I first made this soup on a gray, drizzly afternoon when my family was feeling under the weather and needed more than just ordinary comfort food. I wanted to create something that felt like a warm, loving embrace in a bowl. I adapted the famous “Marry Me Chicken” flavors for my slow cooker, hoping to capture its creamy, sun-dried tomato magic in soup form. As it simmered all day, my kitchen filled with the most incredible aroma—garlicky, herby, and rich with the promise of creamy broth. When we finally gathered to eat, the first spoonful brought unanimous, contented silence followed by, “This is the best soup you’ve ever made.” It was the culinary equivalent of a hug, and I knew it was a forever recipe.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
You are going to love this recipe because it takes all the decadent, irresistible flavor of the viral Marry Me Chicken dish and transforms it into the coziest, most hands-off soup imaginable. It’s the perfect marriage (pun intended!) of convenience and luxury. Your crockpot does almost all the work, slowly coaxing incredible depth from simple ingredients, while you get to enjoy the intoxicating smell all day long. It results in a creamy, velvety broth packed with tender chicken, sweet sun-dried tomatoes, and savory herbs that is guaranteed to impress anyone who tastes it. It’s a bowl of pure, comforting love.
Ingredients
- 1.5 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 cup sun-dried tomatoes (packed in oil, drained and roughly chopped), plus 2 tablespoons of the oil
- 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)
- 1 cup heavy cream
- ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for serving
- 2 cups fresh spinach, roughly chopped
- Salt and black pepper to taste
- Fresh basil or parsley, for garnish
A few crucial notes on these ingredients. First, the sun-dried tomatoes packed in oil are non-negotiable. Their concentrated sweetness and the flavorful oil they come in are the soul of this soup. The oil becomes part of the cooking fat, carrying that incredible flavor throughout. Don’t use the dry-packed kind; they won’t deliver the same rich result. For the cream, heavy cream is essential for stability. Lower-fat milk or half-and-half can curdle during the long cook time or when the Parmesan is added. And please, for the cheese, use real grated Parmesan from a block, not the shelf-stable powdered kind. It melts smoothly and adds a salty, nutty depth that completes the entire dish.(See the next page below to continue…)