Homemade Classic Chicken Soup

When it looks like this outside the last thing I want to do is venture outside the confines of my warm apartment. Early this morning I decided to make one trip out into the deluge. Inspired by the cold I picked up the following items:

It's really (almost) this simple. This recipe tastes better than, and costs less than Progresso Chicken Noodle Soup, with less fat and sodium! Since it was rainy all day and I didn't really have any excuse to leave my house I picked up a whole chicken and slow roasted it all morning. This takes several hours so if you prefer, just use a ready-made rotisserie chicken (typically $7-$10 at your local supermarket). If you roast your own chicken do so an hour in advance to give it time to cool before you dig in and make sure it's well done and moist so the meat falls right off the bone.

Chicken Noodle Soup

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hr

5 cloves of garlic

2 large carrots

3 celery stalks

1.5 white onions

1 whole chicken

1 qt + 1 can chicken broth

1 bag egg noodles

1 bunch parsley

sea salt

pepper

Start by sautéing your chopped soup base (onion, carrot, celery, garlic) in a pan for 5-7 minutes or until the carrots start to soften and the onions are almost translucent. 

Transfer the cooked veggies into your large soup pot, cover them in chicken stock and one cup of water, add a dash of black pepper and bring them to a boil over medium heat. Once the liquid boils reduce to low heat and let the veggies simmer in the chicken stock while you take care of your chicken.

 While the stock heats up begin removing the chicken from the bones. This is a pretty messy job so don't be afraid to get your hands dirty. One chicken should provide over a pound of meat. Chop the chicken so that the pieces are less than an inch wide then add it to your simmering veggie mix.

By the time you add the chicken your soup pot will probably be pretty full. Top the liquid off by adding water until level it covers both the meat and veggies an inch of liquid. Turn the heat up and bring the whole thing to a boil. Once you reach a boil fill the rest of the pot with egg noodles and stir the soup to combine them with the rest of the ingredients. Reduce the heat and let it simmer for 30 minutes. 

Get cozy, crank up Netflix and enjoy your warm, delicious, homemade chicken soup! 

(Im)Patiently Waiting for Summer - Summer Squash Pasta Salad Time!

With spring in the air a new host of fresh vegetables and herbs is available. Here in Los Feliz the neighbors have taken to landscaping with a friendly mix of herbs, fruits and vegetables. Rather than spend a fortune on rosemary, chives, citrus…etc. We take a stroll down Finley Ave to chat with the neighbors and return home with our hands full!

To make good use of our fresh finds I whipped up an inviting summer salad and herb infused grilled flat bread (more on that later).

Zucchini and Pasta Salad

Prep: 10 minutes

Cooking: 20 minutes

2 or 3 medium sized Zucchini

1 Yellow Squash

1 White Italian Squash

1 yellow onion, diced

4 cloves garlic, minced

½ package of cherub tomatoes, halved

½ cup fresh grated parmesan

olive oil

½ cup white wine

2 tbl honey

3 springs fresh rosemary

pasta or egg noodles

Sea Salt/Pepper

Large salad/mixing bowl

Cook your noodles first so you can strain and let them cool a little bit before adding them to your salad.

Cook the onions garlic and rosemary in a healthy amount of olive oil until the onions begin to wilt. Once things are really sizzling add the white wine and honey. Let this mixture cook for a few minutes until the onions are translucent and take on a really rich flavor from the wine and honey. Pour the onion/garlic mixture into your salad bowl, leaving some of the liquid in your pan to cook the squash. Add some black pepper to the onions and let them rest uncovered.

 Next, add the squash to your hot, oiled pan. Squash should be cut into ½ pieces. If the pan is too dry, add some oil to keep things from sticking, not too much though as you want your squash to brown a little bit, not drown in oil.  Hopefully you were able to reserve a decent amount of the liquid from the onions to cook your squash so they will pick up some of the rich flavor from the honey/wine mixture.

Once the squash are fully cooked add them to your resting onions, add your tomatoes and Parmesan and then toss the veggies together before adding your noodles. Stir the noodles in with a wooden spoon to keep from breaking them apart. Wait until the last step to add your salt as you might find that the combination of tomatoes cheese and wine does the trick!

This recipe is delicious served both hot and cold. I like to refrigerate it for a couple of hours to let the flavors really come together.