Christmas Confetti Soup
Christmas confetti soup makes a perfect dish fit for any holiday menu, either as an appetizer or a main course. A thick and creamy chicken soup is studded with pops of seasonal color from healthy chopped spinach, pops of bright ‘ornament’-like colors from sweet bell peppers, chunks of rotisserie chicken, and finished with star-shaped homemade croutons. It’s like Christmas in a bowl!
I can’t help it, I get into the holidays- all of them.
Any excuse to decorate, to craft, and make all the themed dishes and desserts.
Christmas is my all time favorite though.
There’s an endless array of perfectly crafted holiday appetizers and desserts.
There’s never enough savory options for me though! The menus all just seem to have too much sweet.
Which is why whenever I’m hosting a Christmas party, along with all the finger foods and desserts- I make sure to serve a batch of this classic Christmas soup.
Nestled in a rich, creamy bowl of soup are bright spots of colorful bell peppers, tender pieces of rotisserie chicken, and fresh baby spinach- giving this soup a merry & bright appearance that’s topped of with homemade star shaped croutons.
It’s like serving a Christmas tree in a bowl!
Ingredients Needed
This holiday soup uses easy to find ingredients, many of which you probably already keep on hand.
You’ll need:
- Bell Peppers – I used stoplight peppers- one yellow, orange, and red pepper each for festive pops of color. Be sure to use bell pepper, and not another type.
- Oils – Both olive oil and butter are used in this recipe.
- Flour – Combines with the butter and oil to form a roux.
- Broth – Combines with the flour mixture to finish the roux and form the soup base.
- Cream – For a rich indulgent finish
- Spinach – Fresh baby spinach
- Chicken – leftover, chopped rotisserie chicken
- Spices – A pinch of nutmeg for the soup, and a mixture of garlic and onion powder to seasoned the homemade croutons.
- Bread – Slices of your favorite brand of sandwich bread.
You’ll also need non stick cooking spray.
Once you’ve gathered the necessary ingredients, you’re ready to begin!
How To Make
For ease of instruction, we will divide the directions into two parts: soup and croutons.
The Confetti Soup
Start by setting a large Dutch oven over medium low heat, then add the butter to the pot to melt.
Don’t set the heat over higher heat than medium low to prevent the butter from going from melted to burnt very quickly.
Add the chopped peppers, stirring often until nicely softened- about 3-5 minutes.
Sprinkle the flour out overtop, then stir and continue cooking for 60 seconds to cook off the ‘flour’ taste.
Pour the broth it one cup at a time, stirring after each addition until the mixture’s smooth, until it’s all been added and evenly combined.
Whisk in the cream until evenly incorporated.
Raise the temperature to medium or medium high and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until hot & bubbly and it has thickened some.
Remove the pot from heat then stir in the spinach, chicken, and nutmeg until evenly combined.
Let the soup rest for 2-3 minutes while the spinach wilts.
Star Croutons
While the soup cooks, you’ll want to prepare the croutons so that everything’s ready at the same time.
Start by using a star shaped cookie cutter to cut star shapes out of your slices of bread.
I recommend using either 1/2 or 1″ cookie cutter. I’ve used a 1/4″ before and while they’re adorable, it makes it such a tedious task it’s almost not worth the work.
Once your bread stars are cut out, spread them out on a parchment paper lined baking sheet.
Spray with non stick cooking spray, and then sprinkle them with garlic and onion powder.
Bake at 350 degrees for 6-8 minutes, or until the croutons are golden brown. Watch them carefully though after the 6 minute mark so they don’t burn.
Ladle the warm soup into bowls, top with the croutons and serve.
Storing
Cooled soup can be store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Any extra croutons can be store in a ziplocking bag, separate from the soup.
When ready to enjoy again, heat on a pot on the stove just until heated through.
TIPS & TRICKS
- Don’t want to use non stick cooking spray? Toss the cut out bread stars in a bit of melted butter before baking instead.
- Do not sub frozen spinach for fresh. Even thawed and well drained it will still have too much excess moisture and make the soup thin and runny.
