Pesto in your soup? Trust us – you might immediately think pasta when you think pesto. But pesto is an unctuous paste that immediately brings life and balance to just about any dish – including chicken pesto soup.
With the simple addition of ingredients like tomatoes and thyme, the flavors of this chicken soup have a traditional Italian flair. While the peppery, sweet notes of basil and spicy hit of raw garlic make this pesto a classic. And the result is…well, fragrant and hearty enough to make again and again.
Before making your soup, make sure you’ve whipped up a batch of Eggplant Flatbread with Prosciutto and Arugula – it’s the perfect “cracker” to serve with pesto chicken soup.
Chicken Pesto Soup
- 15m
- 30m
- 45m
Ingredients
- 1 onion
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 carrots
- 2 small zucchinis
- 4 tomatoes
- 1/2 bunch kale
- 1 c cooked chicken
- 2 tbsp. butter or coconut oil
- 1 tbsp. coarse sea salt, plus more to taste
- 3 pt chicken stock
- 2 sprigs fresh thyme
- ground black pepper, to taste
- 2 oz parmesan cheese
- For the pesto:
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 c fresh basil
- 5 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
- coarse sea salt, to taste
- ground black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Dice the onion and carrots. Slice zucchini in half; use a spoon to scoop out seeds, and dice. Slice tomatoes in half; use a finger to scoop out seeds, and dice. Remove stems from kale and dice. Dice the cooked chicken.
- Heat the butter or coconut oil over medium heat in a 4 quart saucepan.
- Add the onion, carrots, and sea salt; cook for about 5 minutes or until the veggies begin to soften. Add the zucchini, stock, thyme sprigs, and bay leaf. Simmer gently for about 10-15 minutes until the squash is soft. Add the kale.
- When the kale is bright green (just a minute or two), add the tomatoes and chicken. Adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper. Do not overcook the soup or the green vegetables will lose their bright color.
- While the soup is simmering, grate the parmesan finely if using.
- Make the basil paste if you have not already. In a small food processor mix the garlic, basil, and a pinch of salt. Process until coarsely chopped, then stream in the olive oil and blend well. You will have a medium-thick paste.
- Ladle the soup into bowls and swirl a spoonful of the basil paste atop the soup. Garnish with parmesan.
Nutrition
- 405
- 19g
- 16g
- 4g
- 28g
- 9g
- 57mg
- 9g
- 2154mg
Read Reviews
See what other people are saying about Chicken Pesto Soup
No reviews just yet. You can be the first!