Winter Soup Keeps Us Warm

On cold days it is always a treat to have warm soup for dinner.  Now that I'm trying to cut out the pasta and breads in my life, I decided to make chicken vegetable soup as a hearty meal.  Of course I added potatoes in the mix but surely potatoes are healthier than noodles...right?  And I made this soup using as many fresh veggies as I could find in the fridge, so mix and match whatever you have on hand.  You can even add some frozen veggies if you have them.

Chicken Vegetable Soup

Chicken Vegetable Soup

1 Tbs. olive oil
1 cup onion, diced
1 red or yellow bell pepper, diced
3 carrots, sliced
2 stalks celery, diced
1 cup green beans, cut in 1" lengths
1 zucchini, diced
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
2 small potatoes, diced
2 tomatoes, diced (or 14.5 oz. can diced tomatoes)
32 oz. chicken broth*
2 cups rotisserie chicken, shredded
1 tsp. oregano
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
1/2 tsp. dried sage
2 cups spinach, chopped
grated parmesan cheese, optional

Heat olive oil in a large Dutch oven over medium high heat.  Add onions and cook 1 minute.  Add carrots, celery, green beans, zucchini, garlic, salt and pepper and cook 5 minutes or until onion is tender.  Add potatoes, tomatoes, broth, chicken, oregano, thyme, and sage and bring to a boil.  Once soup boils, reduce to a simmer and cook partially covered 20 minutes or until vegetables are tender.  Add chopped spinach and cook 3 minutes or until spinach wilts.  Serve topped with fresh grated parmesan cheese, if desired.

*I purchase whole rotisserie chickens frequently and freeze the leftover carcass and meat until I have 2 carcasses.  I put the chicken carcasses in the crock pot with 32 oz. of chicken broth and chopped onion, carrot, celery, parsley, and thyme and cook overnight to develop a richer broth for use in soups.