Chicken Vegetable Soup - PALEO

Disclaimer: I was home today... sick. I made this soup so everyone in my family would have something nourishing to eat since they are sick too. Translation: This recipe takes an hour but it's worth it :)

Do you ever have a half-eaten rotisserie chicken sitting in the fridge or am I all alone in this one? For me it usually starts when I bring one home from the store in the morning planning on using it for dinner (I'm usually making the big bowl of awesome yumminess. Check it out under salads)

When 5:00 rolls around and I go to the fridge to get my ingredients, I find my rotisserie chicken... The lid is mangled, the carton is ripped, the chicken looks like it's been attacked by a wild animal. It's clinging to life... hoping to be resuscitated. It's breasts are nowhere to be found and I'm left with two options. Starve or make dinner out of the underside of the chicken. The culprit who did this to my chicken shall remain nameless but let's just say he blew in at about noon, completely famished and went for it like it was the last supper. Ladies, if this happens to you on a regular basis you can solve the problem with a simple love note. Since we are an Italian household I prefer, "U toucha my chicken, I breaka u face". Just make sure it's displayed prominently to halt the meat hooks before it's too late.

So... as I was saying. I need to turn my half-masticated chicken into dinner. We happen to all be sick in this household right now so I think chicken, vegetable soup is in order.

What you'll need:

A rotisserie chicken, preferably with some meat still attached to it

veggies of your choice such as:

cabbage, carrot, broccoli, onion, bell pepper, etc.

1T Italian Seasoning

2 cloves garlic, chopped

2 bay leaves

a little salt if you want

What you do:

Pick the chicken clean of meat and set the meat aside. Get a big ol pot of water going on the stove and drop the chicken carcass in the water with the garlic and bay leaves. Boil the heck out of it for about 45 minutes adding water as necessary to keep the level up. While waiting for the stock to cook saute your veggies until they are crisp tender. Strain the stock with a fine sieve to get rid of the bones and other particles. Return the stock to the pot. TASTE. Does it need a little salt? Is the flavor of the stock too strong for you? If so add some water. If you are not used to homemade stock the flavor will be more intense than the flavor of boxed broth.

Add in the veggies, the chicken and the Italian seasoning and simmer about 10 minutes.

Enjoy!

Italian Wedding Soup

I've been on kind of a soup roll lately. And I'm always on an Italian roll so this recipe fit the bill seamlessly. Italian Wedding soup is hearty and healthy and really easy to make. I've made a slight adjustment and taken the orzo out of the equation and added some carrot. You won't miss it at all.

Italian Wedding Soup is actually the missed English translation of Minestra Maritata. The true translation is "married soup" as in the marriage of the meat and vegetable in the soup making a great flavor. And you thought I was just another pretty face...

So if you've got 30 minutes you can make this great soup, which by the way, is even tastier the next day. You can make it your own as well by deciding which meat and veggie you want to put in it. You could easily substitute bits of sausage for the meatballs if you are in an extreme hurry. You can also substitute kale or escarole for the spinach.

Here's what you'll need:

2 boxes low sodium chicken broth

1lb grass fed ground beef

1 package Italian turkey sausage

1 egg

1T Italian seasoning

1/4 cup dehydrated onion flakes

1tsp garlic powder

1 package of fresh spinach

some chopped carrot

lemon wedges

Here's what you do:

Get the chicken broth boiling in a pot while you make up the meatballs. Take your beef, sausage, egg, onion and seasonings and mix them up in a separate bowl. Remember the golden rule: Use thine hands to mix. Yes, there are two golden rules. Don't make me have to get Lenny the Foot to persuade you. Mix away getting all ingredients well combined. Now start rolling up little meatballs (think bite size). Again I say, if you have children now is the time to turn your kitchen into a labor camp. If they can work an Xbox they can roll a meatball.

As your broth comes to a rolling boil, drop the raw meatballs in. Cook them for about 10 minutes. They will stay fairly light in color. If this freaks you out you can brown them in a little olive oil first. Add in your chopped carrot. After the meatballs have cooked, turn the soup down to simmer and add in the full bag of spinach. The spinach will cook down in just a few minutes. Serve the soup in bowls and add a squeeze of lemon over the top. This really brightens up the flavor.

If you are a fat phobic you may want to refrigerate the soup so the fat from the meat will rise to the top and you can skim it off. Then you can reheat it. If you are like me and take in no simple carbohydrates (grain, sugar, dairy) you need this fat for energy. So get over yourself and eat the fat. Just don't have a chocolate donut to go along with it.

Can you believe you are done already? What will you do with the rest of your day? I'm off to CrossFit!

