Hi, Creamy Pesto Chicken Soup. I know we just met, but I think I love you. Hello! How has your week been? Mine has been filled with a lot of quality time at home with my youngest because he had a fever for most of the week. He is OK now, but this afternoon my husband started coming down with it. Nothing cures what ails you like soup, right? At first I thought about making Lemon Chicken Soup, which is a family favorite, but then I remembered that I am a food blogger and need new recipes.
I’m so glad I came up with this one because it is seriously my new favorite soup. It’s creamy, flavorful, and loaded with texture. I think you’ll love it too, but I should encourage you NOT to get seconds. This tasty soup is hearty and filling. I refilled my bowl, and now I’m almost too stuffed to type! I hope you can learn from my glutenous mistake.
Print
Creamy Pesto Chicken Soup
You will love this flavorful, comforting soup!
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 4 1x
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp. olive oil
- 1/2 sweet onion diced
- 1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into bite-sized pieces
- pinch kosher salt
- 2 tbsp. flour
- 3 tbsp. pesto
- 2 c. chicken broth
- 1 c. bite-sized pasta
- 14 oz. quartered artichoke hearts drained and roughly chopped
- 4–6 oz. baby spinach leaves
- 1 1/2 c. milk
- 1 c. shredded Italian blend cheese
Instructions
- Heat olive oil in a dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onion and chicken, and sprinkle with a pinch of salt. Saute until chicken is mostly cooked on the outside, about 7 minutes.
- Stir in flour to coat chicken, and then stir in pesto. Add chicken broth about ½ c. at a time, stirring well until broth mixture is smooth before adding more. Add ½ c. water, and bring to a simmer.
- Stir in pasta and artichoke hearts, and bring to a low boil. Cook for the amount of time recommended on the pasta package. Two minutes before pasta is done, stir in spinach leaves.
- Add milk, and return to a simmer. Reduce heat to medium-low, and stir in cheese. Continue stirring until cheese is completely melted and incorporated and soup is heated through.
- Prep Time: 5
- Cook Time: 25
- Category: Main, Dinner, Poultry, Soups
- Cuisine: American
Angie S says
We LOVED this!!! I added it to a group Pinterest board with the following to describe any changes that were made:
Creamy Pesto Chicken Soup – The Weary Chef
This was DELICIOUS!!! Made on 3/22/14.
I did add a large clove of garlic, and a diced red pepper that needed to be used to add some color. We needed to add another cup of water (not listed in the ingredients, but it is in the directions) to keep the noodles covered. We used Cavatappi noodles. I served with a little crushed red pepper on top. SO GOOD! Comfort food in a bowl!
★★★★★
Andi says
Thank you, Angie! I’m so glad to hear you liked it! The way I have learned to write recipes is to leave out water in the ingredient list since it’s always available and not really an ingredient, but I’m sorry if that made it confusing! Enjoy the rest of your weekend :)
Beth says
Can you substitute coconut milk for milk?
Andi says
Sorry for not getting back to you sooner, Beth. I think the coconut milk would change the flavor quite a bit. If I wanted to use coconut milk, I might use about 2 tsp. of green curry paste instead of pesto. Let me know how it goes if you adapt the recipe. Thanks so much for your visit!
Donna says
Tried to print recipe since it looks so yummy. All that printed was the word ingredients and no list of ingredients and instructions with no instructions. Anyone else have a problem?
Andi says
I’m sorry about that, Donna, but thank you for letting me know. This has happened to me on a couple recipes before, and I have to go in and update the post to fix it. I’ll contact the developer who makes this recipe software again. Thanks again for telling me so I could get it fixed! You should be able to print now, and I hope you like the soup :)
Chelsea @chelseasmessyapron says
I love everything about this soup! Chicken pesto is the best. Awesome recipe Andi!
★★★★★
Andi says
Thank you, Chelsea! I can’t wait to make this one again. :)
Jocelyn McGaffic says
What a great recipe! I would love to try this, however, do you think fresh artichoke would work? I recently received some through my veggie co-op and don’t know what to do with them!!
★★★★★
Andi says
Hi, Jocelyn! I’m sure fresh artichoke would work great, but honestly I haven’t really worked with them because I’m intimidated! I’m not sure if you would need to cook them first or if they could just cook in the broth. Sorry I’m not more help, but I hope your soup turns out well :) Thanks so much for your visit.
Julie @ This Gal Cooks says
Ok, I am definitely making this one. In fact, I am emailing it to myself so I have the recipe right there. It may get lost on Pinterest. But I pinned it anyways. And sharing on social media! :)
Andi says
If you like pesto then I think you will love this soup, Julie! Thanks so much for your comment. I hope you feel better and have a good week!
Debra says
Thanks for a dinner idea this week! Love this! (Glad your son is better.)
★★★★
Andi says
You are welcome! I hope you love this soup as much as we did :)
Laura @ Lauras Baking Talent says
I love the idea of using artichoke hearts in this soup. Hope your family feels better. Hate sickness in the house.
Andi says
I think we’re all just about over it today. Thanks for the well wishes, Laura!
Kelly says
Aaw, sorry to hear your lil guy got sick but glad that he is feeling better now. Soup will definitely help your husband start feeling better soon and all those veggies in here are sure to help boost the immune system too :) I love that you added pesto and cheese in here – it looks so creamy and flavorful!
Andi says
Thank you, Kelly! I think the soup must have worked because everyone is pretty much better now :)