Keep Well Chicken Orzo Soup

LOVE.  LOVE.  LOVE.  LOVE.  This.

There are no words for how this soup aromatically fills the air in our home and soothes my soul.  Ladle after ladle full and we never tire of this--it has made it to the short list in the cold months.

Ingredients

• 1 Tablespoon olive oil
• 1 cup diced onions
• 1 cup diced carrots
• 3/4 cup diced celery
• 1 tablespoon flour
  4 garlic cloves
  8 cups chicken stock (From here--Crockpot Chicken and Stock)
  2 1/2 cups cooked, shredded chicken (From here--Crockpot Chicken and Stock)
  4 cups chopped kale, stems removed
• salt and pepper to taste
• 5 Tablespoons fresh, chopped rosemary
• 3 Tablespoons fresh, chopped parsley
• 3 Tablespoons fresh, chopped thyme
• 2 cups small, dry pasta--orzo

Steps

1. In a large soup pot, heat olive oil over medium heat.
2. Add onions, carrots, and celery and saute about 5 minutes until softened. 
3. Add garlic and flour stirring constantly for 1-2 more minutes until fragrant.
4. Add chicken stock, chicken, and kale.
5. Increase heat and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 15-20 minutes until flavors are combined and veggies are tender.
6. After the soup has fully simmered, Stir in salt, pepper, rosemary, parsley and thyme.
7. Cover and begin to cook pasta until al dente.
8. IMMEDIATELY after pasta is al dente, drain and add to soup (if you let the orzo sit it gets clumpy and soaks up all the water-yuck)
9. ENJOY THE DELICIOUSNESS

Tip:  Chop the veggies the night before serving and refrigerate until ready to use!

Timing:  Little Juliette had this at a few days shy of 8 months coarsely chopped up.  I added extra steamed carrots for her to make it thicker and easier to spoon feed her.  For a child to self feed this, I would say 18 months depending on how well they self feed.

Difficulty:  2 of 5.  As far as soups go, this is pretty easy.

Epicutie Rating:
Little Joy, Asher and Juliette:  Yummy in the Tummy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Extra carrots for Little Juliette's Soup

Pre Chopped Veggies

Little Juliette's Soup to be Chopped

Chopped and ready for her!

SHE COULD NOT GET ENOUGH!  She kept signing more as soon as the food hit her mouth!

Little Joy and Asher had smile face toast with their soup---the face is Bell Pepper :)

Apple and Butternut Squash Soup

We had a big snow a few days ago (more is headed this way) and nothing says snow to me than homemade soup.  Of course, I look for any reason to make soup.  This simple recipe comes from a 2011 issue of Parents magazine; the cut out had slipped to the bottom of my pile!

This is on the fall/winter short list, the whole family enjoyed it!  It was easy, healthy and delish!

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/2 cup chopped carrots
• 1/2 cup chopped celery
• 1/3 cup chopped onion
• 1 1/2 lbs butternut squash, seeded and cut into 1-inch cubes (approx. 3.5 cups)
• 2 medium apples, cored and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• 4 cups low sodium chicken broth

Steps:

1. In a large pot, heat oil on medium heat.
2. Add carrots, celery and onion.  Cook, stirring occasionally, for 8-10 minutes or until tender and starting to brown.
3. Add squash, apples and broth.  Bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer uncovered for 20 minutes or until squash is tender.
4. Cool slightly.
5. Puree soup in batches using a food processor or all at once using an immersion blender.
6. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Yield:  Six adult servings.

Timing:  9 months; its like a puree so it should be easy to serve up to baby.  Just be sure to test these ingredients separate first to ensure no allergies.

Difficulty: 2 out of 5; the hardest part is peeling and cutting the squash.  It is VERY easy as far as soups go and it does not require a lot of attention while it cooks--which is always good for me!

Tip:  Chop everything but the apples earlier in the day or the night before to save time at dinner prep time.  This time of the day is always the most chaotic for me...kids waking up from naps (sometimes too early), daddy coming home, making dinner, kids getting hungry, etc.  So anything I can do to save time and minimize chaos around dinner time is great!

Nutrition Facts:  For those of you counting, 185 calories, 6g protein, 4g fat, 6g fiber, 88mg calcium,

Epicutie Ratings (see left side of page for descriptions)

• Little Joy: Yummy in the Tummy; Gobbled up a whole bowl without stopping.  She's been pushing back on foods and feeding herself every since her little brother has joined our meals.
• Little Asher: Yummy in the Tummy; Fussed every time I put the bowl down to take a bite of my own soup!!  I decided to feed him because I thought a liquid soup would be a catastrophic mess!