It may seem as though I make every soup in the slow cooker lately. Well, basically, I do. I can’t get enough soup this winter during these bitterly cold days, and I love the fact that I can come home to a warm bowl of soup waiting for me in my kitchen. I also realized a healthy recipe is much overdue here with all the holiday baking I’ve been doing. My body is ready for some vegetables!
This soup recipe is loaded with nutrition and you get plenty of protein from the chicken, quinoa, kale, and beans. It’s so hearty and filling and amazingly delicious, that it’s hard to believe it’s actually good for you. I think some carrots and celery stalks would also be delicious to add. Fresh herbs like bay leaf, oregano, fresh rosemary, basil, and fresh thyme really can transform this recipe. Kale is not my favorite for salad but when it’s tender in this soup? Now I want to add it to all my crock pot recipes. Adding a teaspoon pepper or red pepper flakes can warm this up a bit, too. I added a bit of lemon juice because I love the way lemon pairs with both quinoa and kale. I also chose to add in the beans because I like a soup with plenty of body, I’m not into those really brothy soups unless I’m sick or something. I need sustenance (thank you, Thor). You could easily add some wide egg noodles or other shapes of pasta to make this a slow cooker chicken noodle soup for even more sustenance! I think it would also make a really yummy wild rice soup if you want to swap rice for quinoa. Bone-in skin-on chicken thighs could be another upgrade—just takes a little more work.
If I’m going to have soup as my main meal then it better be loaded. Which also means of course I couldn’t leave out the cheese. Everything is better with a little bit of cheese sprinkled over it. If you are really aiming to be healthy you could leave it off but I say it’s worth the calories to add a tablespoon or two of parmesan. That’s the great thing about parmesan, thanks to its sharp flavor, a little of it will go a long way without adding a huge amount of calories. Enjoy!
