Fast, Easy, and KILLER White Chicken Chili, Perfect Fall Lunch or Supper

I make this thick and spicy!

I first tasted White Chicken Chili years ago when David Belt made it for lunch at Ethan Allen where we all worked.  It was DELICIOUS!  In fact I have never tasted better David!  I loved it because it was seasoned with cloves which I adore.  Unfortunately my husband does not.  This version is custom made for him!

I was inspired by the Brooks White Chili Bean ad that Brooks Beans is running.  I got a hankering and this is what has come of it!

Ingredients for Fast, Easy, and KILLER White Chicken Chili:

1 purchased rotisserie chicken (I used one from Sam's Club)
2 cans Brooks White Chili Beans
1 can Cream of Chicken Chili
1 can Rotel tomatoes and chilies
1 can condensed chicken stock (I used about 12 oz, strong chicken stock I had frozen)
1/2 C. hot water
1 fresh jalapeno pepper seeded and diced
1 T. chili powder (I uses Mexanne), or to taste
2 t. Shiriacha hot sauce, optional or to taste

Take the skin off the chicken and remove from the bones and tear or dice the meat.  Add all of the ingredients to the soup kettle except the hot water.  Pour it into the bottom of the container the chicken was packaged in and swirl or stir to capture any remaining chicken juices and add them to the pan of chili ingredients.  

Simmer until the raw jalapeno has cooked and reduce to a low simmer until ready to serve.  Top with shredded Monetary Jack or other cheese to you liking.  YUM.  Yield 6-8 servings.

Triple Cream of Mushroom Soup

Beautiful fresh mushrooms.

Portabello, crimini, and shitike mushrooms graced my cutting board as I removed the stems to simmer for a luxurious mushroom broth for my Triple Cream of Mushroom Soup for supper last night.

Ingredients for Triple Cream of Mushroom Soup:

6-8 ounces each of 3 of your favorite fresh mushrooms ( I  chose portabello, crimini, and shitike)
1 large onion
1 large carrot
1-2 leeks
3-4 cloves garlic
2 C. white wine
2 C. cream
2 T. fresh parsley
3 T butter
3 T. olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Clean the mushrooms with a soft brush and remove the stems.  Set the mushroom caps aside.  Rough chop the onion, garlic, and carrot and combine with the mushroom stems and 2 quarts of water in a large kettle.  Bring to a boil and add salt and pepper.  Reduce to low heat and boil gently until the liquid is reduced by half.

Simmering   the mushroom stock.

Strain the mushroom broth and set aside.  Discard the spent veggies. 

Quarter or dice the mushroom caps and wash well and slice the white and very light green portion of the leek.  Using a soup kettle add the butter and olive oil and turn the burner to medium heat.  Add the leeks and mushrooms and salt and pepper.  Saute until tender and liquid has formed.  Add the mushroom stock, wine, and parsley.  Simmer 30 minutes.  Add the cream, stir well, taste, and correct the seasonings.  Serve with crisp saltines or crusty bread.  Yield 4-6 servings.

Indian Summer Bean Soup and Blueberry Buttermilk Corn Muffins

Gosh I am just crazy about the ending days of summer!  Even rainy days like today.  Not stormy just 70's and a nice rain you really don't even mind going out in.  Actually I did run to the store this morning for a head of cabbage and a handful of kale to add to the beans I soaked overnight.  Plus, I was out of gas for the car and I hate that.  So first thing in a gentle rain I was off.

Ingredients for Indian Summer Bean Soup:

1 pound white beans soaked overnight and drained (I used great northern)
3 qt. stock or water
1 quart tomatoes
2 C. diced onion
2 T. chopped garlic
6 oz. kale stems removed and sliced
1/2 head savoy cabbage shredded
1 C. small carrots
2 russet potatoes peeled and diced
1/4 C. shredded basil leaves
salt and black pepper to taste
1-2 rinds hard cheese, optional

Combine all of the ingredients by late morning and simmer all day until you can no longer stand it!  Taste and correct the seasonings.  Serve with Blueberry Corn Muffins spread with butter and sleep well tonight!

Yield about 4-5 quarts and it just gets better every time you warm it up.  Keep refrigerated between serving times.

