Author: Kimberly Roberto

This is a great twist on regular chicken soup.  It was inspired from a soup on the Carraba’s menu.  I am always trying to replicate great tasting recipes but with healthier ingredients.  I tend to like things extra spicy but you can adjust this soup to your liking.  You can even leave out the spice altogether!

Spicy Italian Chicken Soup

2 medium red potatoes (optional), peeled and diced.  (Red potatoes are less starchy than regular potatoes- Advanced Plan people, leave these out)

4 skin-on, bone-in organic chicken breasts

1 large organic bell pepper (any color), diced (remember, bell peppers are on the naughty list as far as pesticide load http://www.foodnews.org)

4 organic carrots, peeled and sliced

6 quarts filtered water

14 oz organic tomatoes w/ juice (chopped if needed)

1 large organic onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, sliced thin or put through a press

½ c. fresh parsley or 2 tbsp dried parsley Sea salt

Fresh ground black pepper

Crushed red pepper

Place vegetables, parsley, and garlic in a large stock pot.  Add water.  Add salt and pepper to your liking.  Putting lots of ground black pepper gives it the spice and you can add crushed red pepper to your liking as well.   (Remember, you will need quite a bit of salt because you are not adding salty bouillon cubes)

Bring to a boil.  Skim off any foam that rises to the top periodically.  Let simmer for 2 hours.

Remove chicken pieces and let cool.

Use a potato masher to smash the vegetables into smaller pieces.  The key to this soup is to make all the colors look like small pieces of confetti.

When the chicken is cool enough, remove the meat from the bones and add back to the soup and let simmer.  I prefer small shreds but you can make them as big as you want.  I only added back 2 of the breasts and used the other 2 for other purposes.

Chill the soup so that you can remove the fat that rises to the surface.  It is best to do this overnight.  Make extra so that you can have it for more than one meal.  I guarantee the whole family will like it!

I get asked about my chicken soup all of the time but have never actually put it down on paper.

This is the good old fashioned way of making chicken soup.  The kind your grandmother used to make.  The taste is so different than the chicken soup most American’s are used to eating that people think there is some sort of magic formula.  It is really very simple.  Soup out of a can or made from bouillon cubes is not real chicken soup at is certainly not healthy.   Most commercial soups are loaded with table salt, MSG, and other flavorings and additives.  This all natural version is a staple in our family.  Give it a try.

Homemade Chicken Soup

1 Whole Free Range, Organic Chicken

6-8 Quarts of filtered water

1 bunch celery, with tops + 5 stalks

12 carrots

1 whole onion

1 bunch parsley (stems included)

Sea Salt

Black Pepper

Place the chicken in a large stockpot and fill with filtered water.  Wash the celery and six of the carrots, cut in half.  Cut the onion into quarters.  Wash the parsley.  Add everything to the pot and bring to a boil.  Boil everything for about 2-3 hours, skimming the foam that rises to the top periodically.

Put a colander over another large stock pot and pour the soup through the colander retaining only the broth.  Put the broth back on the stove and simmer.  Let the chicken cool until it able to be handled.

Carefully take all of the meat off of the bones and add it back to the stockpot.  You can have the chunks of chicken as big or as small as you want.  You can also start skimming off some of the fat that rises to the top.

Add sea salt and pepper to the pot.  (Because you are not using any bouillon you will need to add quite a bit of salt.  Just keep tasting it).  If you need more broth, you can add in a couple of containers of organic, free range chicken broth (check ingredients).

Chop the remaining 6 carrots and 5 celery stalks and add them to the pot. Simmer until vegetables are soft.  Refrigerate the soup overnight.

In the morning, you will be able to skim off the fat that solidifies on the surface.  Reheat the soup when ready to eat and add whole wheat noodles if desired.

ENJOY!