- Croutons can be double or tripled, as desired. Do NOT store leftover croutons and soup together- they will turn to mush.
- Be careful the soup never goes above a simmer because if it reaches a boil it will curdle the cream.
Other Savory Christmas Appetizers
When you’re having a full menu or just setting out a small spread- this festive Christmas confetti soup will always fit right in.
It’s delicious, it’s merry & bright, and it’s quick and easy enough to put even the most harried cook in a good mood.
With a little bit of Christmas in every bowl- this warm holiday soup would even thaw out The Grinch!
Looking for other savory Christmas appetizers?
Try these:
- Christmas Ornament Cheese Balls
- Christmas Tree Pull Apart Bread
- Marinated Cheese
- Pomegranate, Feta, & Chive Pinwheels
If you’ve tried this CHRISTMAS CONFETTI CHICKEN SOUP, or any other recipe on my site, let me know in the comment section how it turned out, we love hearing from our readers! You can also follow along with me on PINTEREST, FACEBOOK, and INSTAGRAM to see more amazing recipes and whatever else we’ve got going on!
Christmas Confetti Chicken Soup
Ingredients
For The Christmas Confetti Soup
- 1/4 cup butter
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 cup chopped sweet bell peppers red, yellow, and orange
- 1/2 cup all purpose flour
- 5 cups chicken broth
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 10 oz bag fresh spinach chopped
- 2-3 cups cooked chicken chopped
- 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
For The Star-Shaped Croutons
- 6 slices sandwich bread your favorite brand
- cooking spray
- onion powder to taste
- garlic powder to taste
Instructions
To Make The Confetti Soup
- Melt the butter and olive oil together in the bottom of a dutch oven, or similar heavy pot, over medium low heat.1/4 cup butter, 2 tbsp olive oil
- Stir in the chopped peppers and saute them, stirring often, just until softened- about 3-5 minutes. Stir in the flour until combined, then continue cooking for another 60 seconds until the flour 'taste' has cooked out.1 cup chopped sweet bell peppers, 1/2 cup all purpose flour
- Add the broth one cup at a time, and stirring between each addition until smooth. Stir in the cream.5 cups chicken broth, 1 cup heavy cream
- Raise the heat to medium and let the soup simmer for 10 minutes- until hot, bubbly, and thickened.
- Remove the pot from heat and add the the spinach, chicken and nutmeg- stirring until evenly combined. Salt and pepper to taste.1 10 oz bag fresh spinach, 2-3 cups cooked chicken, 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
To Make The Star Shaped Croutons
- Use a one inch star shaped cookie cutter to cut out four-five stars from each slice of bread, Discard the excess or save it for stuffing or meatloaf.6 slices sandwich bread
- Spread the croutons out on a parchment paper lined baking sheet and spray with non-stick cooking spray. Lightly sprinkle garlic and onion powder out overtop.cooking spray, onion powder, garlic powder
- Bake at 350 degrees for 6-8 minutes, depending on how golden brown you want them.
- Let the croutons cool completely before using.
- Ladle the warm soup into bowls and serve topped with star croutons.
Notes
- Don't want to use non stick cooking spray? Toss the cut out bread stars in a bit of melted butter before baking instead.
- Do not sub frozen spinach for fresh. Even thawed and well drained it will still have too much excess moisture and make the soup thin and runny.
- Croutons can be double or tripled, as desired. Do NOT store leftover croutons and soup together- they will turn to mush.
- Be careful the soup never goes above a simmer because if it reaches a boil it will curdle the cream.
I love the idea of those star croutons, and the soup sounds tasty too. We’ve got a cold snap here too so were on soup tonight as well – always good! Thanks for sharing with Fiesta Friday.
I made this except with only red pepper. I used a cup of diced yellow onions with a small handful of dried thyme and let that carmelize while roasting sweet yellow corn on a flat top then adding it with the peppers. From there, continue recipe as normal. I use this I my restaurant, with the name Rachelle’s Chicken Confetti Soup! It’s perfect