Nothing warms the heart more than a good bowl of homemade soup! This recipe is a hit for the whole family. My son enjoys playing with the letters in the soup, along with me and my husband! Serve along with some good toasty bread. Not only is this recipe tasty but it is easy to put together and leftovers can easily be frozen to be enjoyed at a later time for a fast meal. This soup is heart healthy, low in unhealthy fats, and low in sodium.
How to set yourself up for success in the kitchen.
To make things run smoother, dice up and prepare all your ingredients before you start cooking. You will have this one pot meal ready in no time. This soup is an easy go to meal if I have nothing planned for dinner. I have even made this using frozen chicken breasts right out of the freezer. No need to thaw out for this recipe.
How to freeze leftovers.
If there is any leftovers....(seldom in our house) and you plan to freeze some for later make sure to leave about ½ inch of space at the top of your freezer containers to allow for expansion as the soup freezes. When you do not feel like cooking then you have a fast and healthy homemade meal that simply needs to be thawed and reheated. You can use the microwave to thaw or you can take out a container the night before and allow it to thaw out in the fridge overnight.
Chicken Veggie Alphabet Soup
Author: Brittany Sparks
Makes: ~19 Cups
Prep Time 15 min
Cook Time 40 min
Total Time 55 min
Ingredients
2 Chicken Breasts (boneless/skinless)
2 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 Medium Onion, diced
4 Celery Stalks, diced (About 1 cup)
4 Carrots, diced (About 2 cups)
1 tsp Thyme (dried or fresh)
1 tsp Oregano (dried or fresh)
4 Cups Low Sodium Chicken Broth
8 Cups Water
2 Bay Leaves
2 tsp Salt
1 tsp Pepper
1 Tbsp Garlic Powder
1 Cup Alphabet Pasta
1 Cup Zucchini, diced (about 1 medium zucchini)
1 Cup Peas (fresh or frozen)
Fresh juice of 1 lemon
Parsley Sprigs or Reserved Celery Leaves for Garnish
Directions:
Place the olive oil in a large stock pot along with the diced onion, carrots and celery. Saute over medium heat until translucent, about 7-8 minutes.
Stir in the thyme, oregano, garlic powder, salt and pepper.
Now add the chicken breasts, chicken broth, water and bay leaves. Stir to combine all ingredients.
Turn up the heat and bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce heat to low and let simmer for 15 minutes.
At this time I would remove a chicken breast to a plate and with a meat thermometer check to see if the internal temperature is 165 degrees.If not return to the pot for another 5 minutes and then recheck the temperature.
Once chicken is cooked through, remove from pot and set aside to cool.
Now add the diced zucchini, pasta and peas to the soup. Give the mixture a stir and continue to simmer for about 10 more minutes or until the pasta is cooked through. Remove bay leaves.
Once the chicken is cool enough to handle shred the meat and then return to the soup.
Add the juice of 1 lemon, stir to combine.
Garnish with chopped fresh parsley or fresh celery leaves.
Nutrition Facts
Per 1 Cup Serving:
Calories 98, Total Fat 2.7 g, Saturated Fat 0.5 g, Monounsaturated Fat 1.4 g, Polyunsaturated Fat 0.4 g, Sodium 290 mg, Total Carbohydrate 9.5 g, Dietary Fiber 1.5 g, Protein 9 g, Potassium 274 mg, Phosphorous 110 mg