Recipe of the Week: Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup

It is winter time and nothing warms you up more than a nice bowl of soup. The problem is most cans soup are high in sodium and low in protein. This lemon chicken orzo soup has everything you need to fill you up and keep you warm: veggies, chicken, and stock.

The best part is you can make a lot at one time so you have for the whole week. Let me know what you think in the comment below!

INGREDIENTS:

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 pound chicken (either breast or thighs)

Kosher salt and black pepper

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 onion diced

3 carrots, peeled and diced

2 stalks celery, diced

1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

5 cups chicken stock

2 bay leaves

3/4 cup uncooked orzo pasta

1 sprig rosemary

Juice of 1 lemon

2 tablespoons chopped parsley

DIRECTIONS:

1. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large stockpot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Season chicken thighs with salt and pepper, to taste. Add chicken to the stockpot and cook until golden, about 2-3 minutes; set aside.
2. Add remaining 1 tablespoon oil to the stockpot. Add garlic, onion, carrots and celery. Cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 3-4 minutes. Stir in thyme until fragrant, about 1 minute.
3. Whisk in chicken stock, bay leaves and 1 cup water; bring to a boil. Stir in orzo, rosemary and chicken; reduce heat and simmer until orzo is tender, about 10-12 minutes. Stir in lemon juice and parsley; season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Nutritional Information

Serving:  1 cup

Calories: 300

Protein: 24 g

Carbohydrates: 24 g

Fat: 12 g