It was a chilly November day when I created this soup. The brightness of the lemon and dill make it a cheery soup for the dark days of late fall and the heartiness of the chicken and orzo will satisfy the need for comfort food. I made this with Jovial foods Grain free orzo however you can make this with any orzo you like. If you use organic lemons in this you can put the whole sliced lemon, peel and all in the soup, this will add to the citrusy brightness. Instead of using chicken in this you can use leftover turkey, just add it toward the end of cooking the soup to prevent the meat from getting dry. As fresh dill can be hard to get in late fall/winter you could subsitute fresh rosemary, thyme or oregano. Make sure to use fresh herbs though as dry will not impart the same deep flavour in this soup. For a vegetarian/vegan substitute chickpeas is a great choice.
Over medium heat sauté onion with a sprinkle of sea salt in olive oil until onions are softened, about 10 minutes. Add celery and garlic and sauté for another 5 minutes.
Add chicken/turkey thighs and broth and turn up the heat to bring to a boil. Once it comes to a boil, lower the heat to simmer and add the carrots. If you are using shredded leftover turkey add it to the soup now.
Simmer the soup until the carrots are tender then add orzo in the last 15 minutes of cooking.
Add your lemon juice and zest or sliced lemons if using organic lemons (no need to zest lemons if adding whole lemons)
Add the chopped dill and the spinach and serve.
Ingredients
Directions
Over medium heat sauté onion with a sprinkle of sea salt in olive oil until onions are softened, about 10 minutes. Add celery and garlic and sauté for another 5 minutes.
Add chicken/turkey thighs and broth and turn up the heat to bring to a boil. Once it comes to a boil, lower the heat to simmer and add the carrots. If you are using shredded leftover turkey add it to the soup now.
Simmer the soup until the carrots are tender then add orzo in the last 15 minutes of cooking.
Add your lemon juice and zest or sliced lemons if using organic lemons (no need to zest lemons if adding whole lemons)
Add the chopped dill and the spinach and serve.