Ingredients for Giada De Laurentiis' Blueberry Buttermilk Corn Muffins, my version:


1 1/3 C. buttermilk
2 large eggs
2 t. vanilla
1 1/3 C. flour + 1 T.
1 1/3 C. yellow cornmeal
1/2 C. sugar
1/4 C. honey
1 T. baking powder
1 t. kosher salt
1 1/2 sticks cold butter cut into dice
2 C. fresh blueberries

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F and place the rack in the center of the oven.  Line muffin tin with cupcake papers and set aside.

Using a large bowl whisk together the buttermilk. eggs, and vanilla.  Combine the dry ingredients in the food processor.  Add the cold butter chunks and buzz in bursts of about 30-40 seconds until the butter is the size of grains of rice.  Pour the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and fold together until just combined.

Mix the remaining 1 T. of flour with the blueberries tossing to gently combine.  Add them to the batter folding them in.

Use a 1/3 C. measuring cup to dip out the batter into the paper liners and position a berry or two on top!  Bake 20-25 min. until a toothpick tests clean.  Yield 12-16 muffins.

Roasted and Seasoned Warm Cubed Potatoes Replace Croutons on Green Salad Paired with Old World Spaetzle

My dinner salad before the dressing.

My German Grandmother made Rivila soup and I do not know how she made it but I tried Spaetzle because it looks close enough in heritage and composition to at least be a cousin!  This is a featured recipe from The Iowa Housewife blog written by two wonderful sisters.  It is my opinion that the star of this dish is the broth and being a lover of good homemade broth it was a hit at my house.

My husband's dinner salad with shredded cheese before dressing.

Complimenting this main dish I cubed a large potato and roasted it with salt pepper and olive oil for 30 minutes at 400 degrees F. and served them warm atop a dinner green salad in place of croutons.  This was a delicious new twist!  My husband liked this better than croutons.

Our steaming Spaetzle a rich stock with chicken, vegetables, and noodles.

Ingredients for Spaetzle:

1 1/2 quarts good chicken or turkey stock
3/4 C. sliced celery
3/4 C. shredded carrot
1 large diced onion
2 C. diced chicken or turkey, optional

Simmer all together  20 minutes or so until the vegetables are tender.

Batter for Spaetzle:

1 large beaten egg
good pinch of salt, no more than 1/4 t.
1/2 C. flour
1 T. milk

Beat egg, add salt, flour, and milk gradually.  Beat well.  Batter should be thick and elastic.  Butter or spray with cooking spray a flat dinner plate and a table knife.  Flatten out the batter on the prepared plate and tilt it over the bubbling hot soup.  Slice off small noodles and slide them off the plate.  Continue until the batter is gone.  Let them cook about 5 minutes until they are all floating atop the soup.  Garnish with parsley or green onion diced finely if desired and serve.  Yield 4 servings.

Amazingly Flavorful Bean Soup, Low Calorie & Highly Satisfying Simmered with Parmesan Chunks

It had long been held to save the rinds from hard cheeses to flavor soup.

I am obviously in soup mode with a high degree of comfort food woven throughout!  The day is cold, clammy, and grey.  But my house smells unbelievable.  I came across a recipe on Food52 that inspired me and I have adapted it a bit to our likes.  The combination of navy beans and great northern beans yields a bean the semi dissolves and thickens and one that does not but holds together more, which my family likes. I have flavored this with a quart of my home canned tomatoes, a couple of rinds from Parmesan cheese I had saved to flavor soups with and aromatics. 

I had enough Parmesan rind for two nice chunks.

Ingredients for Amazing Bean Soup:

1 C. dry northern beans
1 C. dry navy beans
1 large onion diced
6 large cloves of garlic peeled and minced
1-2 stalks celery in bite size chunks
1-2 carrots diced in bite size chunks
1/4 t. dry thyme
1/4 t. crushed rosemary
2-3 T. olive oil
1 T. kosher salt
1/2 t. ground black pepper
1 t. sugar
1 quart home canned tomatoes or a 28 ounce can of whole tomatoes + 1/4 C. water
3 1/2 C. good chicken stock
1-2 chunks of Parmesan cheese rinds about 2" x 1" x 1/2"

Soup, beautiful soup!

Place the beans in a large heavy bottomed kettle and cover 1" with water.  Cover and bring to a boil.   Boil exactly 1 minute.  Turn off the heat and leave covered for 1 hour.  Drain the beans and return them to the kettle.  Add all of the remaining ingredients and bring to a boil.  Reduce to simmer and cook an hour.  Taste and correct the seasoning. Remove the cheese rinds and discard.  When the beans and vegetables reach the desired tenderness serve steaming with additional Parmesan cheese.

