Budget Low Carb: A Chicken in Every Pot

Susie T. Gibbs September 2, 2013 Budget Low Carb Cooking, CarbSmart Magazine, Menu Planning Leave a comment 1,171 Views

Photo by Edgar Castrejon on Unsplash

A Low-Carb Chicken in Every Pot

We’re at the height of cold and flu season. Chances are you’ve just spent the holidays with relatives sporting the latest in sniffles and runny noses! And now, not only do you want to ring in the New Year with a healthy eating plan and shave away holiday bloat, but you have to prepare for a possible attack from cold and flu viruses.

Instead of the plethora of salads and “light” fare in every magazine on the rack, we propose a chicken in every pot. Why not swap the cardboard frozen diet dinners for a hearty bowl of bone broth filled to the brim with your favorite selections of meats and veggies? Use the leftover holiday turkey carcass or leftover carcasses from baked and rotisserie chicken to make a “nearly free” and healthy alternative to tasteless boxed broth.

CarbSmart’s Budget Low Carb is pleased to bring you one soup–three ways. Join us in learning how to make bone broth soup, a natural gelatin-filled, liquid elixir that’s darn close to the cure for the common cold as reported by the New York Times, no less. Morph it to make two additional soups: Quick Faux Pho made with gorgeous white meat and shirataki noodles, topped with fresh herbs, slivered onions and bean sprouts; and Italian Chicken Vegetable soup jam-packed with fresh veggies and home-style Italian flavor.

By the way, do you know why we add a piece of kombu seaweed and apple cider vinegar to the bone broth? Kombu is a source of naturally occurring glutamates that enhance savory flavor or umami. It’s also a great source, along with sea salt, of naturally occurring iodine, an element many holistic practitioners believe we get too little of in western society. Unfiltered apple cider vinegar like Bragg’s help leach vital vitamins and minerals from the bones and into the soup. The result? A tasty and nutritious bowl of possible cold and flu protection!

Low-Carb Chicken Bone Broth Recipe by Susie T. Gibbs

Recipe (3 quarts): $3.48
Cost Per Serving (1 cup): $0.29
Serving Size: 12 Yield: 3 Quarts
Preparation Time: 10 Minutes
Start To Finish: 8-24 Hours

Rich bone broth soup forms the base for many soup recipes, or enjoy as a rich cup all by itself.

Low-Carb Chicken Bone Broth Recipe by Susie T. Gibbs.

Low-Carb Quick Faux Pho Recipe by Susie T. Gibbs

Recipe (4 servings): $7.32
Cost Per Serving: $1.83
Serving Size: ¼ Recipe Yield: 4 Servings
Preparation Time: 15 Minutes
Start to Finish: 45 Minutes

Quick Faux Pho tastes like a bowl of freshness, especially in winter during cold-flu season. The optional toppings are partly what elevate this hearty bowl of comfort.

Low-Carb Quick Faux Pho Recipe by Susie T. Gibbs.

Low-Carb Italian Chicken Vegetable Soup Recipe

Recipe (8 servings): $9.92
Cost Per Serving: $1.24
Serving Size: ⅛ Recipe Yield: 8 Servings
Preparation Time: 20 Minutes
Start to Finish: 60 Minutes

This hearty soup fills you up with every bowl! Even the kids will love it.

Top 10 Tips to Quickly Spring Clean Your Low-Carb Meal Plans

Spring is a magical season. It feels fresh and new and like rebirth. Spring is filled with possibilities and motivation and a sense of anticipation. In Texas, spring is just a glorious three-day precursor to a miserable nine month extravaganza inside the humid oven we Texans like to lovingly call the Texas Gulf Coast. Join Susie T. Gibbs as she shares her top 10 tips for keeping your Spring meals low carb, light, and satisfying!