Crock Pot Chicken and Rice Soup

Ingredients

• 3 chicken breasts, trimmed of fat and cut in half
• 1 cup brown rice
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 3 carrots, chopped
• 3 celery stalks, chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 3 tsp salt
• pepper to taste
• 2 tsp parsley
• 1 tsp thyme
• 1/2 tsp rosemary
• 1/2 tsp sage
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 tbsp butter, optional
• 9 cups chicken broth

Directions

1. Place all ingredients in order in a slow cooker, except rice.
2. Cook on low for 4 hours. The rice absorbs the liquid and gets white and puffy. If you prefer the brown rice to maintain a more firm shape and texture, add it after 2 hours of cooking.
3. Thirty minutes before serving, remove the chicken from Crock Pot and shred or cut into cubes.
4. Return chicken to the slow cooker, cook for thirty more minutes, and serve.