Homemade Tomato Soup from My Fresh Canned Tomatoes or Store Bought Canned Tomatoes, FAST, EASY, DELICIOUS, sand LOW CALORIE TOO.

Ladle up a bowl of delicious tomato soup you made in minutes in one pan.

I just told my sister this soup has it all, flavor, easy, comfort food, and low calorie to boot!  I came upon the recipe this morning on  "The AM Blog" called Barbara Lynch's Spicy Tomato Soup.  It caught my eye because I have 50 quarts of canned tomatoes from this summer,  we love tomato soup, the recipe may be the easiest I have ever seen, and I don't see how it could be anything but good.  I was right!  It is delicious although I have adapted it and will give you my version with notes.

Home canned tomatoes fir the bill if you have them.

Fast and Easy Spicy Tomato Soup:

1 T. olive oil
1 T. butter
1 diced red onion (or any onion you have)
1/2 t. red pepper flakes (or more to taste)
2 quarts home canned tomatoes with garlic, basil, and onion (or use 2, 28 ounce whole store bought tomatoes or 2 quarts plain canned tomatoes and add 2 cloves fresh garlic, 1/4 C. packed loosely fresh basil leaves)
1 1/2 C. water
kosher salt to taste
freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 T. sugar (optional, I do this because my Mother always added a little sugar in all of her tomato recipes)
Shredded mozzarella cheese, for garnish (optional but yum!)

Heat the oil and butter in the bottom of a large heavy bottomed kettle and add the onions and red pepper flakes.  Saute over medium low heat until tender.

Smells like heaven.

Add in everything else but the cheese and bring to a boil.  Reduce the heat and simmer 20-30 minutes.  Remove from the heat. 

A stick blender is the perfect tool for pureeing soups.

A stick blender is the perfect tool to use or place into a regular blender in batches.  Blend until smooth.

This is a pan of summer if you ask me!

Reheat the soup until piping hot and serve topped with shredded cheese if desired.  Yield 9 cups of soup.

Note:  If you can bring yourself to skip the cheese or at least go sparingly this dish is very low calorie and just right if you are dieting.

Oyster Stew, Simple yet Special Enough to Mark an Occasion.

Steaming hot oyster stew serve with crisp saltines.

Oyster Stew is another dish that often times has a love/hate evoking reaction.  Here it is a love fest as my husband loves any type of oyster or oyster dish.  It evokes lovely memories for both of us.  Brian's Grandma Ruby always served Oyster Stew on Christmas Eve and had us all over while she was still living.  I always thought that a really wonderful tradition.

Drain the liquor from the fresh oysters and reserve for the stew.

My Mother often made at my Dad's request Oyster Stew as well as Oyster Dressing for Thanksgiving and Christmas.  Today while at Sam's Club I spotted the first fresh oysters of the season and snapped up a pint of them in a heartbeat thinking Brian would be tickled to have them in a surprise supper tonight!

Ingredients for Oyster Stew:

1 pint fresh shucked oysters, drain and save the liquor
1 C. sliced celery
1/2 C. diced onions
3 T. butter
3 T. flour
2 C. milk
1 C. cream or half and half
kosher salt to taste
black pepper to taste
pinch of Cayenne pepper or a few dashes of hot sauce to taste
juice of 1/2 small lemon

Saute the vegetables.

Melt the butter and saute the celery and onions until translucent then stir in the flour to make a rue.  Add the oyster liquor, milk, and cream stirring until slightly thickened.  Simmer until the vegetables are tender. 

Add the liquor, cream, and milk.

Add the oysters and seasonings and cook a few minutes until the edges of the oysters are curled and the oysters are opaque. 

Stir in the lemon juice and correct the seasonings. Serve hot with saltine crackers.  Yield 4 servings.

Pasta Fagioli My Way, Slow Cooker or Simmer on the Stove All Day, Serve Some Now and Freeze Base for Later

One Pot Meals are a hit here.

This evening we will have Sunday dinner for the family and I am looking for an easy but delicious meal.  This hearty crock pot version of the chili like Italian soup featured at Olive Garden might just do the trick.  I choose simmer this on the stove all afternoon instead of the slow cooker.  Either way it works!  I have seen versions of it floating about but here is my adaptation.  Not such a big Oregano fan but I have and love fresh Basil and Parsley from my garden to use instead.  The delicious home canned tomatoes will be a plus too.  I am serving it with traditional garlic bread and a green salad and for good measure I am making my first pumpkin pie of the season.   

