Chicken and Rice Soup

A little bowl for me, and a jumbo bowl for the man of the house.

Sunday, my inspiration continued and I whipped my first pie from scratch (post to come) and a new homemade favorite; Chicken and Rice Soup. Again, thanks to my friends at Costco, I was able to use rotisserie chicken to make this soup easy to prepare and incredibly hearty. I also had left-over celery, onion and carrots from my Cassoulet recipe from the day before. I was cooking in no time (and spent very little money to do so.)

Recipe:
1 tbsp olive oil
2 cups shredded rotisserie chicken 
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 medium carrots, cut diagonally, into 1/4 inch slices 
3 ribs celery, halved then cut diagonally into 1/4 inch slices
1 tbsp thyme
1 bay leaf
2 qts chicken broth
1 cup water
1 cup brown rice
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
1) In a Dutch oven over medium heat, add olive oil, onion, garlic, carrots, celery, thyme and bay leaf. Cook, stirring occasionally for about 6 minutes, until veggies are softened. 
2) Add in chicken broth and water. Bring to a boil. Add the rice and chicken then season with salt and pepper.
3) Cook on medium-low heat until the rice is tender, about 30 minutes.