Gut-Healing Lemony Chicken And Spelt Soup
Serves 6
This is the perfect Autumn Soup — it’s warming and nourishing (thanks to the turmeric and chicken), but also light and zesty (thanks to the lemon and dill). So it is the perfect combination for those (like me), that are trying to gently ease themselves into the colder weather without going full on with a onesie-hat-slipper ensemble.
Now, let’s talk for a minute about all of the nutrients in the soup — for those of you that follow my recipes, you will already be aware of my love affair with the super-spice turmeric. It is a powerful anti-inflammatory and a very strong antioxidant, and I try to use it in as many recipes as I possibly can without turning the whole house yellow!
The powerhouse that is Spelt provides complex carbohydrates for slow release energy, protein, tons of fibre and many health-boosting micronutrients. Instead of using chicken or vegetable stock, I used bone broth instead, and not only did it add wonderfully to the flavour, it upped the “goodness” value no end! Bone Broth is rich in minerals that support the immune system and contains gut healing compounds that can reduce intestinal inflammation.
One serving provides 340 calories, 43g of good quality protein, 6g of fibre and 35% of my daily Vitamin C requirements.
INGREDIENTS
· 450g Organic Chicken Thighs — skinless & boneless
· 2 Celery Stalks
· 2 Leeks
· 2 White Onions
· 2 Cloves Garlic
· 1 tsp Olive Oil
· 200g Spelt
· 1 tbsp Turmeric
· 1 tsp dried dill
· Juice & Zest of 1 Lemon
· 1L Organic Bone Broth and 500 ml Chicken Stock (NOTE — you need 1.5L of liquid, so if you have 1.5L of bone broth, then use that! I just ran out of bone broth so had to top up the rest of the liquid with stock instead. Equally, if you don’t have any bone broth, then just substitute for 1.5L of stock)
· Handful of fresh dill
· Salt & Pepper to taste
METHOD
· Dice the onions, leeks and celery.
· Mince the garlic cloves.
· In a large saucepan, heat the olive oil and fry the onions, leeks and celery for 4–5 minutes until clear on a medium heat.
· Add the garlic and sauté for another minute.
· Add the chicken stock and the bone broth and turn down the heat.
· Add the turmeric, lemon juice, dried dill and season with salt and pepper.
· Add the chicken thighs and cook for 15 minutes until they are cooked through.
· Remove the chicken and set aside to cool slightly until you can tear the chicken into little pieces.
· Whilst the chicken is cooking, in a separate saucepan, cook the spelt as per the instructions, normally 20 minutes. (NOTE — don’t cook the spelt in the same saucepan as the soup because it tends to shed the starch and the water can become foamy)
· Once the spelt is cooked, add it to the large soup saucepan along with the chicken pieces, lemon zest and fresh dill.
· Serve immediately.
Nutritional InformatiON
Calories — 340
Carbohydrates — 38g
Fat — 6g
Protein — 43g
Fibre — 6g
Vitamin A — 13%
Vitamin C — 35%
Calcium — 6%
Iron — 17%