Pumpkin Pie for the first day of fall.

thehiddenpantry.blogspot.com/2010/10/juice-to-heal-me-fall-tonic-and-pumpkin.html     thehiddenpantry.blogspot.com/2014/09/french-pie-pastry-in-food-processor.html

Above are the links for the pie and the easiest and most delicious crust ever!

While chopping veggies make extra to throw in the salad.

HELPFUL HINT:  Another thing I planned is to make a big batch of the soup and remove about a third of it to cool and freeze prior to adding the pasta.  It is my experience that pasta will freeze OK but is better added fresh.  I also will dice extra celery and carrots to use later in the salad while I have the soup ingredients in hand.

Ingredients for Pasta Fagioli My Way:

3 pounds ground chuck browned
1 large onion diced
3 cloves fresh garlic minced
4 diced carrots
5 ribs of celery diced
2 quarts of my home canned tomatoes or equivalent store bought (8 cups)
2 C. tomato juice
1 drained 16 oz. can of red kidney beans
1 drained 16 oz. can of cannellini beans (white kidney beans)
1/4 C. chopped fresh parsley
1 quart of beef stock (4 cups)
2 t. fresh ground black pepper
1/4 C. chopped fresh basil
1 t. hot sauce
1 -2 T. sugar (add to taste depending on the tomatoes)
salt to taste
1 - 20 ounce jar of spaghetti sauce
8 ounces pasta
grated cheese, optional for garnish atop the bowls of soup

Salt, pepper, beef, and onions to start the pot!

Brown and drain the ground chuck then add to crock pot or large soup kettle with a heavy bottom.  Stir in everything else EXCEPT NOT the pasta. 

I  prefer simmering soup all day on the stove unless I am not going to be home then it is the crock pot!

Simmer over lowest heat all day.  Add the pasta the last 30 minutes of the cooking time.  Serve with crusty bread in large bowls.  Pass shredded cheese if desired to top the steaming bowls of soup.

Enjoy!  Yield about 3 gallons of soup, 14-18 large servings.  Even better the next day!  A nice batch (2 quarts) in the deep freeze for another day.  Big bonus for my efforts.

Cauliflower, Bacon & Cheese Soup and Down 3 more Pounds

Not sure if this qualifies as a "light" supper.....actually NOT!  But when compared with a 3 course meal, or turning on the oven on a humid 90+ degree day in southern most Indiana.....it makes perfect sense to me!  Plus, even eating luxury cheesy soup I managed to drop 3 more pounds for a total of 10 pounds on a diet I can live with!  That is a total of 10 pounds now.  Good enough!  I will keep on with it.

Brian loves soup for supper for a change and tonight is the perfect time to use up that head of cauliflower in the bottom of the refrigerator.  Usually I make a recipe from the Lazarus Restaurant Cookbook but I am making this one up as I go for a change.  I have lots of bacon on hand and a pot of fresh chives on the patio so there are multiple inspirations!

Ingredients for Cauliflower Bacon & Cheese Soup:

8-9 slices of bacon
1/2 onion chopped fine
1 carrot diced
1 stalk celery diced
1 head fresh cauliflower chopped
2-3 T. sliced chives + more for garnish
2 quarts chicken stock
1/3 C. flour
1 t. salt
1/2 t. black pepper
8 oz. shredded cheese (I like part cheddar and part Velveeta)

Cut the bacon into small bits and fry in the bottom of a heavy bottomed kettle until crisp then using a slotted spoon remove the bacon leaving the rendered fat.  Add the diced onion, carrot, and celery to the fat and stir fry 2-3 minutes.  Add the cauliflower and reduce the heat to very low, cover and cook stirring occasionally for about 10 minutes.  Add a tablespoon or two of butter if needed to keep moistened and from sticking if needed.  Add the flour and cook a few minutes over medium heat making a rue.

Add the stock, the milk, salt and pepper, and chives.  Stir and increase the heat to medium-high heat.
Stir constantly until the soup thickens.  Reduce the heat to the lowest heat until you are ready to serve.  Just before you are ready to ladle up the soup stir in the cheese until it melts and is smooth add the bacon pieces and stir together.  Do not bring the heat back to a boil.  Only heat to serving temperature after adding the cheese  and bacon

Garnish with fresh chives if desired and enjoy!  Yield 8-10 servings.

