Roasted garlic soup with hearty chunks of chicken. This low carb chicken soup recipe makes the perfect winter warm up meal!
I feel as though I have gained a much greater understanding of the lack of personal hygiene in centuries gone by, particularly in the winter months. It has been so chilly here in New England lately, I’ve been tempted to sew myself into some winter-weight long underwear and not take them off until the first signs of spring. Whenever I have to dig myself out of my mountain of warm blankets in the morning, I am struck by how warm the jammies that I am wearing are, and how cold the clothes are that I have to put on for the day. Just imagine in the 17th, 18th, 19th centuries, prior to central heating, how nice that warm layer of woolen long underwear would be, how it would provide a buffer against the chilly undressing and re-dressing in the early morn. Sure, you might be a little stinky come April, but you wouldn’t have had the torture of putting on cold jeans in the early morning hours!
Comforting Low Carb Chicken Soup Recipes
Alas, I am fairly certain that such behaviour would get me committed to the nearest psychological ward. So my defense against the cold weather comes in the form of low carb soup. Hot soup and plenty of it, please! I’ve actually been eating a fair bit of soup for breakfast. Or rather, second breakfast, after I come home from dropping the kids off at school and the house has that extra empty, chilly feel.
I pop something like Chicken Roasted Garlic Soup or Paleo Thai Chicken Zoodle Soup into a pot to heat. Then I pour it into a bowl and settle down at my computer, sipping and slurping my way to warmth. A bowl of soup so infinitely satisfying and warms me right down to my toes. It’s like an internal set of woolen long underwear and it has the added advantages of tasting delicious and not offending the olfactory senses of friends and family.
The idea for this Roasted Garlic Soup Recipe actually came to me while I was very sick over Christmas. Sadly, Santa decided to bring me a case of strep throat for Christmas, and I was trying to battle it through natural means, which meant eating a large amount of raw garlic (talk about offending the olfactory senses of my loved ones!).
Health Benefits of Roasted Garlic Soup
Garlic has plenty of antibiotic properties, but only really in its raw form. Still, the idea of roasted garlic as the base of a low carb chicken soup lodged in my fevered brain and I kept mulling it over for a while. I knew I wanted big, hearty chunks of chicken in the soup as well, preferably thigh meat. I came across a recipe on Epicurious.com for the garlicky, creamy base. I made a few changes that suited me and broiled some boneless, skinless chicken thighs to add to the mix. It made an incredibly satisfying, warming dinner. And a great second breakfast the next day…no long underwear needed.
If you have never roasted garlic before, it’s not difficult at all. If you want to roast an entire head of garlic, Crunchy Creamy Sweet has a post that explains how to roast garlic, and Savory Sweet Life has one that explains how to roast cloves of garlic.
Roasted Garlic Chicken Soup
Ingredients
- 20 cloves garlic, unpeeled
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 2 tbsp butter
- 1 medium onion, thinly sliced
- 12 cloves garlic, peeled
- 1/2 tsp dried thyme
- 4 cups chicken stock
- 1/2 cup whipping cream
- 1 ½ lbs cooked chicken thighs or breasts, cubed
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F and place unpeeled garlic cloves in a shallow baking dish. Add olive oil, salt and pepper and toss to coat.
- Roast until garlic is golden brown, about 35 minutes.
- Cool and squeeze out garlic with fingers into a small bowl.
- In a large saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Add onions and cook until translucent, about 6 minutes.
- Add roasted garlic, additional garlic cloves, and thyme and cook 2 to 3 minutes, until fragrant.
- Add chicken stock and bring to a simmer. Cook 20 minutes.
- Puree using a blender or immersion blender. Stir in whipping cream and cooked chicken and season with salt and pepper.
- Warm through and serve.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer
Please note that I am not a medical or nutritional professional. I am simply recounting and sharing my own experiences on this blog. Nothing I express here should be taken as medical advice and you should consult with your doctor before starting any diet or exercise program. I provide nutritional information for my recipes simply as a courtesy to my readers. It is calculated using MacGourmet software and I remove erythritol from the final carb count and net carb count, as it does not affect my own blood glucose levels. I do my best to be as accurate as possible but you should independently calculate nutritional information on your own before relying on them. I expressly disclaim any and all liability of any kind with respect to any act or omission wholly or in part in reliance on anything contained in this website.
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Thank you, Carolyn!
