Sausage Low Carb Italian Soup

There's something really comforting about curling up on a freezing winter day with a hot bowl of steamy soup. So, I set out to create a soup that my entire family will love, especially when the temperature dips in the Northeast.

This is my husband’s favorite soup right here! You know what else is amazing?! My kids ate it too! That is a winner for me, big-time!

It's December. Winter isn't coming—it's here. So this is when I start to make my salads into soups! I think of all of my soups that are loaded with vitamins, minerals and packed full of nutrients as “warm” salads. If you think about it - they kind of are!

I wanted a chicken sausage soup that was going to have unique flavor, and you better believe I found a way to add that uniqueness! Can you guess what it is? Cinnamon! Who would have thought?!

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 Tbsp. garlic oil

• 2 lb. chicken sweet and spicy sausage, casings removed

• 2 tsp kosher salt

• 1/2 tsp black pepper

• 1 (15 ounce can) diced tomatoes

• 3 medium red, yellow and orange peppers, diced

• 5 medium carrots, cut into quarters

• 1 medium Poblano pepper, diced

• 1 tsp dried basil

• 1 tsp dried oregano

• 2 tsp dried thyme

• 2 tsp rosemary

• 2-3 T chili powder

• 2 tsp ground cumin

• 1 tsp ground cinnamon

• 8 cups chicken stock

• 4 cups baby spinach

• Cheddar Jack cheese, shredded

Directions:

1. Saute and heat garlic oil . Add sausage and cook, stirring occasionally, until the sausage is no longer pink inside, approximately 5 minutes. As the sausage cooks, break it into small pieces with a wooden spoon.

2. Add diced carrots, and cook until almost done 4 mins approximately.

3. Add the red and Poblano pepper, basil, oregano, thyme, rosemary, chili powder, cumin, salt, pepper, and cinnamon to the pot and saute until fragrant

4. Add the chicken stock and stir to combine.

5. Simmer on low for 10-12 minutes - not too long so peppers and carrots aren’t mushy - watch this! Add the spinach. Stir until it wilts (or even use frozen chopped spinach to cool the soup off a little if you’d like to eat it right away)

6. Serve topped with shredded Cheddar Jack cheese (if desired) and some additional diced Poblano pepper, if desired. Enjoy!