Chicken Minestrone Soup

I made this Chicken Minestrone Soup for my grandparents a couple of weeks ago and wanted to share the recipe with you.  I realize that the "soup" on the end of the title is a bit redundant, since anyone who knows anything about Minestrone would know that it is in fact soup.  But I figured that a lot of people (assuming they were like me a few years ago) had never even heard of it...so I added it for clarity.

This soup is easy, delicious, hearty, wholesome, and just makes you feel warm and good inside (did I give you enough adjectives?).  If you have tried my other soup recipes thus far, you may have noticed that my soups aren't very "soupy".  Anthony and I prefer our soups to have more of a stew consistency or at the very least, a "stoup" consistency (to borrow a word from Rachel Ray's lexicon).

Here's what you need to make it:

1 lb. chicken, cooked and shredded

2 - 14 1/2oz cans diced tomatoes with basil, garlic, and oregano

6 C. chicken broth

2 medium zucchinis

1 16oz can kidney beans, rinsed and drained

1 1/2 C uncooked shell pasta (or any type of pasta)

Here's how you make it:

1.  Bring a large pot of water to a boil.

2.  As the water comes to a boil, cut your zucchinis into chunks.

3.  When the water is boiling, add the pasta and zucchini to the water.  Cook until both are tender. 
     Drain the excess water.

4.  In the large pot with the pasta and zucchini, add the chicken, tomatoes, broth, and beans.

5.  Heat through and serve.

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I often cooked my chicken during the day in the crockpot while I am at work so I don't have to babysit the chicken as it cooks.  It just adds unnecessay time and work to this meal to cook the chiken in a pan right before I make the soup.  But you can do it however works for you.  Also, this recipe makes a bunch, so I usually freeze some for later.

Enjoy!

Sincerely,

The Stoup Maker