Tuscan Style Chicken Soup is so filling, and great for cold weather lunches. The whole family will love this vegetable soup with savory Italian seasoning and shredded chicken - especially if served with some toasted bread slices!
Prep Time5 minutesminutes
Cook Time40 minutesminutes
Total Time45 minutesminutes
Ingredients
2Tablespoonscooking oil
1onion, diced
1green bell pepper, diced
1 ½cupsbutternut squash, peeled and cut into 1”cubes
3chicken thighs, boneless and skinless
5cupschicken stock
2(15 oz) canscannellini or navy beans, rinsed and drained
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Instructions
In a large stockpot over medium high heat, add in cooking oil, onion, bell pepper, and butternut squash and cook until vegetables are fork tender and onion is transparent, about 5-7 minutes.
Stir in whole chicken thighs, chicken stock, cannellini beans, lemon juice, garlic powder, Italian seasoning, salt, and bay leaf.
Simmer for 20-25 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through.
Turn heat to low and take out chicken. Let chicken rest for 5 minutes before shredding it.
Return shredded chicken to soup along with kale.
Let simmer on medium heat for an additional 10 minutes or until kale has wilted. Remove bay leaf.
Scoop out into bowls and garnish with chopped parsley, optional. Best when served warm.
After cooling, store the soup in the refrigerator for up to four days. Make sure it is in an airtight container. You can also freeze this soup for 3 months.
Notes
Butternut Squash Substitutes: Any squash will work as a substitution for butternut squash, but I would recommend acorn squash if you are looking for a great replacement. You could also use sweet potato, but I have not tried this soup with sweet potato.
How to Work With Butternut Squash: Butternut squash is delicious, but a lot of people don’t know what to do with it. You can actually remove the peel with a simple potato peeler. There are also seeds in the larger middle of the squash, which once you cut into, you will want to remove. You can also find pre-chopped butternut squash in more grocery stores if you want a more convenient way of working with butternut squash.
For Using Chicken Breast: You can also use chicken breast, but you may need to decrease your cook time.
Bean Substitutions: Cannellini beans aren’t the most well-loved bean in most pantries, so feel free to use some other beans like Navy Beans or Great Northern Beans. I would recommend pinto or red kidney beans if you aren’t going to use the ones in the ingredient list. I used pinto beans in one of my tests, and the flavor complemented the rest of the soup quite well.