The other day my favorite gluten glutton wasn't feeling so good, so I made him what else? Chicken soup! This is a classic as fall brings on soup weather, or to soothe a flu or cold. Maybe most people already know how to make chicken soup, but I thought, for the ones who perhaps don't, here is my recipe. It's nice to mix things up a bit and this recipe has evolved over the years.
4 boneless chicken breasts (because that's what I always have on hand, but you could use a whole chicken or even one of those roasted chickens.)
12 cups of water
1 vegetable bouillon cube
5 whole black peppercorns
2 bay leaves
5 cloves of garlic chopped (Can you tell I love garlic?)
1 1/2 cups of carrots sliced in cute round pieces
3 celery ribs chopped
1 large onion chopped
1/2 c. frozen peas
1/2 package Tinkyada penne brown rice pasta (even leftovers work great!)
Salt to taste
Fresh chopped dill leaves to taste
Handful of fresh chopped watercress or parsley
This is really easy! Just put the chicken in a big pot, add water, boullion, peppercorns, bay leaves, garlic, carrots, celery and onion. (If you decide to use a whole chicken, just adjust the water amount until it is covered.) You can start to boil the large pot of water while you are chopping up the vegetables and add them as you go. Bring to a boil and then lower to a simmer. Simmer for around 45 minutes, until chicken is cooked through. I usually separate the chicken into pieces with a fork while it's still in the pot, but if you like, remove it from the pot, chop it into bite size pieces, and return the pieces to your soup. (Now is the time to remove the bones and skin if you used a whole chicken.)
Add the frozen peas and fresh dill and simmer for 5 more minutes. Season with salt. Serve over desired amount of Tinkyada pasta and garnish with freshly chopped watercress or parsley. Enjoy!