Fresh Summer Tomato Soup with Fresh Basil

The tomatoes are so ripe and delicious this season and I always look foreword to making a fresh kettle of tomato with basil soup.  So today I have brought a kettle of water to boil and placed tomatoes in the boiling water for 1 minute then plunged them into a big bowl of ice water and slipped their skins.  After coring each one I cut them into sections and with my thumb pushed out all of the seeds placing only the remaining flesh into my 4 quart measure until full to the top!

Next I went outdoors and picked a nice bunch of basil and brought it into the kitchen and rinsed the leaves well as I pulled them from their stems.  I picked enough to make 2-3 tablespoons after slicing.

Ingredients for Fresh Summer Tomato Soup with Basil:

4 C. fresh tomato, peeled, seeded, and chunk-ed
2-3 fresh shallots sliced thin
2 cloves fresh garlic chopped finely
2-3 T. fresh basil leaves sliced thin
2 T. olive oil
2 T. butter
1/2 t. salt
1/4 t. pepper
2 T. tomato paste
1 T. sugar
1/2 t, baking soda (keeps the soup from curdling when the cream is added)
2 C. chicken stock
1-1 1/2 C. heavy cream or milk
6-8 slices crisp cooked bacon as garnish, optional

After harvesting and preparing the tomatoes and basil set them aside.  Place the butter and olive oil in a heavy bottomed non-reactive kettle over medium heat.  Add the shallots and sweat for a minute and add the garlic, tomatoes, tomato paste, basil, salt, pepper, baking soda, sugar, and stock. Simmer over low heat for 20-30 minutes until the tomatoes are very soft.

You can leave on simmer until just before serving of complete the recipe by adding the cream and pureeing in the blender or using an immersion blender.  Taste and correct the seasoning.  Serve with a couple of slices of crisp bacon as garnish if desired.  Yield 6 servings.

Optional step:

Note:  If you would like the soup thickened mix together in a small bowl with your fingers 2 T. butter and 4 T. flour until all of the flour is absorbed into the butter and is a thick paste consistency.  Whisk into the hot soup until completely melted and smooth and the soup has thickened.

Turkey Soup (Penny Pincher Recipe Series #2)

Comfort soup for penny's.

Some may call me crazy but never, never do I throw away a good carcass, soup bone, ham bone, or leftover I can use in a delicious,  nutritious and comforting soup.  A few weeks ago I purchased a fresh whole turkey on sale for  $.59 @ pound and after serving I froze the carcass, wings, and everything not served in a large freezer bag.  Sunday there were almost a quart of left over roasted carrots and a couple of cups of cooked rice.  (I purposefully made extra rice and carrots.)  These things are the fixings for an inexpensive but wonderful home made soup!

This soup is wonderful simmering away on your stove.

Ingredients for Turkey Soup:

1 turkey carcass with all of the trimmings
1-2 turkey breast halves or chicken breasts cooked and diced or torn into bite sized pieces.
1 onion whole + 1 onion diced
3-4 cloves garlic
salt
water to cover
2-3 C. cooked rice ( I use brown or brown and wild)
2-3 cups diced carrots (fresh or cooked)
2 C. diced celery
2 C. diced potato
1 diced turnip, optional
4-6 oz. dried noodles
2 T. chopped fresh parsley
kosher salt
black pepper
turkey or chicken bouillon crystals or cubes, optional
shredded cheese, optional

The peels of the onion adds color.

Using a large soup kettle place the frozen or fresh bones and trimmings into the kettle (no need to thaw, just remove from the wrappings)  Add a whole onion with peel and garlic with peel a teaspoon of kosher salt and a half teaspoon of black pepper.  If your chicken breast has not been cooked you may add them here too. Cover with about an inch of fresh water and bring everything to a boil.  Cover with a loose fitting lid and simmer about an hour or so, checking the chicken or turkey breasts and removing them when cooked through, then dice and set aside when cooled.  After simmering strain and discard everything except the broth.  Taste and correct the seasonings. The onion/garlic peels are discarded.

Note:  If you have a lot of meat on the carcass you may want to pick it off and use in the soup.  However by this time most of the flavor has been cooked out and it may be a little pasty tasting.

Brown rice adds nutrients.

