Revisiting Creamy Chicken Soup with Wild Rice

Since fall weather is setting in and everyone is bringing out the fall recipes, I thought I would repost one of my first recipes! This soup has been a favorite in quite a few Thrive homes - give it a try :)

This soup can be thrown together in all of about 5 minutes (thanks to Thrive onions, celery and carrots that come already washed, chopped and peeled!) then simmers on the stove for as long as you want. The longer it simmers, the more delicious it will be!

3T Thrive Carrots
3T Thrive Celery
3T Thrive Onions
1c Chopped Chicken (I used leftovers)
1c Wild Rice
1/2t Garlic Powder (less if you aren't a huge garlic fan like me)
1/2t Italian Seasonings
6c Chicken Broth (I made mine from scratch, but you could use canned or bouillon cubes)
1 can Cream of Chicken with Mushrooms (feel free to use cream of whatever you have!)

Combine everything but the cream soup in a large pot and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat, cover and simmer for at least 30 minutes or until the rice is tender. Reduce the heat a little more before adding the cream soup and stir frequently so it doesn't boil (boiled cream soup = curdled cream. Ick!). Cook for 5 minutes or until heated through, the taste it and adjust the seasonings to your liking.

The Verdict: this soup was delicious! The vegetables had a great texture and the wild rice added a gentle nutty flavor. The addition of an Italian herb mix was perfect, but you could take this soup in a completely different direction by changing up the seasonings just a little. Annika finished her bowl without complaint (a rare occasion in this house - who knew pleasing a 5 year old palate could be so difficult) and the hubby declared it a "definite do over". Leftovers will make for a nice lunch tomorrow.

Thrive & School Lunch

When my daughter was itty bitty and headed off to her first year of all-day school, I was so excited to pack her a lunch. I'll give you two guesses as to how quickly that excitement wore off. Now we're into her third year of all day school and I have finally gotten lunch down to a science. In an effort to save you from lunch packing boredom, I will share my method with you :)

Make a spreadsheet with the following information: Morning Snack, Lunch Entree, Lunch Side Dish, Drink. Of course you'll want to adjust this to fit your child's needs - for example, maybe your middle schooler doesn't have morning snack but would like a dessert option or an extra snack to eat before an after school activity. Under each chosen heading, list all of the choices you would like to give your child. Here is what is listed under "Morning Snack" for my daughter:

Banana Bread
Pumpkin Spice Muffins
Kix
Homemade Granola Bar
Apple Slices
Banana
Grapes
Strawberries
Granola Bites
Bagel with Cream Cheese
Mini Blueberry Muffins
Banana Nut Muffins
Animal Crackers
Wheat Thins with Cheese
Zucchini Muffins

Once you have completed the spreadsheet, print out a copy and have your child make her choices by writing the initial for each day of the week next to the item she would like. So, if she would like grapes for her morning snack on Monday, she would put a "M" next to the word grapes on the list. Granola bites would have a "Th" next to it for Thursday. Repeat for all remaining categories.

I have my daughter complete her "lunch order" on Saturday for the upcoming week. This allows me to prepare anything that can be made ahead of time like muffins or granola, pick up the produce needed at the store, and also plan our family dinners accordingly. Last week she wanted to have homemade pizza for lunch on Thursday, so we had homemade pizza as a family for dinner on Wednesday night and I just made extra for her to have at school the next day.

Thrive foods can play an integral part in preparing quick, healthy lunches for your kids. My daughter loves  Thrive Freeze Dried Strawberries mixed with Vanilla Yogurt Bites, freeze dried corn mixed with freeze dried peas, and especially blueberries. For quick muffins, use Thrive 6 Grain Pancake Mix as a base, add sugar, vanilla extract, milk and Thrive berries (you don't have to rehydrate them!). Freeze leftover muffins and just pop a frozen one in your child's lunch bag - it will be thawed by snack time. Mix up some homemade granola bars on a Sunday afternoon for a great snack all week long. A hot thermos full of creamy chicken soup with wild rice will warm up a cold kid on a wintery day, especially with a hearty sandwich on a homemade bagel.

I love knowing that I'm sending my daughter to school with wholesome, nutritious meals that will fuel her brain and body for the afternoon. Best of all, I love knowing that I have sent food that  she will actually eat!

"Cream of" Soup Mix

When we were first married, my husband had this horrible habit of eating cold cream of chicken soup straight out of the can. I suppose my dramatic gagging sounds eventually got him to stop - he hasn't done it in a while, thank goodness. Seriously, have you ever really looked at that stuff? The color is, well, sort of like raw chicken flesh, and the jiggly consistency isn't doing anything positive either. Have you read the ingredients? I don't know about you, but I can certainly live the rest of my life without a long list of ingredients I can't pronounce. But... I do like what it does for my recipes. Cream of chicken soup lends a creamy, velvety texture and rich taste that "does a casserole good". So how do I get rid of the canned ickyness without giving up the taste and texture I love? Make my own, of course! Give this mix a try and you'll never go back to the canned stuff again - I promise.

Cream of Chicken with Mushrooms and Herbs

"Cream of" Soup Mix

2c Thrive Instant Milk Powder
1 1/4c Cornstarch
1/4c Thrive Chicken Bouillon
2T Thrive Chopped Onions
2t Italian Seasonings
Optional: Garlic Powder, Seasoning Salt, Ground Sage (add as desired)

Pour all ingredients in a large zip top bag and shake well. This will make 9 cans of "cream of" soup. If you want to have cream of chicken soup, add 2T Thrive Chopped Chicken or Chicken TVP. If you want cream of mushroom, chop up some Thrive Mushroom Pieces and mix them in. Cream of potato? Add some Thrive Potato Dices. Cream of broccoli, cream of onion, cream of celery...This soup mix is super versatile!

When you are ready to prepare your soup, measure out 1/3c mix and stir it into 1 1/4c cold water. The water has to be cold, otherwise your cornstarch will get chunky. Bring it to a boil over medium heat, then reduce the heat, cover and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

This soup makes a wonderful gift. Just put the dry mix in a jar with a pretty ribbon and include the cooking instructions.

Three Minute Split Pea Soup

Before you go to work tomorrow morning, spend three minutes making dinner. Seriously - three minutes* will give your family a hot, nutritious meal to look forward to when they come home. You would spend longer than that sitting in the drive through at your favorite local greasy burger joint.

1c Thrive Split Peas
1T Thrive Chopped Onions
1T Thrive Carrot Dices
1T Thrive Ham TVP
3c Water

Put everything in the crock pot. Plug it in. Turn it on to low. Put the lid on and walk away. Come back 8 hours later, give it a little stir and taste it. What does it need? A little salt, maybe, or a few grinds of fresh black pepper. I like to add a dash of garlic powder. Serves 4.

*This soup will take three minutes as long as you don't have to wash your crock pot, look through seven drawers to find your measuring spoons or wait for your next Q shipment because you are out of onions.