the rest of the soup.
5. Add sour cream at the end and stir until it melts away.
6. To serve, put Frito corn chips on the bottom of a bowl. Pour in hot soup and add grated cheese. You must follow these serving suggestions! They really add to the yumminess of the soup. The corn chips add a little bit of crunch and the cheese gets all stringy and melty. So good! If you want to make this, go buy corn chips first! If you want, could also top with sour cream and salsa.