Recipes Discovered

Chicken Provencal Stoup Recipe

Spices are generally fairly expensive, especially unique herbs like herbes de Provence. Herbes de Provence is a mixture of rosemary, marjoram, basil, bay leaf, thyme, and lavender. It was invented in Provence, a region of southeast France, in the 1970′s, and is used primarily to flavor grilled meats and vegetable stews. It’s not very common in th spice aisle, but I found a bag of it at the Bloomsburg Fair for only a dollar. After finding the spice, I found a Rachael Ray recipe that used it in a stoup, which is defined by Rachael Ray as “thicker than a soup but thinner than a stew”.
This is a pot soup, which makes it really simple. I began by heating olive oil over medium heat and then adding chopped carrots, garlic, zucchini, red pepper, and onions. After sauteing the vegetables for 5 minutes, I seasoned them with salt, pepper, and herbes de Provence, and then added sliced potatoes. I didn’t have wine to add, so I added 6 cups of chicken broth instead of 5 along with a can of diced tomatoes. After bringing the broth to a boil, I added the diced chicken, and then covered the pot and let it simmer for 10 minutes. I served the soup as it was, without adding the tapenade.
I really enjoyed the taste of this soup. The herbes de Provence had a very unique flavor, and the lavender really stood out. Pouching the chicken in the broth also added a lot of flavor to the soup, and the fresh vegetables were perfectly cooked without being over cooked. The soup is obviously very different from traditional vegetable soup, but it’s fresh and delicious, and makes a great summer vegetable soup.