Our book club book this month is “Coal River” by Ellen Marie Wiseman. Has anyone else ever noticed that the Goodreads reviews are always more harsh than the Amazon reviews? This book is no different – the reviews are always lower on Goodreads. Are readers on Goodreads more picky? Do they have higher standards? I’m not sure. But anyway, it has been a good book so far and historical fiction about Pennsylvania in the early 1900’s in a coal mining town.
Recipe:
This recipe was sooooo good that I had to add it! I think I will be making this much more often than chicken noodle soup. I love the crunchier garbanzo beans in it which substitute for the mushy noodles in chicken noodle soup. Did you know garbanzo beans are a superfood?! Who knew, right? Apparently they are and I am so glad that I tried something new!
The ginger is a wonderful addition to this quick and easy soup. It just cries out for winter and cold nights. It took me about 30 minutes to put it all together since I used a rotisserie chicken. You are free to use chicken breast that is already leftover from dinner or use my quick and easy instant pot recipe here for shredded chicken.
Time Saving Tips!
I usually mince my garlic which is why there are TWO ways to add the garlic depending on if you slice it (which will take longer to cook) or mince it in a garlic press. I have been using dried minced garlic from Penzeys because it never goes bad in the pantry, it is faster and makes less of a mess. I am sure fresh tastes better, but this quick fix helps me in the kitchen!
I also use a baby electric food chopper for everything. If I need a mire poix or chopped carrots like in this recipe, I toss some baby carrots into the mini food processor and then voila – chopped carrots that are peeled and ready to go in less than 1 minute!
Superfood Chicken Soup
Ingredients
- 1 Tb extra virgin olive oil
- 1 2 inches fresh ginger thinly sliced
- 4 cloves garlic minced or thinly sliced
- 1 large turnip or 2 cups carrots peeled and cut into cubes
- 2 tsp ground cumin
- 4 cups low sodium chicken broth
- 3 cups water
- 2 cups baby spinach, kale or winter greens
- 1 15 oz. can garbanzo beans (chickpeas) drained and rinsed
- 3 cups rotisserie chicken shredded and skin removed
- 1/4 lemon to squeeze for juice
Instructions
- In a dutch oven or large pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat. If the garlic is thinly sliced, add it to the oil with the ginger and cook 3 minutes. If the garlic is minced, add garlic after cooking ginger 3 minutes and cook both together for 30 seconds.
- Add the turnip (or carrots) and cook about 5 minutes.
- Add the ground cumin and cook 30 seconds. Add the chicken broth and water. Bring to a boil. Simmer 10 minutes.
- Add spinach, garbanzo beans and chicken. Add salt and pepper to taste. Cook 5 more minutes.
- Turn off the heat and squeeze lemon juice into the soup. Stir, eat and enjoy!
Notes
Goodread reviews are absolutely more harsh…but also more thorough. I read the negative and see if the collective negative even impacts my decision. So many times what seems to be a negative can be a positive for me.