I’ve always loved having a big bowl of steaming, hearty soup on a cold day, but I used to stick to the canned versions. I used to think that making homemade soup was a complicated and laborious process that required a “real chef.” When I got my first crockpot as a wedding gift, though, I realized that I had been going about it all wrong. 
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Since I made my very first homemade crockpot soup, I’ve never gone back. Most canned soups have crazy amounts of sodium and preservatives that you’d probably rather avoid, and not enough veggies to fill you (or at least me!) up. Plus, homemade soup is delicious, filling, and you can cram a ton of veggies in to make it a complete meal! All of my soups are fairly easy to prepare (including the two crockpot versions I’ve already shared- my Chicken “Noodle” Vegetable Soup and my Quick & Healthy Turkey Vegetable Soup), but today I have one more for you. This one has a secret ingredient that you probably don’t associate with soup, but it’s a super easy way to add a kick of flavor without a handful of extra ingredients.
But first … I want to convince you to go get yourself a crockpot! It’s an easy trick to creating healthy and delicious meals with minimal effort. Here are a few reasons that you absolutely “need” one:
- It’s so quick and easy: If you have just 10 minutes in the morning, you can throw these ingredients in the crockpot and forget it all day. When you get back from work or walk in from your workout, and you’re hungry enough to eat anything in sight, you can have dinner on the table for the entire family in 5 minutes. See? The lazy chef’s key to homemade.
- It makes many servings: My full crockpot gives me about 5 huge servings of soup. Kevin and I each eat one, and then we have leftovers to save for later in the week, or to freeze – I always have a few options in my freezer in single-serve containers ready to defrost for a quick meal (without the can!).
- It’s adaptable: This recipe should be considered a loose guideline … follow the basic structure, but then throw in whatever you have on hand, and make as many substitutions as you want.
It’s pretty hard to mess up a crockpot soup (although I have made one absolutely disgusting version involving rehydrated mushrooms, eggplant, and red wine … sounds OK, tasted horrendous). - It makes the house smell delicious: I love walking in the house and smelling homemade cooking (without having to do anything!)
- It’s an easy way to cram in extra vegetables: Toss in whatever vegetables you have on hand; almost anything tastes good in soup. If you have a bunch of produce that’s on its last leg or feel like you need an extra boost of antioxidants, a veggie-filled soup is your friend!
- It’s not as expensive as you think: Just like any kitchen appliance, you can definitely get some fancy crockpots. But all you really need is a timer and a large basin (I would go for at least 8 cups). You can find some great ones for under $50!
Warm-Me-Up Chicken Quinoa Soup
Serves 5
For a vegetarian option, feel free to remove the chicken and add a bit more quinoa or a can of beans. (You’ll also need to substitute vegetable stock for the chicken broth).
Ingredients 
- 4 stalks of celery, diced
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 2 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1 small zucchini, chopped into bite-sized pieces
- 1 small squash, chopped into bite-sized pieces
- 1 small tomato, chopped into bite-sized pieces
- 1/2 cup frozen mixed vegetables (you’ll want at least 3 cups of vegetables between the squash, zucchini, tomato, and frozen veggies, but feel free to change quantities based on what you have on hand!)
- 3 cups (packed) of chopped kale
- 1/2 cup uncooked quinoa, rinsed
- 2 fairly large chicken breasts (mine were 1.1 pounds total after trimming)
- 1 Tbsp Italian seasoning
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp pepper
- 4 cups reduced sodium, organic chicken broth
- 1 cup Bloody Mary mix (there’s that secret ingredient! However, feel free to use regular tomato sauce without added sugar, and double the Italian seasoning)
Instructions
- Dice your celery and onion, and place in the bottom of crockpot. (It probably makes no difference at all, but I like to place the onions and celery on the bottom, closer to the heat source, to make sure they get soft!)
- Add in garlic and all other veggies, besides kale.
- Rinse quinoa thoroughly (to avoid saponins that may cause stomach upset) and place in crockpot.
- Lay trimmed chicken breasts on top of vegetables, and sprinkle with Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper.
- Pour broth and Bloody Mary mix on top of chicken.
- Top entire mixture with kale, and cover.
