I heart (love) a good soup on a cold day!

Rosanna Shavron Lafontaine, RD, RDH


Hello my fellow foodies and friends,

Well if it's a surprise to you, I live in Saskatchewan, Canada. Where -25 degrees celcius doesn't phase us (and life goes on), but maybe a -50 degrees celcius temperature would. It amazes me everytime I hear in the U.S. news: "snowfall on a -10 degree C day (actually that would be in Farenheit) in an American city",  can qualify their schools to be cancelled and stores to close! The only way that would ever happen here in Canada was if it was -60 degrees celcius, 20 feet of snow, and the stores or schools were on strike.

Which brings me to today's post.......food! More specifically 'food on a cold day'. What comes to mind? Of course, a hot soup! What I was craving today was a hot, chicken vegetable soup that is easy to make. The key words here are: easy to make. You never want to come home from a long day, slave yourself in the kitchen only to make dinner! Me neither. My motto in the kitchen is, "Work with what ya got!" I like to use what I currently have in the kitchen. Last night, I roasted a chicken for dinner and decided to use the leftovers from that into the soup. Today the soup turned out delicious and I had to share.

Hearty Chicken and Vegetable Soup


Ingredients

2-3 tablespoons oregano

2 tablespoons oil

1 whole head of garlic

1 onion

1 leek

1-2 cup of diced carrots

3 russet potatoes (cut into cubes)

1 whole or half roasted chicken or Left over chicken with bone (strip chunky pieces of chicken off bone and throw bone into soup for added flavor)

1 zucchini (chopped into halves)

3 bay leaves

4 packets of chicken broth (may need more depending on how much water you use)

8 cups water
salt and pepper to taste

Directions

Heat the pot on medium heat. Add oil, throw in garlic and onions until golden brown. Next, throw in chopped leek, carrots, and potatoes. Until carrots and potatoes have slightly softened in texture, add water, and chicken broth. Next throw in chicken and bone.  Next throw in zucchini or any other veggie you have in the fridge. Add bay leaves, oregano, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil. Once you can stick a fork through the potatoes and carrots, it is ready to serve. Enjoy!