I saw this recipe one snowy night and had enough for one half of a batch. I even had enough of the CSA garlic I’ve been hoarding all winter. It was heavenly! The aroma of the roasted garlic filled my house and it was delicious just to breathe it in! I definitely had some for second breakfast the next morning.
I just went shopping, and I’m going to make a whole recipe tomorrow.
This time, I may share . . . or maybe not.
Glad you liked it!
I just discovered this after a search for soup de jour! 🙂 I was checking the spelling,turns out either du jour or de jour is correct. Anyway, your blog is just what I need during this cold snap here in the midwest in early December,on top of me being diabetic.My numbers have been creeping up so low carb and gluten free;that’s for me. I’ll be following you from now on,Carolyn. Thank you!
That’s such a funny way to have come to my blog, but glad you found it!
My hubby bought me a blender that also cooks soup – right in the blender pitcher! This will be perfect for that. Instead of roasting the garlic in the oven I’ll peel and cover the cloves with plenty of EVOO and simmer gently on the stove until soft. That will give me a bit of garlic-infused oil to use in dressings as well as a small spoon on top of my soup. Can’t wait to make it!
Wow, that sounds like an interesting kitchen gadget!
This soup looks amazing! Planning to make it today but just one problem.. I don’t have enough Chicken Stock (crazy, I know). Do you think I could make this with 1 cup chicken stock and half beef stock half water, or with 1 cup chicken stock and 3 cups water?
Thanks so much and I really hope you could help me!
YOu can try, but it will have a little less flavour and you may need to add a touch more salt.
Wow! We LOVED this soup! I’ve been sick the last 3 days and have been living off of it. I’m going to make a big batch to freeze for those times I’m too sick to cook, although it’s so easy that it doesn’t take much effort. Seriously one of the most amazing soups I’ve had! Thanks!
I hope you’re feeling better and glad my soup could help!
This soup looks delicious! I’m just wondering if anyone has tried to make it in a croc pot, and if the recipe should be altered in any way if I were to make it this way. Thanks!
This sounds absolutely heavenly! As I was reading, I could smell the roasted garlic….but realized it was probably leftover from roasting 10 heads of garlic yesterday (for a different recipe). Off to the store tomorrow to get more garlic!
Mahalo nui for the great recipe.
Coming back to this delish recipe to add more of a review….
Of course, I had to make it as written and it was indeed heavenly!
Then I did it in the crock pot (sweet Maui onion, raw garlic, butter, thyme & basil) for 3 hours low, then added the roasted garlic, butter + used the immersion blender; adding the chicken & HWC last. Yummo!
Made it a third time sans chicken and used leftover roasted cauliflower (pureed) to thicken the cooked onion/herb/garlic mixture & roasted garlic, topped with a sprinkle of crispy chopped bacon and grated co-jack cheese and it was similar baked potato soup….I thought I was cheating!
Mahalo nui again for such a great recipe AND the inspiration to make two additional hearty soups!
Carol
No reason at all…great idea!
I made this soup yesterday and it tastes amazing!! This will now be my go-to soup any time I am sick or just want soup for that matter!
I was wondering though if this soup would freeze well? I will thinking of making a double or triple batch and keeping some in my freezer. However, since this is the first soup I have ever made I have no idea if I can freeze it.
This looks sooooo yummy! 🙂 I can’t wait to try it. I used the sparkpeople.com recipe calculator on this. It calculates the net carbs per serving as 5.6. Just a friendly fyi. 🙂
Thanks! All systems seem to be a little different, so it can be off by a few here and there.
I made this and it is delicious. I never knew roasted garlic could be soooooo good.
This sounds so good but there is one problem. It has whipping cream and I’m lactose intolerant which means no milk or whipping cream though cream cheese is okay.
What would be a good substitute for the whipping cream?
You could try some full fat coconut milk. Make sure to have it nicely whisked before you even put it in, so it doesn’t clump. Otherwise, you can just skip the cream altogether.
I was trying to decide what to make for dinner tonight with chicken and I think you just helped me decide. Thanks!
We love garlic in our house – I use it in almost everything I make. This looks like a really cozy soup Carolyn – I agree, no long underwear needed 😉
I love garlic! I think I’ll love this soup a lot…..but I rather don’t have a cold so I really taste everything, especially the garlic in here. 🙂 This is certainly a heart and tummy warming dinner. 😉
20 cloves of garlic? You speak my language! I LOVE this!!!!