3 Favorite Soups

Cold days call for comforting soups!

Although considered "healthy," many soups have gluten or dairy that sneak in. Here's the good news: we can still have flavorful fajita soup, creamy chicken soup and silky smooth squash soup all free of gluten and dairy... and full of nutrition!!

Let's look at these 3 favorite soups that we made in a high school culinary class this week!

Grab a bowl, and enjoy!

No waste chicken BROTH

organic chicken bone-in meat or bones

REAL® sea salt

Ground black pepper

Fresh or Dried thyme

Fresh or Dried parsley

Dash cayenne pepper, optional

2-3 cups Assorted vegetable tips and scraps or chopped carrots, celery, onion

Garlic clove(s), smashed

1 teaspoon lemon juice or apple cider vinegar

8-12 cups filtered water in a soup pot

Directions:

Place the chicken/ bones in the pot to boil.
Season the chicken/ bones in the pot with the seasonings and vegetables. Pour enough water into the pot until the chicken is covered with water by 2 inches. Put a lid on the pan and boil for 30-45 minutes (or longer).
When the boiling pot is done, remove from heat and let it cool. Then pour only the broth into glass jars and refrigerate. It will keep one week. Discard the chicken skin.

Uses: Use broth instead of oil to sauté vegetables, sauté green beans, to make soup, to reheat leftovers, or to cook eggs. Use broth to boil rice, rice pilaf, quinoa, beans etc.

Tip: Washed organic vegetable peelings and carrot tops can be added to the boiling pot.

Creamy Chicken Soup (Dairy Free)

4 servings

1 garlic clove, minced

1 large onion, chopped

3 organic celery ribs with leaves, chopped

½ head cauliflower, chopped into small florets or 1 lb. cauliflower rice

4-5 cups of chicken broth

1 Tablespoon arrowroot powder

1 large potato, cubed, optional

2 large organic carrots, sliced

1-2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves

ground black pepper, to taster

Dash cayenne pepper

¼-½ teaspoon REAL® sea salt, to taste

1 teaspoon dried parsley

½ teaspoon garlic powder

1 ½-2 cups cooked chicken breast, cut up into bite size pieces

½ cup frozen peas, optional

Directions:

1) Place garlic, onion, celery and cauliflower and broth into a covered soup pot over medium high heat for 10-15 minutes, or until the veggies are soft and tender. Reduce the heat to a simmer when the veggies are cooked.

2) Remove 1/3 of the broth and as much of the vegetables as possible. Place in a blender or food processor with the arrowroot powder and blend until smooth/pureed, approximately 15-30 seconds. (Tip: if using a blender, keep a firm hand on the lid since the contents are hot).

3) Add the potatoes to the remaining broth to cook covered for approximately 3-5 minutes, then add the carrots to the soup pot and simmer for about 3 minutes. Add the spices, chicken and peas (if desired).

4) Stir in the pureed vegetables. Let simmer for 3-10 minutes or until carrots and potatoes are cooked but not mushy. Ladle the soup into bowls and serve immediately. Enjoy!!

Adapted from Cook 2 Flourish Cookbook p.130

Fiesta Fajita Soup

2-4 servings

1 medium onion, diced

½ medium red or yellow bell pepper, diced

½ teaspoon extra-virgin coconut oil

1 (14.5 ounce) can Muir Glen® fire roasted tomatoes

3 cups chicken broth or vegetable broth

1 ½ cups chicken fajita leftovers OR shredded cooked chicken

½ (15 ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed

2 teaspoons smoked paprika

2 teaspoons ground cumin

½ Tablespoon garlic powder

½ teaspoon REAL® sea salt

Dash cayenne pepper

½ teaspoon ground turmeric

2 Tablespoons fresh organic cilantro, minced, plus extra to garnish

Organic lime zest, optional to garnish

1/3 cup avocado, diced, optional to garnish

Directions:

1) Sauté the onion and bell pepper in coconut oil in a 2 quart saucepan over medium heat for 7-10 minutes.

2) Add to the saucepan the tomatoes, broth, chicken, black beans, paprika, cumin, garlic powder, sea salt, cayenne pepper, turmeric and cilantro. Cover and bring to a boil then reduce heat to simmer.

3) Garnish with diced avocado and serve OR if you want a creamier soup, remove 1 cup of the soup broth from the saucepan (no chicken or vegetables). Place in a blender or food processor with the diced avocado and blend until smooth. Approximately 15 seconds. Pour back into the soup pot and heat through. (Tip: if using a blender, keep a firm hand on the lid since the contents are hot).

4) Ladle into soup bowls and serve hot. Garnish with additional cilantro, lime zest and avocado, if desired.

*To make this vegetarian, use vegetable broth and use a full can of black beans instead of the chicken and 1/2 can of black beans. Cooked organic brown rice or quinoa can be added also, if desired!

Golden Spice Squash Soup (Butternut Soup)

serves 2-4

3 ½ cups winter squash, roasted: butternut and/or kabocha squash*

1 medium sweet onion, roasted

1-2 carrots, roasted

1 cup canned light coconut milk (BPA free)

1- 2 cups unsweetened almond milk**

1-2 Tablespoons organic orange juice, optional

2 teaspoons cinnamon

½ teaspoon REAL® salt

⅛ teaspoon black pepper

½ teaspoon ground turmeric or freshly grated

½ teaspoon fresh ginger, grated

¼- ½ teaspoon organic orange zest

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
Wash and poke the squash(es) with a knife and place in the oven in a glass dish in case it drips or leaks. If it is a large butternut squash, you can cut it in half to speed up the cooking. It does not have to be peeled. The squash usually takes 40-50 minutes to bake. It will be tender and start to caramelize when it is done.
Wash and cut the onion in half and place it cut side down into another baking dish. Add the carrots to the same dish. Place the dish in the oven and bake for 30-40 minutes or until slightly golden brown and tender.
(These veggies can be baked the night before to speed up the recipe the next day)
Remove the veggies from the oven. Cut the squash in half and scoop out the seeds. (You could scrape out the seeds prior to baking if you wanted to save the seeds to roast separately.)
In a blender, add the coconut milk, almond milk, spices and onion (separate its layers for easier blending).
After letting the veggies cool for a few minutes, gently scoop out the “meat” of the squash. Add the squash “meat” to the blender.
Blend thoroughly until you have a creamy, golden delicious soup!
Warm on the stove if needed, and serve in your squash "bowl" if desired.
Any leftovers can be conveniently stored in mason jars.