Cold + wet = soup.

My co-blogger has inspired me to try to blog more. This is a crazy-busy time of year for me. But, there is something soothing and so normal about posting periodically. Since the weather is crap right now: really cold and wet, a soup for dinner was in order. Lately, we have been eating a lot of soups. They are fairly easy to make, don't take too long and are very forgiving. Here is what I made tonight:

Chicken Pesto Soup

In a deep pot or dutch oven saute in olive oil:
1 onion, coarsely chopped
3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
2 leeks, chopped
2 small fingerling potatoes, chopped in small pieces
2 small sweet potatoes, yes, these are chopped too

In a cast iron skillet cook up two chicken breast until just barely cooked. Remove breasts from pan and set aside. Add some water and soften the browned chicken goodness with the water. Add this to the dutch oven with all the vegetables.

Add 6-8 cups low sodium chicken broth to the dutch oven. Add 3 TB of prepared pesto to the dutch oven and stir well. Chop up two large handfuls of fresh arugula and add to the veggie-broth mixture.

With an immersion blender or something like that, blend the soup together until moderately smooth. If you like really smooth, blend longer. If you like a little chunky, blend for a shorter period of time. Cut chicken breasts into bit-sized pieces and add to soup.

Add fresh ground black pepper and salt to taste.

I am going to serve this with a little assiago cheese and a baguette. I think everyone will be happy. The photo above does not do it justice, but it is good.

Sleep well.

-S