This soup is loaded with healthy protein and fibre and lycopene (found in tomatoes and red peppers) and it is a great "stew" type soup for a cold, damp day. You can spice it up with hot sauce if you want and even scoop it up with some tortilla chips. We just ladled it over some cooked quinoa (you can use rice as well) and grated some fresh parmesan cheese over-top. It is so easy to make and when you come home the aroma is there waiting for you:) I used a 4 quart slow-cooker and it was quite full. This recipe serves 4 people.
Ingredients:
-3 large uncooked, skinless, boneless chicken breasts (you can use thighs as well, but increase the number as they tend to be smaller than the breasts)
-1 28 oz can whole stewed tomatoes, including the juice (I used the San Marzano tomatoes, which are top quality and really make a difference to the flavour of the broth)
-1 cup low fat, low sodium chicken or vegetable broth
-1 cup frozen corn niblets
-1 19 oz can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
-1/2 cup pitted and sliced Kalamata olives, rinsed and drained to reduce the sodium content
-1 medium onion, chopped
-1 medium sweet red bell pepper, chopped
-6 large crimini (brown) mushrooms, cut into quarters
-2 tbsp garlic powder
-2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
-2 tbsp dried parsley
-1/2 a medium avocado, chopped (optional---my husband doesn't like this ingredient):
-2 tbsp tomato paste (optional---you can stir this in during the last hour of cooking if you feel you want a thicker broth)
Directions:
Place the chicken in the bottom of the slow-cooker. Top with remaining ingredients and stir to mix. Cook on low for 7 hours. At this point you can leave the chicken breasts whole or shred or chop them. Return to the slow-cooker and increase heat to high for the last hour of cooking---stirring in the tomato paste at this point if using). Spoon 4 tbsp of cooked quinoa or rice into individual serving bowls and ladle the soup over-top. Sprinkle grated parmesan cheese over-top and serve with a side-helping of tortilla chips, if using.
