My family has always enjoyed eating a lovely soup or stew during the cold months. In fact, I can get both of my grown up kids home for dinner very easily by announcing I am making beef stew, pot roast, or chili. They will rearrange their schedules to be home for dinner on those nights. And if any of you have adult children who have busy lives you will understand what a feat that is!

Now we can add a new meal to the “whole family home for dinner” line up. Creamy Chicken and Rice Soup!

I was actually surprised both of my young adult sons loved this soup so much! But they did, and even the leftovers were eaten. ALL of them. I don’t know if your house is like my house, but in my house the leftovers usually sit and sit until eventually either I eat them or they get fuzzy. For some reason my family thinks that leftovers don’t taste good. I will admit they don’t taste as yummy in the microwave, but if you heat them in a pan they are just as good as the first time, and sometimes better because the flavors have had a chance to “shake hands”.

So here is the amazing Creamy Chicken Rice Soup Recipe

CREAMY CHICKEN RICE SOUP

Ingredients

1 tablespoon EVOO

2 pounds boneless chicken breast, cut into 1-2 inch pieces

½ cup celery, chopped

½ cup onion, chopped

1 teaspoon minced garlic

1 cup carrots, peeled and chopped

1 cup frozen vegetables

1 cup cooked brown rice

½ teaspoon pepper

1 teaspoon salt

4 cups chicken broth

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 cup milk (I used unsweetened almond milk)

Directions

1) In a large saucepan cook the cubed chicken in ½ tablespoon EVOO until it is browned. Remove chicken from pan and set aside. Pour the remaining ½ tablespoon EVOO in to the pan and add the onion, celery, and garlic. Cook until the onions are translucent (about 3-5 minutes) and add the carrots. Sauté for about 3 minutes.

2) Add in the Chicken broth, rice, and frozen vegetables, stir well. Then add the cooked chicken to the pan. Bring to a boil, and then reduce heat and simmer with a lid on the pan for 15-20 minutes.

3) Mix the flour and milk in a container with a lid and shake or stir well to create a slurry. Pour into the soup while stirring to thicken the soup. Add Flour/milk mixture to desired thickness. Heat through and serve.

YUM!