Chicken Provencal "Stoup"

Ingredients

• 2 medium carrots, peeled
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, 2 turns of the pan
• 1 medium zucchini
• 1 small to medium red bell pepper, seeded
• 1 medium yellow skinned onion, peeled and halved
• Salt and pepper
• 1 tablespoon herbes de Provence, available on spice aisle or, 1 teaspoon each dried sage, rosemary and thyme
• 1 1/2 pounds small red skinned potatoes
• 1 cup dry white wine
• 1 (14-ounce) can diced tomatoes or coarsely ground tomatoes
• 1 quart plus 1 cup chicken stock, available in quart and 1 cup paper box containers on the soup aisle
• 1 pound chicken tenders, diced
• 1 small jar black olive tapenade, 4 ounces, found with Italian foods or on condiment aisle
• 2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley
• Crusty bread, to pass at table

Directions

One medium soup pot preheated over medium high heat. While soup pot heats, chop carrots into 1/4-inch dice, then add garlic, and stir to coat in extra-virgin olive oil. Chop and drop in the zucchini, pepper and onion next, 1/2 inch dice. Season all the veggies with salt and pepper and herbes de Provence. Cook the veggies together 5 minutes. While they cook, cut potatoes into thin wedges. Add wine to vegetables and reduce a minute or so. Add the tomatoes, cut potatoes and stock to the pot, cover the pot and raise heat to high. Bring the stoup to a boil, then add cut chicken and simmer 8 to10 minutes until potatoes are just tender and chicken is cooked through. Serve stoup in shallow bowls and stir in a rounded spoonful of black olive tapenade at the table. Top soup with chopped parsley and pass crusty bread at the table for dipping and mopping.