From Our Kitchen - Sweet Potato & Quinoa Soup

A little while back I posted this recipe on quinoa stuffed bell peppers. The stuffing was great, but the peppers were kind of a flop.  That was the first time I tried quinoa, and I cooked way too much for my recipe, so I had all of this quinoa leftover. I tasted it to see if I could just serve it up as a side, like rice, but it wasn't very flavorful.  In my opinion, it's definitely an ingredient I enjoy, but it needs to be dressed up a little bit.

So I turned to my old ways, and used to to create a spin on one of my favorite soups. (I didn't realize it had been 2 years since posting that recipe. The photos show our old stove in Auburn... so reminiscent!) Sorry, back to the point: quick and simple! All you need is 1-2 diced sweet potatoes,

a can of black beans (drained and rinsed),

cooked quinoa (a cup or so),

shredded chicken (mine was from leftover rotisserie chicken; 1-2 cups),

chicken stock (one carton), and the most important ingredient to make this soup a hit: cilantro! Roughly chop a small handful and through it in right at the end. I promise you won't feel like you are eating salsa. Cilantro is a frequent ingredient in Thai and Indian soups, and it brings a great refreshing flavor to the dish.  You can also season this soup however you'd like with salt and pepper, thyme, or other herbs.

A few tips:  I made this a second time with low-sodium chicken stock and it just wasn't the same. I'm usually all for healthier options, but if you're making a soup that is heavily based on it's broth, the broth itself needs to have good flavor, and unfortunately for our palettes, that means salt.
Also, I finally tried preserving my cilantro by placing it in a cup of water in the fridge with a damp paper towel over top. This made the cilantro last SO much longer! Definitely do this to extend the life of this fresh herb so you can use it in other dishes without rushing.

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