Easy Chicken and Rice soup

The weather here in Colorado Springs has been very cold and snowy. This week I even saw the temperature down to -8 degrees Fahrenheit.  Cold weather has always had a way of putting me in the mood for soup. One of my oldest son's favorite soup in chicken and rice. I love to make this soup for him, however it can be pretty time consuming. As a busy working mommy, time is not always a luxury I have allot of. So I decided to try and create my own recipe, that would still be yummy but also quick to prepare. Below is my quick take on the classic Chicken and Rice soup. 

Easy Chicken and Rice Soup 

Makes about 6 servings

What You Need:

Ingredients

• 1-2 boneless skinless chicken breasts 
• 1 cup instant rice
• 1/2 tablespoons minced garlic
• 1 1/2 cups chopped carrots (I use baby carrots for convenience)
• 2-3 ribs of celery sliced
• 1/2 teaspoons thyme (fresh or dried)
• 1 teaspoons salt
• dash of pepper
• 1 bay-leaf
• 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons of all purpose flour
• 3 cups chicken broth
• 2 cups of water
• 3 tablespoons of butter

Instructions:

1. Cook the chicken.  Cut chicken into small cube like pieces, place in a large boiler with some avocado oil or olive oil. Cook until chicken is white and no longer pink in the centers. Remove from heat and remove chicken. Set chicken aside.
2. Add carrots, celery, onions, and garlic. Place butter in the boiler and let it melt. Add carrots, celery, onions, and garlic. Saute the veggies in the butter over medium heat until the onions are soft and translucent. 
3. Combine with flour, salt, pepper and thyme. Start to stir in the flour 1 tablespoon at a time. One combined stir in salt, pepper, and thyme
4. Stir in broth, water, and soy sauce. Add the broth, water, and soy sauce. Mix well so that there are no clumps of flour. Add bay-leaf and bring to a boil.
5. Add rice and chicken.  Stir in your rice and chicken. Cover and decrease heat to low or medium low. Allow to simmer for 15-20 minutes or until the rice is no longer crunchy.  Remove and toss the bay-leaf. Remove from heat.
6. Enjoy!