Minestrone Soup

Nothing says "The Old Country" quite like Minestrone. It takes a few tweaks to make it Paleo friendly, but it can be done. Soup warms the soul, especially on days like these. My goodness, it must be 65 degrees outside! We are all going to freeze!

Like most of my recipes, this one is meant to be fast and flavorful. With just about 10 minutes of prep you can let this one go all day on low flame or in the crockpot. That means more time for the glamorous things in life like doing the dishes and folding clothes. Yep... livin' the dream, baby!

What you'll need:

1/2 pound of pancetta (Italian bacon) - or protein of your choice

Italian turkey sausage is a really good alternative

1 onion,diced

1 large zucchini, diced

2 stalks celery, diced

2 carrots, diced

1/2 head green cabbage, diced

1 bag fresh spinach

2 -3 cloves minced garlic

6 cups chicken stock (low sodium, gluten free)

3 cups chopped tomatoes (low sodium)

1 cup water

1T Italian seasoning

1T basil

1/4 cup fresh flat leaf Italian parsley, chopped

For my non-Paleo crowd: you can add a cup of macaroni, some diced potato(you may need up to 2 cups more stock to counter the starch), chopped green beans, or anything else you can think of. Let your imagination run wild! No that does not include Hugh Jackman stirring the soup in nothing but a loin cloth. Get your mind out of the gutter!

What you do:

Chop the pancetta into small chunks. Get a large pot nice and hot with some olive oil. Put the pancetta in and fry it until crisp. Now add all your veggies except the zucchini and spinach on top of the pancetta. Saute them slightly, keeping their crunch. Add the garlic and saute a minute more being careful not to burn the garlic. Get a cup of chicken stock and poor it over the veggies. As it is sizzling away, take a wooden spoon and scrape the bottom of the pot. Get all those browned bits of yumminess off the bottom of the pot. That is pure flavor joy right there. Scrape away, don't be shy. Can you smell heaven unfolding before you? Ahhh, food is love*.

*Disclaimer: This statement has not been evaluated by the sane and in control. It should have read, "Some food is love". Example: Paleo Minestrone = love. Pizza = that bad stalker boyfriend that won't leave you alone and keeps showing up in your flower bed.

Ok, back to reality. You can do a couple of things here. If you are home for a while you can add the rest of the stock, water, tomatoes and spices to the pot and turn the flame down super low. Cover the pot and simmer forever. If you aren't going to be home transfer everything into the crockpot, put it on low and walk away.

10 minutes before you serve the soup bring it back to a boil (or high on crockpot) and add your spinach and zucchini. It will cook down quickly. Spoon the soup into a bowl while belting out the hallelujah chorus. If you sing like I do, make sure no one is listening and your windows are closed. Top with fresh, chopped parley. Inhale the glorious scent and know that you are nourishing yourself and your family from the heart.

Enjoy!

Chicken No-tortilla Soup

I've been waiting for a day like today. It's finally cooled off and is a little dreary outside. This is perfect soup weather. One of my all time favorites is chicken tortilla soup. What I've come to realize is that the "tortilla" part of the soup is overrated. It does add a certain crunch which is nice but none of the flavor goes missing if you leave the tortilla out of the equation.

There is a side effect to dreary days. It's called "can'tgetmybuttoffthecouch itis". Even for a simple and wholesome recipe like this one. The couch is winning. Must... get... up... Oh, alright already... let's make soup.

What you'll need:

A cooked chicken from the market (take the meat off the bone and shred it)

1 container of low sodium chicken broth 32oz (gluten free is healthier)

1 can of diced tomatoes with green chili (regualr tomato if you don't want it SPICY)

1 can mild enchilada sauce

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp chili powder

1 bunch cilantro

1 avocado

1 onion

2 cloves minced garlic

2 carrots

2 ribs celery

1 bay leaf

olive oil

What you do:

Debone the chicken and chop it into chunks. Set it aside. Get a pot going with a little olive oil and saute your onion, carrot and celery until softened. Add in the minced garlic and saute a minute more being careful not to burn the garlic. Add the chicken broth, tomatoes with chilies and enchilada sauce to the pot and give it a good stir. Next throw in your spices. As the broth heats up it will fill the air with a wonderful aroma causing hallucinations of being on the Mayan Riviera. Go ahead, get lost in the fantasy a while. Now open your eyes and notice the full laundry basket to your left is the one calling your name, not Raul asking you if you want another margarita.

Bring the broth to a boil and then reduce the heat to a simmer. Simmer it for about 30 minutes giving the flavors time to blend. Add in the chopped chicken and a handful of chopped cilantro. Keep simmering until the chicken is heated through. Spoon the soup into a bowl and top it with a few chunks of avocado. Pure heaven.

Enjoy!

ps. I wasn't kidding about the spicy. It's downright hot if you use the tomato with chili.