VT Mamateurs

Who doesn’t love a nice hearty chicken soup every now and again? I found the following recipe a few months ago on Centsational Girl, and after making a few tweaks, have been obsessed with it ever since. Seriously, I make this once every couple months- it is healthy, delicious, and freezes well. Ben LOVES it too- last week he was slurping the remnants of it from his bowl. So well-mannered, that little guy;) Definitely gets the Benjamin Button stamp of approval!

“Delightful flavor profile!”

This one is for adults and kids alike- so make sure to prepare enough! I generally make the entire batch of  soup, and then throw about 1/3 of it in the food processor for just a few seconds- just to make the texture a bit more consistent for Ben (and more conducive to slurping, of course!).

Also, I should mention that the recipe is named ‘Southwest White Bean and Chicken Chili”, but it is more of a hybrid between a chicken soup and a chili (read: it doesn’t feel as heavy as a traditional chili- even in comparison to other white bean chilies I have made).

Okay, enough rambling, here is the recipe- adapted from Centsational Girl (make sure to click through to her post if you want lots more pics!):

photo credit: CentsationalGirl.com

Southwest White Bean + Chicken Chili:

Ingredients:

• 2 tbsps olive oil
• 1/2 med. yellow onion, diced
• 3/4 cup thinly sliced leeks
• 1 yellow pepper, diced
• 32 oz. chicken broth (I use fat free, low sodium)
• 2 (15 oz) cans of white beans- navy or cannellini
• 2 cooked chicken breasts, diced
• 2 tbsp cumin
• black pepper
• optional: salt, to taste
• 10 oz. bag frozen corn
• cilantro for garnishing
• optional: shredded cheese and diced avocado for garnishing (though in my opinion, this is not optional!)

Directions:

• In large pot, sauté diced onion in olive oil over medium low heat. After about a minute, add sliced leeks, continue stirring 1 to 2 minutes, then add diced yellow pepper and continue to stir 2 more minutes until entire medley is soft.
• Add chicken broth, rinsed white beans, cumin, pepper, salt (if desired) and diced chicken to pot, then simmer on low for approximately 20 minutes to allow flavors to infuse.
• At this point, I usually transfer to a crock pot on low until we are ready to eat- put not necessary! About half an hour before serving, I stir in the frozen corn.
• Serve hot with shredded cheese, avocado, and LOTS of cilantro as a garnish

I don’t think this recipe can have too much/many leeks, cumin or cilantro- and I never measure…so I am sure I (at least) triple the amount suggested This recipe is awesome for using up leftover chicken!

Enjoy!

-J