I can't believe I had never made chicken soup from scratch until this winter. It couldn't be easier and tastes so much better when you make it yourself, and it cooks up in less than half an hour. I grabbed a basic recipe online and then tweaked it with my own spin. I don’t think I’ve ever followed a recipe exactly, but with this soup I really made it my own. Here’s a link to the recipe I started with that I found via Pinterest. I halved all the ingredients in this recipe but kept the same amount of stock, so mine is likely more brothy than hers (which I like). Since it's winter I swapped in dried herbs for fresh, and I always use more garlic than any recipe I come across. I left out the parsnips and leeks initially and didn’t miss them, but I might try them in the future. And since I read somewhere that the healthiest people eat beans regularly, I added a cup of cannellini beans to the soup as well.
I recently heard an interview with Ina Garten that made me laugh. They asked her if bay leaves actually make any flavor difference in a dish and she said that she didn’t think so but that she’s never dared to try a recipe and leave them out. I think I’ll leave out the bay leaf on the next batch and report back to Ina.
I am by no means a professional chef, but I was trained in the Blue Apron Cooking School for several years, and I learned a few secrets to making things just a bit more delicious. My first go to is soy sauce. Just a tablespoon or two in any soup, stew or casserole adds a hint of umami (a cheffy word that just means savory goodness). The second is Worcestershire Sauce (if you can't pronounce it just say "wash your sister sauce" like Guy Fieri). I like a few dashes in my soups and stews. Then finally, not in the pot of soup but in my bowl when I serve myself – a teaspoon of chili crunch for a kick of heat.
Leaning in to the idea of homesteading, I’m trying to hone my skills to “put up” food for the winter in anticipation of a healthy vegetable growing season this year. One way to save time and effort is to always make a big batch and then either freeze or can the leftovers to save for another day. I canned all my tomatoes from last year and I'm pretty familiar with the water bath method. Taking it a step further, I bought myself an All American Pressure Canner for Christmas and although I’m dying to start using it, I don’t really have the pantry space for canning right now. This spring and summer we’ll be remodeling the kitchen and adding a pantry, so it’ll have to wait a bit. In the meantime, I discovered Souper Cubes made specifically for freezing leftovers in portion sizes. When I make a batch of this soup it usually yields 4 servings, so I eat lunch and then freeze the other 3 portions in Souper Cubes, and have soup all week.
Let me know what your cooking tips are and if you have a great recipe for winter eating.
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