Chicken Soup: Recipe and a Review

As I mentioned earlier, my family is working on becoming gluten free.  I say working on because there are days I still don't get it exactly right but overall the transition has been pretty seamless. My kids don't notice and to be honest, I don't really notice either.  I haven't  noticed a ton of change in some of  my son's symptoms (which is what prompted this switch to actually take place versus just talking about it) but I know it is still early.  And, like I said, I haven't been perfect so there have been some slip-ups.

I am also learning to love cooking and baking again.  Don't get me wrong; I don't want to spend all day in the kitchen.  Who has time for that? But I do enjoy trying out new recipes, seeing my family's reaction, learning something new.  It has been really fun.  And I love that I know that in this process that I am enjoying, I am actually doing something so great for my family.

If your family is like mine, your lives are seasoned with busyness.  For that reason alone, I love to use our slow cooker.  It is by far one of the most used appliances in our kitchen.  It is definitely used weekly if not more.  So color me happy when I found some slow cooker gluten free recipes! To add to my excitement, they were super simple to prep! All the mamas are rejoicing with me right now! :)

Paleo Crock Pot Chicken Soup via
1 medium onion, chopped
3 stalks celery, diced
3 carrots, diced
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon herbs de Provence
2 chicken breasts, bone in
2 chicken thighs, bone in
1 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp ground pepper
3-4 c filtered water

1. Layer all the ingredients into your crockpot. Place the chicken bone side down.
2. Cook on low for 6-8 hours
3. Remove chicken. Allow it to cool slightly then remove the bones and shred. Place the shredded chicken back into the pot and stir.
4. Reheat and serve.

When I made this recipe, I had chicken breasts on hand. Boneless.  Little old me didn't know that when making soup from scratch, so much nutrients and richness to a broth comes from the BONES.  Broth is actually quite a popular trend right now.  You can read more about it here and here, That being said, the broth for my soup was REALLY watery,  Which made it lack in flavor quite a bit.

I will definitely be trying this recipe again knowing now how important it is to make sure I don't just use what I have on hand to see if that changes the flavor.  If you like a really strong broth (and I do) you may cut the water in half and add some stock to your soup.

I would love to hear if you try this and your thoughts!