November!! When did THAT happen?? Kieran and I moved to Portland at the end of March, we blinked and now it’s November already?!? Dang, time’s not messing around this year! It will be winter before you know it!
Speaking of winter, Kieran and I were watching the Portland news when the weatherman came on. The weatherman cut to a news anchor, in the field, interviewing Portlanders about the upcoming winter season. Right on queue, each interviewee complained about Portland’s “winter” and how they dreaded the cold/rainy season. Having recently moved from Chicago, Kieran and I sat back and laughed and laughed and laughed.
See, Chicago is home to a phenomenon called “thundersnow”. Thundersnow is a snowstorm event in which thunder and lightning occur. A few years ago, an epic blizzard dumped 21.2 inches of snow on Chicago, which basically shut down the city. And believe you me…it takes a LOT to bring Chicago to a grinding halt. I was sent home early from my job and was told to “hurry up to get home safe and sound” before the storm hit. Taking my boss’s advice, I rushed to the liquor store, stocked up on wine, THEN I rushed home, safe and sound. Once both my wine and I were safely inside, Kieran suddenly came charging through the front door, with rum, covered in snow. The weatherman predicted the blizzard would be record setting, and urged viewers to stay home and not drive anywhere once the storm hit. Kieran and I translated that to mean, hurry up and stock up on booze before we got snowed in. Safety first folks. And then the blizzard hit. Safe and sound with our booze, Kieran and I cuddled up on the couch, watching in amazement, as the blizzard produced the most magnificent snow storm we’ve ever seen. Every few seconds thunder cracked around the condo as lightning illuminated the snow, whipping around in all directions. The storm raged on for hours, as Kieran and I sat memorized by the sight outside our window, sipping our drinks, making jokes, and contemplating our future goals and life together.
Along with several feet of snow, Chicago’s weather also frequently drops below zero throughout the winter months. I remember many a morning walking to work, feeling like my face was going to freeze off. I specifically remember thinking, “Ouch, this cold air is hurting my face, why do I live in an area where the goddamn air hurts my face?!”
The Chicago winters were one of the many reasons Kieran and I wanted to move to Portland. Sure, it rains a lot in Portland, but the temps usually don’t drop below 40 degrees. I mean, after you’ve experienced sub-zero temperatures in the Midwest, 40 degrees feels like a damn sauna. Supposedly, it snows once every couple of years in Portland too, but when it DOES snow, it’s only a couple inches, which usually melts in a day or two. I heard Portland doesn’t budget for snow removal, so when it does snow, even an inch, Portland has no choice but to basically shut down.
So upon hearing native Portlanders bitch about their rainy 40 degrees and no snow winters, Kieran and I couldn’t help but break out into hysterics.
But even though I’ve escaped the extreme midwest winters, I’m still looking forward to colder weather in general, because of the food. I LOVE making soup, and nothing makes me feel happier than making soup on a cold rainy day.
It’s time to break out your slow cooker folks!
This Chicken and Wild Rice Soup is easy and comforting, which is everything you could want in a fall recipe. I noticed even though I love my slow cooker, I haven’t posted a ton of slow cooker recipes yet. Welp, that’s about to change folks! As much as I love to cook, nothing beats having my slow cooker prepare my dinner, without continual adult supervision. The lazy girl inside of me rejoices as I nerd out and play video games while my crock pot does all the work.
Speaking of video games, anyone else going to buy Star Wars Battlefront, for PS4? I’m dying, it looks so damn good. Plus, I’m all in favor of video games where Kieran and I can play together. I mean, a happy marriage equals two people, logging into their favorite game, split-screen style, and capping video game bitches with each other. That’s true love folks, don’t fight it. Cap some bitches online together today!!
Feast your eyes on THIS…
GAH! I’m excited and GEEKING out over this game!! As I Star Wars fan, I can’t wait to immerse myself in the sights and sounds of the movie through this video game. The visuals look record breaking and the gameplay looks like a riot. It appears I can play as Princess Leia which pleases the hell out of me. Yes, I’m the girl who always has to play the girl characters in a video game. A girl’s gotta represent!
So, as you just figured out, colder months mean crockpot creations and hunkering down with cool video games in this household. I’m looking forward to giving my crockpot a good workout, lord knows I’ve been cooking my ass off in the kitchen, I need my crockpot to “tag in” for a few recipes.
For this wild rice soup, you can omit the mushrooms/wine if you don’t care for them, and/or you can add cream/milk/butter at the very end to make the soupier creamier. I opted to not add cream, as I’m counting calories and wanted enough calories leftover for wine. You have to have priorities people!
