#36 Italian Pesto Chicken Noodle Soup

Without fail, within the first 2 months of every school year, I get sick. I lose my voice, I have a sore throat, I cough, I am miserable for a week. And for the last couple years this sad turn of events has culminated over a long weekend break. Boo. So here I am, with no audible voice and three days off from school. All the things I had dreamed of doing this weekend have come down to herbal tea, movies, blogging and cooking.

Wanting to prove this sickness that I am stronger than it, this morning I invented an exquisite chicken noodle soup with a heavy Italian twist. The Italian flavor comes from the homemade pesto I made last week for ladies' night, which works surprisingly well in a chicken and vegetable broth. So though much of my weekend has been limited to my apartment, I at least still get to enjoy some new flavors and good cooking. Now, the real question is, can I follow my soup with a cup of coffee? I may have a cup even though everything I read says coffee is not good for sore throats. Darn it, I'm living on the wild side, coffee here I come.

Italian Pesto Chicken Noodle Soup

Ingredients:

• ½ cup diced onion
• 4 garlic cloves, sliced
• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• 6 - 7 cups chicken broth
• 4 tbsp. pesto sauce (I used my homemade pesto sauce from last week)
• 2 zucchini, peeled and chopped
• 2 potatoes, peeled and chopped
• 1 green pepper, chopped
• 1 tomato, diced
• 2 cups broccoli (I steamed fresh broccoli, but frozen would work too)
• 2 chicken breasts, cut into strips
• 1 lime
• ¼ cup white wine
• 1 cup noodles
• Salt, Pepper and Cayenne Pepper
• 1 avocado
• shredded cheese

Directions:

1. Chop all vegetables and defrost chicken.
2. In large pot, pour olive oil and sauté the onion and garlic until tender. Add the chicken stock and pesto sauce. Add tomato, green pepper, zucchini, broccoli (if frozen add it with the rest of the vegetables but wait until the noodles go in if you are using steamed broccoli) and potatoes. Heat to a boil and then lower to a simmer, stirring often. While the soup is heating up, cut the chicken and squeeze one lime over the chicken and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
3. After lowering the heat on the soup, add the lime-soaked chicken to the pot and ¼ cup of wine. Sprinkle the soup with salt, pepper and cayenne pepper (if you want some spice!). Cover the soup and let cook for 10 minutes.
4. Add the noodles and cover for another 5-10 minutes. Keep an eye on the soup, as soon as the noodles are done, the soup is ready!
5. To serve, ladle into bowls and top with shredded cheese and diced avocado. Yummy stuff.

Buen Provecho