#2,703 Cream of Tomato Chicken Orzo Soup.

I know how lame this sounds.

I know.

But basically my favorite place to eat in NYC is always Hale and Hearty, the chain of soup restaurants, because soup is my favorite food and I can think of nothing better than a place with a million different kinds to try every day.

Every time we’re in New York I eat there at least twice and I always go back to my old Italianish favorite: cream of tomato with chicken and orzo. I got a hankering for it today and decided to try and make it on my own… And I’ll be dadgum if I didn’t hit it exactly! It tasted just EXACTLY like it does in the restaurant. I’ll walk you through it so you can try it for yourself.

Ingredients:

1 diced onion
(4) cloves FRESH minced garlic
1 c. finely diced carrots
1 stick of butter

rotisserie chicken (shredded)
(3) 28 oz. cans of crushed tomatoes
(1) 28 oz. can of tomato puree
(2) 32 oz. boxes of chicken stock
1  1/2 c. orzo
1  1/4 c. heavy whipping cream
3 pieces of Laughing Cow Creamy Swiss cheese
2 T. fresh chopped basil
1 tsp. sugar
salt & pepper (to taste)
dash of cayenne pepper

Sautée the veggies in butter over medium heat in an XL stock pot.
Add tomatoes, chicken, and chicken stock, bring to a boil then add orzo, reduce heat to low.
Season to taste and add basil. Let simmer on low for 20 minutes.
Slowly incorporate cream and cheese while stirring, about 15 minutes before serving.

It’s so easy. AND SO GOOD. And makes about 16 servings, so there’s plenty left to freeze—though I’m not sure how that orzo will hold up after freezing.