Chicken and Brown Rice Soup

I've been feeling a cold coming on the past few days. To combat it, I've been trying to get in as much sleep as possible, eat lots of fruit and veggies, drink orange juice...all the usual things. But the one thing I was missing was chicken soup. Unfortunately, premade chicken soup is often loaded with sodium and not the healthiest choice.

Fortunately, it's not difficult to make your own! Aside from the added benefit of controlling the sodium, you can include fiber rich brown rice and kale when you make your own soup. And what's great about this soup, it can easily be converted into a vegetarian "chicken" soup by using vegetable broth and quartered mushrooms of cubed firm tofu.

Chicken and Brown Rice Soup

Yield: 6 servings | Prep time: 10 minutes | Total time: 55 minutes

Ingredients:

• 16 oz. boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 8 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 3 medium carrots, cut into 1/4-inch slices
• 2 stalks celery, chopped
• 1 cup brown rice
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 bunch kale (about 4 cups), stems removed and leaves thinly sliced

Directions:

1. Heat a large pot over medium-high heat. Once hot, add a small amount of olive oil (enough to coat the bottom of the pot). Add chicken and brown it for about 4 minutes. 
2. Add onion and cook for another 2 minutes.
3. Add chicken broth, carrots, celery, brown rice and bay leaf and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer, cover and cook for 35 minutes, or until rice is tender and chicken is cooked through. 
4. Remove bay leaf and stir in kale. Continue cooking just until kale is wilted and tender, about 3-5 minutes. 

Nutritional information per serving (about 1 1/2 cups):
Calories: 305
Total fat: 4 grams
Carbohydrates: 34 grams
Fiber: 4 grams
Protein: 32 grams
Weight Watcher points: 7


Enjoy and thanks for reading!