Chicken Soup for the Soul

We've all been hearing the endless horror stories of the 2013 flu season. I myself was struck down for three weeks (yes, 3!) with some crazy head and chest virus. So it comes as no real surprise that people are scrambling for soup. I've had several emails from friends and family asking for my chicken soup recipe specifically and I was pretty surprised to see I have like zero soup recipes posted! Shame on me. I know. I've also been a neglectful blogger. I'm telling you, being pregnany kind of rules your world for a while. But I'm back and I'm kicking off 2013 with soup for the soul. Chicken soup is magical and so easy to make. Honestly. And if you are not into making your own stock (which you should be because it is crazy easy people!) you can always make stock while making the soup or use a store bought short cut. Whatever your please, this soup will fill you up and steam out any aches and pains. Freeze extra in ziplock bags for a quick meal during the week! (I'll have to take a picture next time I make this.)

Revamped Grandma's Chicken Soup
by a girl and her kitchen

1 whole chicken, broken down (or buy a couple legs, thighs and a couple breasts, but better to have butcher break down a whole chicken if you can as the backbone has a lot of flavor for your brother)
1 onion, diced
1-2 cloves of garlic, minced
4 celery stalks, cleaned, chunky dice
4 carrots, cleaned and chunky dice (peel if you prefer)
1 28 ounce can of diced tomatoes (use fire roasted from Multi Glen for extra flavor)
1 cup mushrooms, chunky dice (optional)
1-2 cups kale/chard/spinach, chopped (optional)
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes (optional, but recommended)
1 bay leaf
1 tbsp herbs de provence
1 lemon
1 package of no-yolk egg noodles (i prefer the extrawide ones)
salt and pepper
olive oil
1 parmesan rind (optional but worth it!)
1 small bunch of parsley, chopped
water (may supplement part with homemade broth)
***1 container of good store bought chicken broth (optional, see note below)

In a very large pot, heat 2 tbsp olive oil over medium heat. Add the vegetables (carrot, onion, garlic, celery (and mushrooms and greens if using) and season with a heavy pinch of salt and pepper and sauté for 5-8 minutes stirring periodically so nothing burns.

Add in the chicken pieces and stir to combine. (Cooks Note: For better flavored soup, roast the chicken before using in soup. To pre-roast: in a large bowl toss the chicken pieces with 1 tbsp of salt and 1 tbsp of pepper and 3 tbsp olive oil, spread out evenly on a cookie sheet pan (preferably one with edges so no juices run off the sides) and cook at 400 degrees for at least 30 minutes so it starts to brown and get crispy…won’t be fully cooked, but if only making soup this should be enough).

Add in tomatoes and their juices, cheese rind, herbs (dried and fresh) and enough water to cover the chicken by a few inches (but make sure you leave an inch or so of space between the top of the pan and the liquid). If you do not have a long time to cook the soup (~4 hrs) to develop good flavor, then replace some of the water with a large container of store bought chicken broth (or better yet, homemade!) so that you give your broth a boost of help.

Raise heat to medium high to bring to a boil and then reduce heat and let simmer at medium-low heat for at least two hours (if using raw chicken and not pre-roasting, worth cooking a bit longer). Taste the soup broth after a few hours to see if you need more salt/pepper or herbs. Add them as needed.

Once the chicken is cooked through, remove the chickenand discard the bones, skin and fat. Dice/shred the chicken. Add it back to the pot. While you are dicing the chicken, bring the soup back up to a boil and once the broth is boiling, add the noodles and cook according to package instructions (Cooks Note: Cook for 1 or 2 minutes less than package directions). Once noodles are cooked, add the chicken back to the pot to stir to combine. Squeeze 1/2 lemon and stir. Remove the cheese rind and bay leaf. Taste for seasoningand adjust as needed. Serve hot.
Top each plate with grated parmesan or pecorino and a bit more chopper parsley and enjoy.

So I know I'm behind on posting recipes...

But we've been a little preoccupied. A Girl and Her Kitchen is now eating for two!

Noodle-less Lasagna, It’s a Thing, Really.

I think by typing that phrase alone I’ve irrecoverably damaged a little piece of my carb-loving-self. But it’s true, somehow I’ve managed to create something that satisfies even this die hard pasta junkie. It started as way to follow meatless Mondays. I mean, who doesn’t love veggie lasagna!? But then I realized my effort to eat healthier (i.e. meatless Mondays), were totally thwarted by the delicate sheets of pasta I was tucking between all those layers of healthy veggies. Argh. Alas, my noodle-less lasagna was born whereby my bounty from the Sunday farmers market would be roasted and gently layered between blankets of sweet and spicy tomato sauce, supported of course by creamy mozzarella (I haven’t gone completely mad people; it’s mostly healthy.) This is so utterly and completely satisfying I’ve made it every week for a month!

My noodle-less lasagna is built around two core ingredients: good tomato sauce, which I make myself but if you have a jarred sauce you love, go for it; and a diverse array of veggies, some of which must include veg that are long and can be but into lasagna noodle type shapes. I use eggplant and a mixture of zucchini and squash cut into wide thin strips as my base and top to keep the ‘lasagna’ together and it totally works. Throw in whatever you like in between! I’ve used mushrooms, roasted peppers, sautéed kale, corn, spinach, fennel…you name it. The trick is all the veggies have to be cooked before you assemble the lasagna. But trust me, one bite of tender roasted vegetables dancing in a tangy and tomato-y sauce with layers of melty cheese….seriously. It’s good. Really really good. And ridiculously easy to make.

Midweek Meals: Hearty Chicken Bowl with Kale and Mushrooms

One of my biggest kitchen conundrums is chicken. What to do with the endless bags of boneless, skinless chicken breast we all drag home from Costco, right?! Don’t get me wrong, I quite enjoy chicken and I know white meat is good for you and all that (even though I secretly cheer for team dark meat). But I just get foodie writer’s block when it comes to this most basic of chicken meals at times. So this week I did a little inspiration hunting. There’s this book I have with like a million chicken recipes. Truth be told, they’re pushing it a bit with all the chicken in that book, but one in particular I adore. It’s this creamy pasta number (surprise, surprise, I was drawn to the dish based on cheese and pasta) with woodsy mushrooms and a tangy sauce. After rummaging around the pantry and frig, I found what I needed and got to work. It’s almost a one pot wonder…almost. I combined sautéed kale spiked with red pepper flakes, creamy white beans, white wine, lemon juice, sweet carrots and peas, earthy mushrooms with chunks of perfectly cooked chicken tossed with tender pasta…a weeknight bowl that was great for leftovers and very satisfying. Feel free to change it up, toss in what you have laying around and make a mid-week feast out of it.

Roasted Fennel with Parmesan

Fennel was not a vegetable we ate a lot of growing up but as an adult, and as a member of the produce mecca of the land known as northern California, I've grown to simply adore fennel. I actually quite dislike licorice flavor as odd as that is and since fennel is reminiscent of this flavor profile, I found it surprising how much I love it.  But once roasted, the flavor mellows, develops hints of caramel, which when mixed with the cheese bite of the Parmesan, blew my mind. This is such an easy vegetable side.