- Cook on high for 2 hours, then stir once to incorporate kale and turn crockpot to low for 5 hours. (If you won’t be home to switch it over, you can just cook the whole thing on low for 8 hours).
- Remove chicken breasts and shred completely with two forks. The chicken should be incredibly tender and shred very easily.
- Return shredded chicken to pot and stir soup to combine.
- Serve and enjoy! I highly recommend topping with avocado, nutritional yeast, shredded cheese, salsa or sriracha, tortilla chips, and/ or Greek yogurt!
Because of the Bloody Mary Mix, I’m going to go ahead and call this a “Strange But Good” creation. I mean really, who puts Bloody Mary Mix in a soup anyway? But I bought it several months ago to include in a recipe I had found for pumpkin soup (it was this one, which I never ended up making but still want to!) … and then on a whim I decided to include it. I’m glad I did! 
If made according to these instructions, each serving will have 266 calories, 5g fat, 27g carbs, and 30g protein.
So tell me in the comments … Do you make homemade soups? Do you call it a crockpot or slow cooker? Do you have one yet? What’s your favorite kind of soup?
Writing the ingredients for this down on my grocery list right now. I’ll let you know when I make it, and what my people say, although you and I can probably guess already who will like it and who will starve 😉
Yay! Tell them that even Uncle Kevin loved it … he has taste buds just like a kid, and he still really enjoyed this! (OK, he had some tortilla chip crumbles + avocado + shredded cheese on it, but I made him taste it first and he still liked it!). So, let them load up the toppings and hopefully it’ll work. As for Brian … I have no idea :). But at least you and Paigey will have a good meal!
Hello!
I’m Diane from your SITS Tribe!
This recipe looks and sounds delicious! I’m just getting used to using quinoa in my meals, and I have yet to be disappointed! I’ll have to add this to my shopping list.
Thanks for stopping by, Diane! I hope you try and enjoy this recipe! Check out my comment to Kim (above yours) which has links to a bunch of my other quinoa recipes, as well!
Mmmm this sounds very good and full of stuff. Comfort food for sure!
That’s how I like my soups – full of stuff!! If I get a really brothy soup, it just doesn’t fill me up. Hope you try it!
This looks awesome!! I love crockpot recipes and soup ones are my go-to in the cold months. Plus, I’m looking for some good quinoa recipes to try!!
I hope you do try it, Kim! Let me know how you like it! If you need more quinoa recipes, try my Savory Orange-Soy Quinoa, my Kale Lettuce Wraps, my Turkey Quinoa Stuffed Peppers, or my Summer Seafood, Quinoa, and Vegetables dish! Those should all be links, but just find the search bar on the right side of the blog if the links don’t work for some reason!
Thanks for all the links – I will definitely check these out, too!!
Anytime, Kim!
I love using my crock pot! I actually have never used it to make soup though! The problem I am having is that my husband refuses to believe that soup can be a meal. (He would eat it as an appetizer or with something else for lunch, but not as his dinner). I am so intrigued by soups like this because I think it would definitely make a great dinner! I just asked him “would you eat a soup with bloody mary mix?” and he said “eh that could be good”…so maybe I am getting somewhere! I hope to try this over the long weekend- thanks for sharing!
You must try it for soup, Lisa!! Kevin wouldn’t usually think to eat soup as a main meal, but if it’s a heartier soup like this one (and he is “allowed” to add chips and avocado and cheese!) he actually really enjoys it and feels full at the end. Let me know if you end up trying it!
Wow- Bloody mary drink mix in the soup- I have never heard of that before, that is awesome!
I’ve never been a big fan of soups, purely because it lacked any substance- something which this clearly isn’t 🙂 I used to think slow cookers/crockpots were different things- here they call it the former!
I think some people call it a slow cooker here, too. I just googled the difference and here’s the first thing that came up (very scientific approach, I know): http://cookinfanatic.wordpress.com/2009/10/19/crock-pots-vs-slow-cookers-yep-theres-a-difference/
OK, I don’t know if I am buying that difference between Crock-Pot and Slow-Cooker. I worked retail 30 or so years ago, and at that time ‘Crock-Pot’ was primarily was a brand that had both bottom-only and fully enclosed systems. At that point ‘crock pot’ had yet to become a generic term, so others had to use ‘slow cooker’ and try to differentiate in some way.
