I’ve mentioned before how much I love soup. I’m not one of those people that only eats it during the cold weather months. No, I love me a hot bowl of soup year round! My love of soup has really served me well because since going paleo I’ve started making and using homemade bone broth in my soups, so the soups I make at home are not only taste-y but super healthy too! Find out more about why homemade bone broth is a super-food as well as the easy how to for making your own here.
This soup is a huge hit with my family! And it’s one of my personal favs as well. There’s nothing but empty bowls on nights when I’ve made this chicken and kale soup for dinner. The bonus is that it takes all but maybe 15 minutes to prepare as the slow cooker does all of the work for you.
Ingredients:
6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs (or whatever you like – breasts work fine)
3 1/2 cups of homemade chicken bone broth (or store bought gluten free chicken broth)
1/2 of a large white onion – chopped
4 large cloves of garlic – smashed
1 1/2 cups shredded carrots (Trader Joe’s sells them pre-shredded which saves you time!)
4 cups of chopped kale
1 1/2 tsp. parsley
salt and pepper to taste
Directions:
Place washed whole chicken thighs in the slow cooker. Layer with onions – how fine you chop them is your preference. Then add smashed garlic and broth. The real key to the yummy flavor of this soup is in the homemade bone broth. (Now, if you don’t have homemade bone broth on hand, I recommend using bone-in chicken rather than boneless. This way you still get the health benefits, plus you get a much richer flavor. You can easily remove the bones before serving once your soup is done. I’ve made it that way many times when I’ve been out of homemade broth.) Let the chicken cook with the onions and garlic on low for about 4 to 6 hours. The chicken will start to come apart. Use a fork to separate it a bit more into chunks. Then add your carrots, kale, parsley and salt & pepper. Let cook for about another hour. Enjoy!
My kids love this soup! If you’re a mom of picky eaters that aren’t big fans of vegetables, my best advice is to just keep trying. Keep preparing vegetables in new and different ways. My kids don’t love raw kale in salads, but they love it cooked – and are especially big fans of it in soup. In addition, for some crazy reason my son doesn’t love cooked chopped carrots but will eat them with no problem if they’re shredded? I won’t pretend to understand, but I will say that it’s worth the effort to get your kids to eat good nutritious food…………and for them to actual enjoy eating it as well. My personal goal is to not just “make them eat their veggies” but to foster a love of nutritious food. I want them to LOVE their veggies, and for this paleo momma, I’ve found that putting them in soups seems to work wonders towards that goal. Every kid just like every person is different; don’t give up the battle mommas, keep on keeping on!
My kids are also big fans of these kale chips too!
Are you a soup lover? a kale lover? What’s your favorite food? Did you know bone broth was a super-food?
You can find more paleo recipes here.
Sounds great! I just made chicken soup the other day because I have been fighting a nasty cold. I will definitely try your recipe in the slow cooker next time. Yes, the bone in chicken is much better too! And I use kale when I make my soup but my family prefers when I use spinach.
-Shelley