Chicken Vegetable Soup

I am always on the hunt for yummy things to make and new ideas. I ran across Ree Drummond's site the other day and found her recipe for Italian Chicken Soup which this recipe is loosely based on, I changed a lot of things :) but the basic idea was from Ree.

Ingredients:
1 green bell pepper, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
1 cup onion, diced
1/2 cup carrots(6-8 baby), diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 zucchini, sliced
2 cartons of chicken stock (NOT broth) 32oz each
1 can petite diced tomatoes, 28 oz
1-2 T fresh parsley, chopped
2 bone-in chicken breasts (skin removed)
1 can Cannellini Beans (white Kidney)
1 cup dry Ditalini noodles
1 t Olive Oil
 Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions:
Chop, chop, chop! There is a lot of slicing and dicing for this recipe, so I gathered all the items that needed to be chopped and sat down for the job :)

Once all your fresh veggies are prepared heat your dutch oven and add 1 t olive oil, then add, onions, carrots, celery, bell peppers. Cook for 3-5 minutes allowing the veggies to wilt a bit.

Then add the garlic and let the garlic cook with the veggies for about a minute. Turn up the heat to high and add both cartons of chicken stock. Make sure to use your spoon to stir the stock in and get any of the veggies bits that may be on the bottom of the pan into your soup. After a minute or two add the raw bone-in chicken breast, make sure they are covered by the liquid, bring to a boil then reduce to medium-low, cover and let the chicken cook for about an hour. (clearly this whole step could be eliminated and you could just use a rotisserie chicken but I think cooking the chicken in the soup adds to the flavor). After an hour remove the chicken from the pot, add your tomatoes, and beans, gently stir.

At this point you can cook your pasta just to al dente, do not over cook. I also am not a fan of putting raw pasta into a soup, it just soaks up too much of your good stock. So I cook mine in salted water then keep in a separate dish just until I serve. Once the chicken has cooled enough for you to handle, remove from the bones and shred to the size you want in your soup and add it back to your soup. At this point I add my zucchini and parsley then turn it to very low. I do not like 'smushy' zucchini so I add it about 5-10 minutes before we ready to eat. Use a ladle to serve it up and Enjoy! I just eat mine with a little bit of fresh grated Parm, but my kids load mozzarella on top of theirs :)

Weight Watcher Friends: This is a great soup for low points. It is so hearty and delicious! 1.5 cups only has 5points. If you add 1/4 cup of noodles to yours, add a point.

Source: The Pioneer Woman