Chicken and Rice Soup with Lemon

​​This is reminiscent of a soup we had on vacation (right before school started) and my daughter actually ate my cup of soup. We had been discussing back to school lunches and we both agreed that this would be a great addition to the lunch box! My rendition of this soup makes quick use of leftovers and transforms them into a delicious soup (even better than the one we had on vacation).

• 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 ½ cup of frozen chopped mirepoix (see note)
• 1 clove minced garlic
• 1 cup chopped cooked chicken
• 1 cup cooked brown rice
• 4 cups reduced sodium chicken broth
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 ½ teaspoon grill chicken seasoning (if needed – see note)
• 2 tablespoons minced parsley (optional garnish)

Place a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat and add oil. Once the oil is hot add in the mirepoix mix, sauté for 3 minutes. Add garlic and sauté another minute. Add the chicken, rice, broth and lemon juice and seasonings. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes.

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 ½ cups)

Nutrition Breakdown: Calories 140, Fat 3.5g (0.5g saturated fat), Cholesterol 20mg, Sodium 520mg, Carbohydrate 16g, Fiber 2g, Protein 10g.
Carbohydrate Choices: 1 Carbohydrate
Diabetes Exchange Values: 1 Starch, 1 Vegetable, 1 Lean Meat
Percent Daily Value: 30% Vitamin A, 8% Vitamin C, 4% Calcium, 6% Iron

Kim’s note:

• Frozen chopped mirepoix mix is frozen chopped onion, celery and carrot. It is a great starter for recipes if you do not wish to use the fresh. I typically keep some of this in my freezer. If I have fresh of course I use that, but having this already in the freezer is a real time saver and a great soup starter.
• Grill Chicken seasoning --- if your cooked chicken is highly seasoned you may not need additional seasoning in the soup. But if you just have bland boiled chicken then I do advise adding some seasoning blend such as grill seasoning to the soup for added flavor.