taking chicken soup to the next level

Chicken soup is a childhood memory that is one of my favorites for sure.  Growing up we had several versions that would show up every once in a while.  Sometimes it was chicken and rice, or chicken and noodles and when we went to my MeeMaws it was chicken n dumplings…and now we have Mexican chicken soup.  

Don’t get me wrong I love all the traditional chicken soup’s out there but I wanted to change it up a bit, while adding in a little kick and some extra veggies along the way…plus it was all made in the slow cooker making it a perfect weeknight dinner without a lot of fuss (I love those kind of meals).

The chicken with the traditional southwestern spices is the base for this soup and then when you add in all the veggies and some black beans it becomes a very full bodied soup that is full of flavor, with tons of good for you yummy stuff all at the same time.  For this soup I used zucchini, squash and broccoli (that is what I had on hand) but a lot of other veggies would work great…you could us bell peppers, spinach (added towards the end of the cooking time), jalapeño peppers even eggplant…almost any combo would work.  I also threw in some green chilies for that extra kick, you could leave them out if using jalapeño peppers…or use both for a super kicky soup.

So The Hubby was a little apprehensive when I first described the soup to him.  He loves my traditional chicken enchilada soup and anytime I mention that something might be healthier he doesn’t seem to excited.  All that changed (like it normally does) when he came home and the house smelled AMAZING!!  

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That is one thing I love so much about slow cookers…the house always smells so good when you are cooking in one.  I use this slow cooker, I love the size and also the keep closed lid which works great when I am taking a dish for a family dinner or to our small group.  Just make sure to use a big enough one that you can fit all your yummy veggies in there as it cooks.

Take a traditional favorite into something new and exciting with a fun kick that everyone is sure to love.

Happy (half) Baked Life – MJ