This is a great, tasty soup for a cool autumn dinner. Soak up the juices with a crusty artisan bread. Delicious and so easy! Just toss everything in one pot, cover and cook on low for 7 hours. To speed up the cooking time, you can increase the heat to medium low and cook for about 5 hours.
Ingredients:
6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs (they stay juicier than breasts in this type of recipe)
4 cups low sodium, low fat chicken broth
4 cups water
4 carrots, chopped
1 large fennel bulb, chopped (including the fronds)
1 large onion, chopped
1 large garlic clove, peeled and flattened (just bang it under a wide knife to let the flavours out as the soup cooks---remember to remove it before serving the soup)
1 small jar fire roasted red peppers, including liquid (that is where a lot of the flavour is)
1 can (28 oz) white kidney beans, drained and rinsed
salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Directions:
1. In a large dutch oven with a heavy lid, combine all ingredients, except the jar of peppers and beans. Heat on medium until just beginning to boil. Reduce heat to low and cook for about 7 hours, until chicken is cooked through and vegetables are tender.
2. Remove chicken from pot about 20 minutes before serving (take the garlic clove out at this point as well and discard it). Chop the chicken into bite sized pieces and return to pot, along with the beans and jar of peppers. Cook on low, covered, for another 10 minutes, stirring once or twice. Serve with the bread.
