Soup for a Snowy Night

I’ve never posted a recipe on my blog before, but I just have to share this absolutely delicious goodness with all my friends.

When I first started working with my nutritionist, she sent me a ton of recipes via e-mail. We printed them and laid them out on our living room floor; then Ryley and I sorted through them and decided which ones we should try. Some recipes were not so good (like the egg quiche and the endive-heavy minestrone soup).

But this recipe is amazing. The first time we made it, Ryan and I stood over the pot with our spoons, several hours after dinner was over, shoveling spoonfuls of leftover deliciousness into our mouths until the entire pot was empty. We just couldn’t stop.

I think we’ve made this soup six times since October, which is saying a lot since it is extremely labor-intensive. In fact, this morning as he was getting ready for work, Ryan said, “I don’t want to put any kind of pressure on you, but you know what would be really good for dinner tonight? The soup.”

We don’t even bother identifying it anymore. It is the soup.

The copy of the recipe that I have is a scanned PDF that looks like it came from a magazine. But the very bottom is cut off, so I have no idea which magazine. I have googled the title and the words, hoping to find it online so I can add my rave review. But I cannot find it.

It is so delicious, and tonight was our best pot yet. Even as I sit here typing, I have my second bowl of the soup on the coffee table next to me. It is so amazing. It is also good for you…full of fresh ingredients that help with sickness and weight loss.

So, I hope someday on a chilly Saturday when you have some extra time to prep and cook, you will try this recipe. It is just too good not to share….

 

SPICY CHICKEN, TOMATO, & GARLIC SOUP

Makes 6 Servings

You could certainly make this recipe with chicken breasts, but thighs have much more flavor (we returned to thighs because breasts seemed to end up too dry). This soup is just middle-of-the-road spicy, so if you like spice you can increase the cayenne and jalapeno. My family doesn’t like too much spice, so I leave out the jalapeno altogether, do just a dash of cayenne, and then add more cayenne to my individual bowl.

You could also double the recipe. We have doubled it on two occasions, and it was nice to have leftovers for a week. But it’s already a lot of work, so be warned!

One more thing: I suggest you do your garlic prep work in advance. Peeling garlic takes time (you have to use fresh whole garlic cloves; don’t take a shortcut), and if you try to multi-task like I did, you will find that your broth is boiling long before the garlic is ready. You can prep the bell peppers while you are boiling the chicken and garlic, but you will need to work quickly.

 

8 cups chicken broth (canned)

2 cups water

1.5 lbs. skinless, boneless chicken thighs

16 cloves of garlic, peeled (yes, 16!)

2 cans (14.5 oz each) diced tomatoes

3 yellow or red bell peppers, cut into small squares

1.25 teaspoon cumin

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 cup brown rice (I use 1 bag of frozen brown rice and cook it for 5 minutes in the microwave)

6 tablespoons minced cilantro

3 tablespoons lime juice

1 tablespoon minced pickled jalapeno (I have not done this)

 

1. In a large saucepan, combine the broth and water. Bring to a boil, add the chicken and garlic, reduce to a simmer, cover and cook until chicken is just cooked through, about 10 minutes. Remove the chicken and set aside. When cool enough to handle, shred or cut into bite-size pieces.

2. With a slotted spoon, transfer the garlic to a food processor or blender along with 1/3 cup of the broth and puree until smooth.

3. Add the garlic puree to the pan along with the tomatoes, bell peppers, cumin, salt, and cayenne. Bring to a boil, stir in the rice, reduce to a simmer, cover and cook until rice is tender, about 15 minutes. (Even though I microwave my rice ahead of time, I still let the broth simmer for 15 minutes so the flavors become infused. The longer you let it cook, the more tender the peppers are too, and everything is just more flavorful.)

4. Return the chicken to the pan along with the cilantro, lime juice and jalapeno, and cook just until heated through, about 1 minute.

Enjoy!!!!!