CrockPot Chicken Soup with Garbanzos and Oregano

I've been feeling just a little under the weather lately, so when it came time to think about cooking something over the weekend, soup sounded better than anything else. I didn't want to go to the store, I had chicken in the freezer, and I had some herbs left in the garden that had survived a few nights of frost.

I'd already made Thai Chicken Soup and Chicken Barley Soup recently, so I was wondering what else I could come up with that would be a bit unique. If you pay attention around here, you realize I like making up a recipe of my own a lot more than finding someone else's recipe. So this is a recipe that I came up with just by adding things into the crockpot, cooking it all day, and tasting it at the end. I love oregano and parsley together, and I thought this tasted great. It didn't completely cure my cold, but I'm doing a little better!

Oregano is used in Greek cuisine, often combined with garlic and lemon. There are two distinct types, with Greek Oregano being best used fresh, while Mexican Oregano is often preferred in the dry form. Which kind you prefer might depend on which part of the world your ancestors came from, but it's generally agreed that the Mexican oregano has a slightly stronger flavor. If you want to think of the flavor difference between the two types, think of Greek oregano as the predominant flavor in pizza sauce, while Mexican oregano is commonly used in chile powder. Both types of oregano are sometimes called Wild Marjoram, and actually oregano should be thought of as a family of plants, since there are many varieties.

In my garden I have Greek Oregano, and I used the fresh leaves in this soup, but if you don't have access to fresh oregano, you could most definitely make this with dried oregano. Do splurge on a bit of fresh parsley to add at the end, even if you just have to buy a bunch of parsley from the grocery store. If you don't have a crockpot, you can easily simmer this slowly on the stove for about an hour.

Chicken Soup with Garbanzos and Oregano
(8 servings, recipe created by Kalyn)

Ingredients:
3 cups diced, cooked chicken
1 can (15.5 oz.) garbanzo beans
1 onion, diced small
1 can diced tomatoes with juice (I like Muir Glen Fire Roasted organic tomatoes)
1 tsp. minced garlic (or use garlic puree from a jar)
1 tsp. Greek Seasoning (I like Penzeys or Cavenders brand, see note)
1 tsp. vegetable soup base (I like Better than Bouillon brand, but there are a lot of good ones)
2 T finely chopped fresh oregano
6-8 cups chicken stock, homemade or canned (crockpot works best when it's nearly full so use as much stock as needed)
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley

Instructions:

Rinse garbanzo beans very well in colander, until no more foam appears. Put all ingredients except parsley into crockpot slow cooker, cover, and cook on low 8-10 hours. Add parsley and cook a few more minutes. Serve hot.

Note: Penzeys Greek Seasoning contains salt, oregano, garlic, lemon peel, black pepper, and marjoram. If you don't have Greek Seasoning, use a combination of whichever of those you have.

Printer Friendly Recipe

This is my entry for Weekend Herb Blogging #58, the blogging event where people from all around the world share recipes and write about interesting herbs, plants, veggies, and flowers. This week the host is Meeta of What's For Lunch Honey? To enter, send the e-mail with the permalink of your post to blogmeeta AT gmail DOT com. Be sure to include a link to What's For Lunch Honey and the words Weekend Herb Blogging somewhere in your post.