SKINNY crockpot tomato basil parmesan soup {with loads of veggies snuck in}

This weekend we had a few of those days where I just COULDN'T get warm! Our Indian Summer here in Colorado is at it's very end and we officially had our 1st snow.

I get into a TOTALLY cozy & romantic mood whenever it snows. It's so beautiful and quiet. Everything just sparkles, doesn't it??

When I got up in the morning, I lit candles all throughout the house and played the Andrea Bocelli channel on Pandora.

I couldn't wait to light the fireplace and sit with a book reading all day. Oh wait, I have kids.

...oh well...how 'bout soup??

I had a recipe I'd been wanting to try for awhile but needed a cold day for it. But more than that, I didn't especially want a soup with so much cream in it. We've really turned around our eating habits in the past year or so...and putting a bunch of cream in quite honestly just turned me off.

So I completely re-vamped this recipe and made it my own, adding Greek Yogurt and a TON of veggies to make it a bit healthier!

These are a few vegetables I had on hand. I also used a bunch of broccoli.

What kind of blender do you have...do you love it? Goodness how we love ours, makes fantastic smoothies!

{and how funny is it that there's a counter on it that shows how many times we've used it}

Being a chilly morning, we just kinda hung out. Lots of G.I. Joe and Transformer battles. What is it about boys being such warriors at heart??

Anyway, back to our yummy soup.

I had dumped 2 cans of diced tomatoes and 3 cups chicken stock into my crockpot already, as I turned it on LOW.

After the vegetables were blended up, I poured that in as well.

Now for the spices! ...bay leaf not shown.

2 cups parmesan cheese

Set on LOW for 4+ hours {I had mine go for about 8 or so since I made it in the morning}

Do you see how bundled up I am inside my own home?? Everyone else was fine, why was I so cold?? You can't see it but I'm wearing wool socks and boots too.

30 minutes or so prior to serving, make a roux. Do you know what that is? It's basically just a an intimidating French way of saying, thickening agent.

I used whole wheat flour so mine may look a tad different than yours.

Melt butter over low heat in a skillet and add flour. Stir constantly with a whisk for 5-7 minutes. Slowly stir in 1 cup hot soup. Add another 3 cups and stir until smooth.

Add all back into the slow cooker. Stir. Add additional basil and oregano if needed.

That's it! We served it with sourdough bread, but ohhhh wouldn't it be fantastic in a bread bowl???

Next time, for sure.

As for the yumminess factor...?

Laith says Thumbs Up!

{recipe}

. ingredients .

{into blender}

. 2 stalks celery

. 1 cup carrots {I used baby carrots since I had them on hand}

. 1 onion

. ½ good sized zucchini

. 1 ½ cup greek yogurt

{into crockpot}

. 2 {14 oz} cans diced tomatoes, with juice

. 1 ½  teaspoons Italian seasoning

. 2 Tablespoons dried basil

. 1 bay leaf

. 3 cups chicken broth

. 2 cups Parmesan cheese

. ¾ cup dry white wine {optional, but it added great flavor}

{roux}

. ½ cup flour

. ½ cup butter

. 1 ½ teaspoon salt

. ½ teaspoon black pepper

. directions .

{step 1} add celery, carrots, zucchini, onion, greek yogurt {& if needed, a little of chicken stock to blend easily} into blender

{step 2} pour chicken broth, dry white wine, tomatoes, oregano, basil, and bay leaf to a large slow cooker.

{step 3} pour blended veggies into crockpot, then add parmesan cheese. Stir.

{step 4} cover and cook on LOW for 4-8 hours, until flavors are blended.

{step 5} about 30 minutes before serving prepare a roux. Melt butter over low heat in a skillet and add flour. Stir constantly with a whisk for 5-7 minutes. Slowly stir in 1 cup hot soup. Add another 3 cups and stir until smooth. Add all back into the slow cooker. Add additional basil and oregano if needed.

{step 6} cover and cook on LOW for another 30 minutes or so until ready to serve & enjoy!