Friday, February 8, 2013

Finger Lakes Chicken Soup: 1922 Starkey House Style!

Winter is blowing cold but I have a hot chicken soup recipe that will warm you up! 

Chicken Soup with freshly chopped vegetables and Kale
by Innkeeper Cathy of
1922 Starkey House Bed & Breakfast 

Ingredients: In a medium to large stock pot use organically grown vegetables (grown using no pesticides, no chemical fertilizers) when possible. Fill the pot with water to about 3/4 full and start to heat using high burner.

4 Organic, pasture-fed chicken thighs with skins on.
1 large cooking onion, or two smaller ones, finely diced
1 Roma tomato diced (garden or whole canned tomatoes can be used)
3 large carrots, thinly sliced
3 inside stalks of celery, include a bunch of the leaves finely diced
1 tbs. Kosher or course sea salt
1/2 tsp. medium ground black pepper or to taste
3 garlic cloves minced (more if you want to chase the flu away)
1 tbs. dry or 1/8 c. chopped fresh parsley
2 c.chopped kale
1/4 tsp. cardamom
1/2 tsp. dried rosemary
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
1/2 c. red wine or cream sherry
the juice of 1 lemon

On the side: cook 1c. of your favorite noodles for use in soup later.

Method:
1. Place salt and chicken in pot and bring to a rapid boil for about 15 minutes. Clean off the residue on top of the water as many times as needed to see the broth clear. While this is boiling chop and prepare all veggies.

2. Add all vegetables and garlic except the kale to the pot and lower to a slow simmer for 15 minutes. Check for saltiness since you always have to add a little more.

3. Add all herbs and seasonings that are left along with the chopped kale. Cover the pot and let simmer for at least 45 minutes.

4.Take the cooked chicken thighs out of the broth and let them cool. Then, tear them off of the bone and cut into desirable size pieces. Place the chicken back into the pot. If you have more time before serving, the soup can continue to simmer up to 1/2 hour longer this way.

Serves four or more people. If a large pot is used, you will have plenty to store or freeze.  NOTE: If you want a low-fat soup, skim the golden fat off of the top before serving. Chilling the soup also allows the fat to harden so it can be removed easily.

When your pasta noodles are cooked, drain them and place them in your soup plates before ladling the soup in. This was what my Mom did so not to have the starch of the pasta cook into the soup, which would happen if you cooked the noodles in the soup broth. This changes the flavor and thickens the broth.

Hearty and natural chicken soup with kale and twisted elbow noodles at
1922 Starkey House Bed & Breakfast Inn

Enjoy!  For more info on different methods of growing organically grown vegetables and organic pasture-fed chickens go to the following links.

http://flowerdepot.wordpress.com/2012/04/30/pasture-raised-v-free-range-chickens-9/

http://flowerdepot.wordpress.com/2011/02/04/biodynamic-farming/

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