Hearty, heart-smart chicken soup

Delicious meals start with high-quality, fresh ingredients like those you get at a farmer’s market, and soups are no exception. The only drawback for most of us is that local farmer's markets are only around once a week—how we envy the folks who live near the Original Farmer’s Market at Third and Fairfax in LA! But for the rest of us in beautiful Southern California, there’s Sprouts Farmer’s Market. Locations include Claremont, Glendale, Brea, Culver City, and Huntington Beach. Check out the Sprouts website for more locations, product lists (many gluten-free), recipes, and what’s currently on sale. You'll find friendly service, excellent selection, great prices, and all of the fresh ingredients you’ll need for the delicious chicken soup below at a Sprouts near you.

This recipe uses rice as a thickener, but you can substitute potatoes or barley depending on what’s in the cupboard or the flavors you prefer. Using the natural starch of these nutrient-rich foods instead of a fat-based thickener like a flour and butter roux takes longer (about three to four hours), but the results are worth the wait. High-quality ingredients plus a little patience will yield a heartier soup with deliciously developed flavor that’s good for the palate (and arteries) as well as the soul.

Heart & Soul Chicken Soup

Ingredients:

• 2 cups cooked chicken, cut into bite-sized pieces (leftover holiday turkey works well, too)
• 1 quart (4 cups) chicken stock
• 1 quart (4 cups) of water
• 1 cup of cooked brown or white rice
• 1 large onion, chopped (red onions will add a slightly sweeter flavor than white or yellow)
• 4 cloves crushed garlic
• 4 stalks of celery, washed thoroughly and chopped (no need to remove the strings)
• 1 tsp dried, crushed rosemary (grind it if possible to fully release the flavor)
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 cup peeled, chopped carrots (the skins can be a little bitter)
• 1 cup fresh or frozen cut green beans
• A dash or two of hot sauce
• ½ cup dry white wine (Sauvignon Blanc is good) or 2 Tbls. fresh lemon juice
• 1 Tbsp. powdered chicken stock
• 1 cup uncooked wide noodles (gluten-free noodles work well)

Directions:

Stage 1 (2 to 3 hours)

Chop the onion and celery and put half of each into the pot with the liquids and the other half in a bowl to be covered and refrigerated. Chop the carrots and put them in the bowl with the celery and onion. Cover and refrigerate. To the pot, add the rice, garlic, rosemary, and bay leaf. Bring to a boil, then cover and simmer for about an hour on low, stirring occasionally to keep the rice from sticking. Uncover the pot and simmer for another 30 minutes. You may need to turn the heat back up to keep it boiling. Stir it a few times. It should be thickening nicely at this point.

Stage 2 (30 minutes)

Put the remaining onion and celery along with the carrots and the green beans into the pot. Add the hot sauce, wine or lemon juice, and the powdered chicken stock. Stir, then cover and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer for about 30 more minutes, stirring occasionally.

Stage 3 (15 minutes)

Pour the noodles and chicken into the pot, then cover and simmer for about 15 minutes. Taste it to check seasoning and add pepper and salt to taste.

This soup feeds 6 to 8 as a main dish and also freezes very well. Serve it with some whole grain bread or rolls and the rest of that Sauvignon Blanc (better stick with milk for the little ones, though).