Chicken Soup with Red Bell Peppers, Delicious,Healthy, Heart Smart, CHEAP!
Delicious!
First and foremost this is a delicious and satisfying soup. It makes the kitchen smell wonderful and the family will really anticipate this meal! It would make a great meal by itself or an opener for a more formal dinner.
It is also healthy and inexpensive.
This recipe uses either store purchased chicken broth or the broth that was made in the Chicken Thighs with Red Peppers slow cooker recipe. In essence it is a continuation of the Chicken Thighs with Red Peppers slow cooker recipe that you may find at the link below.
It also uses fat-skimmed chicken broth and a mix of whole grains and beans that are labeled “Friend to the Heart.” It is an exceptionally healthy soup.
This recipe is another one that uses the cool slow cooking method for the hot summer months. That makes it easy to prepare while it does not over heat your kitchen or you!
Many canned soups are loaded with salt and fat. They also use refined grains to provide the pasta and noodles. Canned soups are also expensive per serving and this recipe is inexpensive to make and the soup is a great meal.
It tastes great and I cannot say that enough!
Beans & Whole Grain
Beans and whole grains provide a diet low in fat, saturated fat and cholesterol. The Heart Association says that a diet containing beans and whole grains may reduce the risk of heart disease and some cancers.
These are also the ‘good’ carbohydrates. That means these beans and whole grains provide complex carbohydrates that are good for you. Complex carbohydrates are high in vitamins, minerals, and fiber.
Complex carbohydrates are also a dieters’ friend. They help you feel fuller and digest slower. They digest slowly and are less likely to be converted to fat. They also help in elimination.
The bad carbohydrates are the ones that digest easily and are therefore more likely to become extra weight on the human body. Bad carbohydrates include the easily digested refined carbohydrates like table sugar and corn sugars and honey. These are the carbs that should be used sparingly.
Chicken Soup is Good for You!
Chicken soup was proven scientifically good for you in 2000. However, we all knew that anyway. Grandma told us so.
Chicken soup is anti inflammatory which is why it is good when you have a cold, flu, sore throat, or are recovering from things like upset stomach. It stops the movement of something called neutrophils and that is good. If you want to know more about what neutrophils are and how chicken soup helps here is the study’s web site: http://archives.cnn.com/2000/HEALTH/diet.fitness/10/17/chicken.soup.reut/
They tested vegetarian soups and they just were not as good as chicken soup. Sorry, vegetarians.
Garlic
Garlic is well known as a great food for health. Garlic contains allicin. Allicin is responsible for the taste and aroma of garlic. Allicin is an antioxidant that removes free radicals from the body.
Other studies have promoted garlic as anti-bacterial, anti-biotic, a reducer of blood pressure, and a heart support aromatic.
Garlic tastes great too.
So…….
So, this chicken soup is a great boon for your family in many ways. It provides an inexpensive meal, a healthy meal, and tastes very good.
You can add other seasonings to this chicken soup and take it on a world tour. Nearly every culture has a chicken soup dish. Add Greek Seasonings and you mimic Greek Soup; add Curry and you mimic Indian or Mid-Eastern Chicken Soups. See the link below for some ideas on this.
Let me know if you liked this soup!
Cook Time
Ingredients
- 4 cups chicken broth, from Chicken Thighs w/Red Peppers dish
- 1 cup whole grains and beans
- 3 cloves garlic, finely minced
- 1 can cooked chicken, or your own left over chicken!
- 1-4 sprays, spray slow cooker for easy clean up
- 1 bay leaf
- If you have frozen any of the chicken broth, scrape the fat off the top to make it even more healthy. Peal and mince the garlic. Assemble all the ingredients together.
- Place in slow cooker and cook on high until it boils. Then reduce heat to medium and cook until the grains and beans are done. About 2-3 hours.
Beans & Grains
| Nutrition Facts | |
|---|---|
| Serving size: 1/2 C. | |
| Calories | 350 |
| Calories from Fat | 18 |
| % Daily Value * | |
| Fat 2 g | 3% |
| Saturated fat 0 g | |
| Unsaturated fat 0 g | |
| Carbohydrates 64 g | 21% |
| Sugar 2 g | |
| Fiber 15 g | 60% |
| Protein 19 g | 38% |
| Cholesterol 0 mg | |
| * The Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet, so your values may change depending on your calorie needs. The values here may not be 100% accurate because the recipes have not been professionally evaluated nor have they been evaluated by the U.S. FDA. | |
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