Healthy & Delicious Soup Recipes!

This is the most delicious soup I've ever eaten:


Creamy Chicken & Wild Rice Soup

Ingredients:
2 cups water
4 cups chicken broth
1 lb raw boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 (6 oz) box of Long Grain & Wild Rice (Uncle Ben’s)
1 cup sliced carrots
1 cup sliced celery
½ cup flour
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
1 stick (8 tablespoons) light butter
2 cups fat free half and half

Directions:
1. Bring the water and chicken broth to a boil in a large pot or dutch oven. Add the chicken, rice (with seasoning packet), carrots and celery and reduce heat to a simmer. Cover the pot and simmer for 25-30 minutes until chicken is cooked through and easy to shred. Remove the cooked chicken breasts to a plate and shred with two forks. Replace the lid and continue to simmer the rest.
2. Mix together the flour, salt and pepper in a bowl until combined. In a medium saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Stir in flour a spoonful at a time to make a roux. Pour the half and half in a little at a time, stirring continuously with a whisk to allow the roux to combine with the cream. Continue whisking and adding half and half until the mixture is smooth and creamy.
3. Add the shredded chicken and the cream mixture back into the soup pot and stir to combine. Bring back to a simmer and simmer for 5-10 minutes to allow soup to thicken and flavors to combine.

Yields 10 (1 cup) servings: 212 calories, 19 g carbs, 6 g fat, 15 g protein, 1 g fiber

I think the frigid weather is the reason why we all want to make soup this weekend! I'm making homemade chicken soup tomorrow. Here is what I do:

Roast a 7-9 lb. roasting chicken, seasoned with olive oil, Thyme, Rosemary, Onion and Garlic Powder, Salt and Pepper. Eat half with your family and then take what remains - skin, bones, remaining meat and any juices from the roasting pan and put in a large stock pot. Cover with water and add 1-2 bay leaves, 10 peppercorns. Bring to a boil and then turn low enough to just simmer for two hours covered loosely (not tightly). DO NOT SEASON WITH SALT YET!

Remove carcass from broth and strain remaining liquid into another stock pot. Set chicken aside to cool and then pick all the meat off the bones, tearing into bite size chunks. Don't make it too small as it continues to shred in the broth. It always amazes me how much chicken I get off the carcass. Set meat aside.

If you have the time, cool and refrigerate the broth and then skim hardened fat off the top. If you are in a rush, you can still skim fat off the warm broth with a large spoon. A little fat will add more flavor so leave a small amount in the broth.

Next, chop 3 large stalks of celery and 1 large sweet onion and add to the broth. Peel 4 large carrots and cut into rounds and add to broth. Add additional Thyme, Rosemary and dried Dill. Simmer until the vegetables are almost tender, about 15 minutes. Add 1 cup of rice or ditalini pasta to the broth. Simmer for however long it takes to cook the rice or pasta (I prefer rice because pasta can get soggy when reheated). Finally, add the shredded chicken and heat through. Taste and add salt and pepper to taste. If you added too much water to the soup, you can always add a chicken bouillon cube.

I love getting two or more meals out of a chicken! Roasting the chicken first creates a richer broth and better soup than using a raw chicken boiled in a pot.

This makes at least 6 generous bowls of soup if not more. Enjoy!

I LOVE soup! I actually have a blog called Soup Spice Everything Nice. http://soupspiceeverythingnice.blogspot.com/p/soup.html You will find lots of soup recipes there. Here are a few:

Southwestern Style Vegetable Soup
Serves 12; generous 1 cup serving

Ingredients

1-1/2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 med. onion, chopped
2 carrots, diced
2 celery ribs, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 green bell pepper, chopped
1/2 red bell pepper, chopped
2 Tbsp. Masa Harina (corn flour)
1 tsp kosher salt, or to taste
1/2 tsp black pepper, or to taste
1/8 tsp red pepper flakes, or to taste
1/2 tsp dried Mexican oregano
1/4 tsp cumin, ground
8 cups low sodium reduced fat chicken stock
1 (15 oz) can petite diced tomatoes with chipotle, undrained
1/2 (15 oz) can black beans, drained and rinsed (a scant cup)
1/2 (15 oz) can corn, drained (a scant cup)
1/4 tsp chipotle chili powder, or to taste
Handful cilantro, chopped

