Chicken Soup for the Soul

It is a dreary day in Florida. Raining cats and dogs as they say; so choose not to paddle to the garage to offer pictures of my workings and thrift store finds.

I am going to offer a guest post from my niece Jill, who works as a publisist in New York City. She has posted a very unique recipe chicken soup to ward off those colds and chills that is common this time of year. So, read on, whip up a batch, sit back and relax. It will get better, I hope!



Posted by Jill at 11:30 AM 1 comments
Thursday, January 14, 2010
recipe #1: chicken noodle soup.

so, i don't really like traditional chicken noodle soup. i like all of the things that go into it separately, a lot, but together they do nothing for me. and since i lost my voice this week (which is almost back now and yes i will totally credit my new soup recipe thankyouverymuch) i thought this to be a perfect first experiment.


i figured i'd keep the colors the same for consistency's sake, so using my handy produce bible i picked nutritional powerhouses kale and sweet potatoes as subs for celery and carrots. i figure if this is supposed to be the go-to when you're feeling down, make it pack a lot of punch! i also threw in red beans for their fiber and high antioxidant value and cancer-fighting pearl onions. enjoy...


Jill's Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup Recipe
Soundtrack: My Best Friend's Wedding Movie Soundtrack (shut. up.)
Time: 1.5 hours
Servings: 8-10

Ingredients: 2 chicken legs w/ bone, 5 pearl onions, 1 large sweet potato, 1/2 pound of kale, 1 can red beans (not kidney), 1/2 box of Ronzoni 7 grain fusilli pasta. For seasoning: olive oil, rosemary, thyme, 2 garlic cloves, 2 bay leaves, chicken bouillon, cloves, red pepper flakes, salt, pepper.
The plan: coat the bottom of a large soup pot with olive oil. slice onions (i kept mine in rings) and mince garlic and add to pot to "sweat", or cook until clear, over low heat. next, add the two salt and peppered chicken legs until skin is browned and then add 8 cups of water and 1 tablespoon of chicken bouillon. cover and bring to a boil, then keep over medium heat for 45 minutes. next, add 2 tablespoons each of rosemary, thyme, red pepper, salt and pepper, the two bay leaves and 3 cloves. using a fork, remove the chicken legs from the soup and strip the meat from the bones, adding the meat back into the soup. add cubed sweet potatoes and let cook for 15 minutes, then add pasta, kale (remove from stems and cut into ribbons) and beans and let cook for another 15 or until pasta is tender. remove bay leaves, add more salt/pepper to taste and then get out a big ole bowl and serve yourself up some of this goodness. i sprinkled some parmesean cheese on top too because when is that NOT a good idea?
Things I learned: firstly, that i enjoy my best friend's wedding movie soundtrack as much as when i was 15, which is a whole lot. secondly, that i wish i had browned the chicken legs like i said i did above, because i am that gross person who loves the skin and kept it in my soup. thirdly, i used too much water at first (10 cups) and as such my pot boileth over, so i had to use a mug to remove some before i could add any more ingredients. fourthly, that although while i was cooking it i wondered if i should have used squash instead of sweet potatoes, when i tasted it i knew i had done good.

SO hope you enjoy this as much as I did/am since I have 7 more servings left in my fridge. bring on your thoughts/suggestions/favorite moments in "My Best Friend's Wedding." jsx







Posted by Jill at 10:07 PM 4 comments