And have fun with your seasonings with this soup. Some recipes I’ve read call for poultry seasonings, others call for using the seasoning packet that comes with your wild rice. I just used the usual chicken seasoning suspects like sage, thyme, and rosemary, along with some other oddballs like nutmeg and turmeric. I read turmeric is really good for you, so I’ve been trying to add the spice to everything possible.
Oh, you’ll also see I added miso paste, again, at the end of this recipe. The miso paste I purchased for another dinner, comes in a GIANT ass bag, so I’ve been using the paste in just about every recipe I make since then. So no need to purchase miso paste just for this recipe. But if you have some left over from another dish, feel free to toss a tablespoon of the paste in at the end. The saltiness enhanced the flavor to make the soup extra yummy!
You’ll notice in the written recipe, I tinkered with the seasonings a little bit, to get them just right. I explain in the notes how I went about balancing out the flavors, to get the perfect tasting soup for me. I’ve never professed to be a chef or expert home cook, so admittedly, I have a lot to learn about balancing the flavor. Here’s a cool chart I found online that provides helpful insight to assist you in balancing out flavors, to enhance your meals!
Once again, thanks for stopping by to check out my post. Please feel free to comment if you want to talk about food, video games, or merely shoot the shit.
I hope you enjoy the soup!
Slow Cooker Chicken and Wild Rice Soup
Ingredients
- 6-8 oz chicken breast
- 1 cup wild rice, rinsed
- 1 medium/large carrot, chopped
- 2 ribs of celery, chopped
- ⅔ cups onion, chopped
- 8 oz cremini mushrooms (optional)
- 2-3 garlic cloves, minced
- 6 cups of fat-free chicken broth
- ¼ cup dry white wine (I used a nice buttery tasting chardonnay)
- ½ teaspoon of salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon dried sage
- ¼ teaspoon dried rosemary
- ¼ teaspoon turmeric (optional)
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme (or ½ teaspoon of thyme)
- 1 bay leaf
- 2-4 tablespoons butter
- Additional salt/pepper to taste
- Parsley or even cilantro to garnish
Instructions
- In your slow cooker, add the rice, carrot, celery, mushroom, garlic, and chicken. Sprinkle both sides of the chicken with a pinch of salt and pepper.
- Pour in the chicken broth and wine.
- Sprinkle in your seasonings, and cover with the slow cooker lid.
- Turn your slow cooker on either low heat for 6-8 hours, or high for 3-5 hours.
- The chicken will be finished cooking before the rice. I checked my chicken after 3 hours of cooking. Cook until the chicken registers at 165 or is no longer pink in the middle. Put the chicken on a plate, cover with tin foil, and set aside.
- Once the wild rice is fully cooked, shred the chicken with 2 forks (or your fingers) and return the chicken to the crockpot. Disregard the bay leaf. Plop in 4 tablespoons of butter, and gently mix until the butter is completely melted.
- Taste for seasonings, see notes, ladle into soup bowls, garnish with fresh parsley or even cilantro, and enjoy!
Notes
A splash of rice wine vinegar for additional acidity. Lemon juice or apple cider vinegar work great too. The acidity helps wake up the flavors for a more vibrate dish.
1 tablespoon Sriracha hot sauce. Sriracha gave the dish a little heat, and also added a bit of sweetness.
My garnish was cilantro. Cilantro was great in this soup, but many folks think it tastes like soap. The cilantro gave the soup a slight sweetness and freshness, but if you hate cilantro, parsley is amazing too. If you prefer a creamier soup add a cup or 2 or heavy milk or cream at the end. Since I didn’t have cream or milk, I added butter, which added some creaminess. I should mention, the longer the soup sits, the thicker it will become. If you have leftovers, you may need to thin the soup out with additional water, broth, or milk.
Calorie breakdown off all the ingredients, even the optional ones.
6-8oz chicken breast…. 272 (for 8 oz)
1 cup wild rice, rinsed….640
1 medium/large carrot, chopped…..33
2 ribs of celery, chopped…..11
2/3 cups onion, chopped……43
8oz crimini mushrooms (optional)…….50
2-3 garlic cloves, minced…… 13 (for 3)
6 cups of fat free chicken broth…..90
1/4 cup dry white wine (I used a nice buttery tasting chardonnay)….48
2-4 tablespoons butter (optional)….. 407
1 tablespoon miso paste (optional)…..34
Note, seasonings calories are so minuscule, I hardly ever add them to the recipe calorie count. The way I see, I’m probably burning off their calories while I’m cooking the meal. If I’m wrong, please let me know!!
Total calories if you eat the entire pot by yourself.…1,641
1/2 the pot…. 820.50
4 servings (about 4 big bowls of soup)…410.25
*Disclaimer, I am NOT a nutritionist, nor am I trying to be. I find calorie counts by reaching Google, using my Lose it! app, and by reading the nutrition labels of the food I buy.