But who really knows … I know some enclosed crock-pots with heating only on the bottom as well. Really not worth the stress 🙂
I agree with you on the “not worth the stress,” which is why I even posted that random article. I kind of like your explanation better :). Oh well … I’m going to continue to call it a crockpot until someone can convincingly tell me otherwise!
Great recipe and I really think that everyone should have one!
Crock-Pots for sure! Ours was a bridal shower gift … so I would say we’ve gotten the full value out of it by now! The pot is dishwasher and refrigerator safe, so we can store leftovers and then wash the whole thing out!
We don’t do as much in it as we used to, as one side effect is that things can ‘mush up’ and end up with a monotonic flavor profile. But we still tend to do about a meal a week with it all winter long.
As a side note, growing up we had one of the original ones – basically a hotplate with a ceramic pot on the top. It was incredibly inefficient compared to new ones.
Love that! I can’t wait to see which of our wedding gifts really stand the test of time and which will get weeded out over the years. I think the crockpot is pretty durable, though! Here’s a random fact – Kevin and I have NEVER used our dishwasher. We hand wash all of our dishes, even if we have guests. His family did it growing up and he convinced me to try it for a month – and we’ve never gone back! No more “ugh I really don’t want to empty the dishwasher” … it all gets done immediately. Very strange, I know!
That is funny – we have a fairly strict set of guidelines around what does and does not go into the dishwasher, and so during the day the counters, tables and sink remain mostly empty as we put everything in the dishwasher. And after dinner it makes clean-up quick, and since I do most of the cooking the boys will hand-wash the remaining dishes that can’t go into the dishwasher.
The next morning I unload the dishwasher as part of my 4AM routine … I am incredibly linear and regimented, so I never find it a hassle, it is just part of my routine (and as Lisa says, don’t get in my way! if she is up she just sits enjoying coffee as I o my thing 🙂
Kevin unloads our drying rack each morning, too! I’m certainly not complaining :).
Recipe looks good. We are a gluten, wheat and grain free home however we do enjoy bone broth home made soups on a very regular basis all winter long. So tasty and healthy.
Thanks for sharing, Wendy! What made you decide to go gluten, wheat, and grain free? Do you eat quinoa (which is technically gluten, wheat, and grain free since it is actually a seed?). Glad you enjoy your soups!
Well we might be related. I cook a lot of different things in the crockpot, especially soup
Hi, Keith! Fun to have another “Lyons” around here!
Oh this looks delicious and would be perfect to pair with my quinoa I just received! I have been looking for delicious new recipes and this is perfect with this cold weather that doesn’t seem to want to go away!
Sorry you’re still having such cold weather, Sara! We’ve had some really cold (for Dallas) weeks and an ice storm, and then it got hot (70s!) but now our weather is pretty much perfect for running – 40s and 50s! Hope you enjoy the soup and stay warm :).
I love the idea of using a drink mix in soup! Bloodys are so much fun to make… I’d have to garnish my soup appropriately. 😉
OK … I have to admit I don’t actually like Bloody Marys. I love tomatoes (raw, roasted, sauce, ketchup, you name it) but tomato juice plain or in a drink just doesn’t do it for me. It’s like if I’m drinking something, it *should* be sweet, and tomatoes just don’t fit in with the concept of juice. Same with gazpacho … if you heat it up, I like it, but soup *should* be hot. And … I think I’m officially losing it ;).
Confession: I don’t like Bloodys either. I just like to make them (I used to be a bartender). Gazpacho is ok because I liken it to salsa.
This looks amazing! Crock-pots are the ultimate life-hack. I wish I could throw my life into the crock-pot and then just come back at the end of the day and have it all figured out haha
Haha, that does sound pretty amazing :). But all the turmoil and stress of ‘figuring your life out’ keeps it interesting, right? :). You’re doing amazing!
Ooooh! Bloody Mary mix??? How interesting! How in the world did you decide to put that in there? Don’t you love when experiments turn into great recipes? This soup looks great! I really do need to invest in a crockpot. I think it would revolutionize my life just like my blender did!
I actually found the idea in a recipe for a pumpkin soup that I still want to make … I’ve gone back to edit the post since you read it and have linked to the recipe there. YES – get yourself a crockpot!!