One of the challenges I have with buying produce and trying to eat more veggies is... uneaten produce and vegggies. I get all excited about eating well, getting more servings of veggies in, and then before I know it, the week has passed, and I have a ton of uneaten veggies. I end up eating less than I thought would, not liking what I got, or the Costco size amount didn't get eaten quick enough.
Last week, I found myself in that predicament. Ryan and I had hosted a few friends throughout the week, so I had purchased specific veggies to make specific meals for our guests. Problem was, I used a little of all my veggie ingredients for these meals, but had a random amount left over that I had no idea what to do with.
The problems didn't end there!
Not only did I have a random excess of veggies, but I also did not want to spend more money to come up with another recipe, AND I was strapped for time.
Short on cooking time often translates to a crockpot meal in my life. So I had this idea. I took all the veggies I had, a few other items I had on hand, a couple chicken breasts I'd thawed from the freezer, and chicken stock to create a delicious soup!
I'm going to give you the recipe, but my point is not for you to specifically make this, but to encourage you to experiment with ingredients you have so they don't go to waste! You can chop up any assortment of veggies, toss in some chicken, your favorite seasonings, and a few cups of chicken broth to make a tasty salvage of your left over produce!
Here's what I had to work with:
- Sweet Potato
- Half a yellow bell pepper
- Half of a tomato
- A red onion
- Celery stalks
- Two carrots
- Fresh parsley
- Can of black beans
- 2 chicken breasts
- 4 cups of chicken broth
- 1 cup of water
- A lemon
- Garlic cloves
- Garlic powder
- Salt
- Pepper
- Red pepper flakes
What I did:
- Chopped up all the veggies, garlic, and parsley and tossed it all in.
- Cut up the chicken into 1-2in pieces
- Added the beans
- Added the garlic
- Squeezed in as much lemon juice as I could
- Added some lemon zest
- Seasoned as I felt led with the spices above
To get the flavor right, try warming up the chicken stock in a separate pot and adding the lemon and spices as you taste to get the flavor you want.
I hope you find an awesome mix of your own!
