Hi all! Sorry posts have been a little extra intermittent lately — trying to stay on top of everything amidst work, travel, wedding planning, and the holidays has proved a challenge. The weather is (finally) chilly here so, especially on a busy schedule, soup is a go-to meal for me.
Once again, let me sing the praises of using a crock pot. This is a super easy recipe, and as long as you’re careful of the sodium content, really healthy. Let’s get to it!
Ingredients:
- 1 yellow onion
- about 1.5 lbs. potatoes (I used baby golden potatoes, but any work)
- 1 full stalks celery
- about 2/3 lb. carrots
- 1.5 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts (you can use any, but this is the easiest to deal with)
- about 6 cups chicken broth
- 1-2 cups water
- a hearty amount of garlic powder and Italian seasoning
- salt & pepper to taste
Instructions:
- Halve onion, peel outer layer off, and cut off ends. If you like onion, you can chop a little into small pieces for the actual soup, but mostly it’s here for flavor during the cooking process.
- Wash and chop all remaining veggies into whatever size you’re comfortable being in a bite.
- Layer veggies into crock pot in this order (so the things that need to cooke more are on the bottom): onion, potatoes, carrots, celery. Then top with seasoning.
- Add chicken breasts on top, and season again.
- Pour broth and water around chicken.
- Cook on low for 7-8 hours.
- Remove chicken from bowl and shred (can just use two forks), then return to crock pot and allow to warm.
- Serve and enjoy!
Cost about $17, makes about 8 servings
For my first time making soup, this was definitely a success. It had plenty of flavor and was really hearty, but next time I make it I’d like to try adding more seasoning, as both the chicken and potatoes were a tad bland for my taste. You can also substitute some of the veggies if there are ones you like better, or use egg noodles instead of potatoes (add them for the last hour of cooking instead of at the beginning).
Also note that technically I spent more on ingredients, but only used 1/2 or 2/3 of each thing on this batch, as the cost above reflects. This also makes so much soup. Unless you really, really love soup, it might not be a dish to make for just yourself. If you aren’t already cooking for more people, you can give some to a friend or potentially freeze some for later in the season. Just make sure to be careful that the baggie doesn’t break!
What’s your favorite comfort soup? Let me know in a comment below, on Twitter @ohgrowup, or Instagram @oh.grow.up! Thanks for reading, and happy adulting!
oh grow up 