Chicken and Rice Soup

 This is so easy to throw together, you don't even need to chop an onion. Add as much chicken as you like. I usually add whatever I have leftover in the fridge.

2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
2 carrots, peeled and thinly sliced
2 sticks of celery, thinly sliced
4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
8 cups chicken broth
2 tsp kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
½ cup (115 g) crème fraîche or greek yogurt
2 Tbsp lemon juice
⅓ cup jasmine rice or tiny pasta
Rotisserie chicken, shredded
⅓ cup chopped dill
Parmesan cheese, optional

1. Heat the olive oil in a medium saucepan on medium-high heat. Add the carrots and celery and cook until slightly softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds more.

2. Add the broth, salt, and black pepper and bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer for 15 minutes, until the vegetables have softened. 

3. Transfer 400g of the soup to a blender, add the crème fraîche and lemon juice and blitz until smooth and set aside. 

4. Return the saucepan to medium-high heat, add the rice (or pasta) and shredded chicken. Cook for 10-15 minutes until the rice is cooked. 

5. Add the blitzed soup back into the saucepan along with the dill and stir. Taste for seasoning.

6. Serve with a good grind of black pepper and grated Parmesan.