Garnishes:
More cilantro, chopped
Lime wedges

Directions

Heat olive oil in a large dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onion, carrots and celery, sauté until onion in translucent. Add bell peppers and garlic; continue to sauté until peppers begin to soften. Add Masa and spices, stir to combine. Add stock, tomatoes, beans and corn; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, add chili powder and cover. Simmer for 30 minutes. Turn off heat and add cilantro. Serve with additional cilantro and a squirt of lime for a garnish.

Nutrition Facts

Amount Per Serving: Calories 75.3; Total Fat 2.0 g; Saturated Fat 0.3 g; Polyunsaturated Fat 0.3 g; Monounsaturated Fat 1.3 g; Cholesterol 0.0 mg; Sodium 305.3 mg; Potassium 212.9 mg; Total Carbohydrate 10.0 g; Dietary Fiber 2.5 g; Sugars 1.0 g; Protein 3.4 g.

Italian Style Vegetable Soup
Serves 12; generous 1 cup serving

Ingredients

1-1/2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 med. onion, chopped
2 carrots, diced
2 celery ribs, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp kosher salt, or to taste
1/4 tsp black pepper, or to taste
1/8 tsp red pepper flakes, or to taste
2 Tbsp. flour
2 Tbsp. tomato paste
1 tsp Italian seasoning
8 cups vegetable stock
1 (15 oz) can petite diced tomatoes, undrained
1 cup frozen green beans
1 cup frozen green peas
1 cup whole wheat penne pasta
2 cups baby spinach leaves

Optional garnishes:
Parsley, chopped
Lemon zest
Parmesan cheese

Directions

Heat olive oil in a large dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onion, carrots and celery, sauté until onion in translucent. Add garlic; continue to sauté about a minute. Add flour and stir to combine. After flour has cook a minute, add tomato paste. When tomato paste is fragrant, add Italian seasoning, stock, tomatoes and green beans; bring to a boil. Add green peas and penne, and return to a boil. Reduce heat to low, and cover. Simmer for 20 minutes. Turn off heat add spinach. Serve with Parmesan or with parsley and lemon zest as a garnish.

Nutrition Facts
Amount Per Serving: Calories 79.2; Total Fat 2.0 g; Saturated Fat 0.3 g; Polyunsaturated Fat 0.2 g; Monounsaturated Fat 1.3 g; Cholesterol 0.0 mg; Sodium 857.3 mg; Potassium 239.1 mg; Total Carbohydrate 14.0 g; Dietary Fiber 2.5 g; Sugars 4.5 g; Protein 2.3 g.

Moussaka Soup
Yield: 6 servings

Ingredients

1 eggplant, cut into 1/2-inch dice
1 zucchini, chopped
1 yellow squash, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
Olive oil cooking spray
1 lb lean ground beef
1 onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
Salt, to taste
Black pepper, to taste
Red pepper flakes, to taste
1/4 tsp ground allspice
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp ground cloves
1/2 tsp oregano
1 tsp basil
1 (28 oz) can crushed tomatoes
1 medium potato, chopped
4 cups beef broth
1 Tbsp brown sugar

Topping:
1 Tbsp light butter
1 Tbsp all-purpose flour
1 cup skim milk
2 Tbsp grated Parmesan cheese(plus more for garnish)
1/4 tsp salt
1/16 tsp nutmeg

Preparation

Preheat oven to 425º. In a large bowl combine the eggplant, zucchini, squash, red bell pepper and olive oil. Toss to coat vegetables with oil. Transfer to a large baking pan coated with cooking spray. Season with salt, black pepper and a little red pepper flake. Bake for 20 minutes.