Chicken Soup

Ingredients

• 1 medium onion
• 1 (4-5 pound) whole chicken
• 14 cups water
• 1 celery stalk
• 2 cups leafy greens, such as kale, spinach or chard
• 2 medium carrots
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 cup whole wheat pasta

Materials

• Colander
• Cutting board
• Large pot
• Measuring spoons
• Measuring cups
• Mixing spoon
• Sharp knife
• Vegetable peeler

Instructions

In Advance 

1. Peel and rinse onion. Cut into quarters.
2. In a large pot, cover onion and chicken with water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 40 minutes.
3. Lift chicken from pot and set aside to cool. In a colander, strain broth. Refrigerate broth until ready to make soup. Discard onions, as they will be too overcooked to eat.
4. When chicken is cool, pull meat from the bones. Shred or chop it, discarding any skin or bone. Refrigerate until ready to add to soup.

Preparation 

1. Rinse celery and leafy greens. Remove any tough stems from greens. Tear leaves into bite-sized pieces.
2. Rinse and peel carrots. Dice carrots and celery.
3. In a large pot, add carrots, celery, greens, salt, pepper, and strained broth. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat and simmer for 15-20 minutes.
4. Add pasta. Keep simmering until pasta is tender, about 8 minutes.
5. Add cooked chicken. Simmer 1-2 minutes more.

Chef’s Notes

• Use 1 cup of any pre-cooked whole grains you like. Try barley, quinoa, or brown rice. If you do this, skip step 8. Add grains with chicken in step 9.
• Rinse and thinly slice root veggies such as turnips and parsnips. Add to broth along with carrots, celery and leafy greens.
• To decrease fat, remove most of chicken skin while it is still raw. Or, skim fat from top of broth.
• Spinach is a fast-cooking leafy green. Wait and add during the last 5 minutes of cooking time, so it does not overcook.Serves 8, 1½ cups per serving.