This is my first recipe post. I can’t help think that there is not a better day to start than today. I woke up feeling, empowered, motivated, and dedicated. It’s been a great day. I fit in an hour workout, brainstormed group class ideas and now am making up a soup from what was in my kitchen. Fantastic.

Cooking is not something that used to come naturally to me. I pretty much never know what I am doing, but every day I’m in the kitchen is one more day that I am getting experience under my belt. Typically, I find my recipes on Pinterest or other bloggers. Occasionally, I use a good cookbook. Today, I just made this up!

I haven’t been to the grocery store in over a week; we are desperately overdue. I have been cooking a lot, and had quite a few odds and ends in the fridge. So instead of going to the store, I decided to be resourceful and work with what I had. The cupboard had:

White quinoa
1 frozen chicken breast
1 qt vegetable broth (unopened)
¼ bag leftover carrot cabbage slaw (shredded, not prepared)
Kale (for my morning smoothies)
Spinach (also for morning smoothie)
Garlic (ALWAYS in the house)
Celery (3 stalks)
Green onions (3 stalks)
1/2 red onion
Olive oil (ALWAYS in the house)
Some spices

My fiancé and I moved into our new apartment a month ago, and we are seriously lacking in kitchen essentials. We have 1 pot, 2 small pans, a few brand new sharp knives, and a grill tool I use as everything (spatula, wooden spoon, knife, etc- it is actually pretty embarrassing- we desperately need to go shopping), and very few spices.

So in my lacking kitchen environment, I began my quest to make something healthy, hearty, and delicious. What I came up with was a fabulous superfood soup. I decided it should be called "Superfood Soup" because it is loaded with delicious greens, lots of veggies, and packed with lean protein. It is a perfectly balanced, nutrient packed meal!

The soup was so warming, nourishing, and flavorful. It was just perfect on a cold winter night. Conor loved it. I loved it. Overall, it was a love fest. My take-away is to not be intimidated by a mishmash of ingredients, and have fun getting creative! I encourage you to see what healthy foods you have in your kitchen and have some fun!

Ingredients

1 cup white quinoa
1 frozen chicken breast
1 qt vegetable broth (unopened)
¼ bag carrot cabbage slaw (shredded, not prepared)
1 large handful of kale, chopped
1 large handful of spinach
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 celery stalks, chopped
3 green onions stalks, chopped
1/2 red onion, chopped
2 tablespoons olive oil (ALWAYS in the house)
1/4 tablespoon garlic salt
1 teaspoon(ish) thyme
Sea salt (to taste)
Pepper (to taste)
Cayenne pepper (to taste)
parmesan, shredded (to taste) (used as garnish- w/o is dairy-free)

Instructions

Cook 1 cup of quinoa in pot with 2 cups of water. Boil, then simmer uncovered for 20 minutes (or until water is absorbed). When water is absorbed add enough vegetable broth to cover quinoa. Add thyme.

Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a pan, add garlic, once simmering add in green and red onion. Cook until onions soften and look a little translucent. Add carrot/cabbage slaw mixture . Stir often. Cook until carrots are soft. Add salt, garlic salt, and pepper.

Add sautéed veggies to quinoa. Fill the pot with the rest of the vegetable broth. Add 2 handfuls of kale and spinach. Return to boil, and then simmer for 30 minutes.

In the veggie pan, add 1 tbsp(ish) of olive oil. Add chicken breast. (Because I hate wasting dishes and have a small space, I always spice in the pan.) Add cayenne pepper, salt, garlic salt. Flip the breast, do the other side. Fry in pan until cooked through about 7 minutes. Chop up the breast into smaller pieces and place in soup. Heat through.

Serve warm, topped with a bit of Parmesan. Enjoy!