Place the turkey stock back into the soup kettle and add the diced onion and celery, carrots, turnip, and potatoes.  Simmer for 20-30 minutes until tender.  Taste the stock and if needed enrich it by adding bouillon until it is flavorful and full bodied.  At this point the soup can be turned off or simmered over lowest heat.  About 20 minutes before serving time bring the soup to a boil.  Add the noodles and cook according to package directions.  Add the parsley and diced chicken or turkey and return to a boil.  Place 1/2 C. rice into each serving bowl then ladle the pipping hot soup over the rice.  Top each serving with shredded cheese and serve with crisp crackers.

Add a sprinkling of shredded cheese.

The yield of this recipe really depends on how much broth you make and you can tweak the amounts of the add ins accordingly.  I consider 1-1 1/2 cups of stock per serving.

Bacon Ranch Cheese Ball and Easy Taco Soup for Supper

Bacon Ranch Cheese Ball is Prepared and Ready for Thanksgiving.

Delicious Taco Soup.

When I saw this recipe for Taco Soup I thought it sounded just as good and easier than the one I have always made.  Plus it sounded just right for the run up days before Thanksgiving.  So, yesterday I checked my ingredients and committed to throwing it together today.  I have adapted this recipe from  highlandsranchfoodie.com    The name of the blog convinces me it has to be good!

I also want to try this cheese ball as I am certain in a household of Ranch Dressing lovers who also LOVE bacon it will surely be a hit!  I adapted this recipe from one bouncing around Pinterest right now.  It only took a bit of tweaking from me.

Ingredients for Easy Taco Soup:

1 can drained pinto beans
1 can drained kidney beans
1 can drained black beans
2 cans drained yellow corn
1 large can tomatoes broken up with your fork
2 C. beef stock
1 pkg. Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing
4 T. Taco Seasoning
2 pounds ground beef chuck
1 onion diced
2 cloves garlic minced
1/2 C. water
pinch red pepper flakes
salt and pepper to taste

Crumble the ground beef into a dutch oven or large heavy bottom kettle and brown over medium high heat.  Meanwhile between stirs dice the onion and garlic and add to the pot and cook along with the beef.

Add the remaining ingredients and simmer over low heat at least 15 minutes or longer watching and adding water it it becomes too thick.  Or transfer everything into a slow cooker and simmer over lowest heat setting to meld the flavors.

Serve with shredded cheese, tortilla chips, diced avocado, or sour cream.   Yield 10 servings.

Ingredients for Bacon Ranch Cheese Ball:

2-8 ounce bars of Philadelphia Cream Cheese at room temperature
1/2 C. shredded cheddar cheese
juice of 1/2 lemon
1 C. crisp cooked crumbled bacon
1 pkg. Hidden Valley Ranch Dip Mix

Place the soft cream cheese in a medium mixer bowl and beat until soft and creamy.  Add the Ranch Mix, lemon juice, Cheddar cheese, and 1/2 cup of the bacon and mix thoroughly.

Using you hands form into a ball.  Roll in the remaining bacon crumbles.  Refrigerate at least 1 hour before serving with assorted crackers or crisp celery sticks.  Yield 1 cheese ball.  

This is wonderful to make ahead and cover in the refrigerator for a few days for the flavors to meld.  It is nice to have things like this tucked away during the holiday season and ready to pull our as needed,  I serve with assorted crackers, pretzels. or crisp vegetables .

Asian Chicken Mushroom Broth or Soup, Good for What Ails You! And, Preserving Lemon Grass.

Steaming Hot Asian Chicken Soup.

We have had more issues with illness this fall than ever in our 40 years of marriage!  Friday my poor husband had a temperature of 103 degrees F. by the time I got him into our doctors office.  That is a lot of temperature for an adult.  So I am pulling out all of the stops!  Doing everything I know to do to help get him back on his game again.

I had already started juicing as noted in earlier posts and today I broke out the chicken soup!  The special chicken soup chocked full of the herbs and vegetables that are known to have curative properties,  I am hoping this will, along with the medicines from our doctor push him over the top and get him back to his happy and well self.  This is his third lung infection in as many months!

Ingredients for Asian Chicken Mushroom Stock or Soup:

(Stock)

2 chickens
2 large onions quartered
14 cloves of garlic
2-3" piece fresh ginger sliced
2 hot peppers
2 stalks of lemon grass bruised
2 C. shitake mushrooms
water
chicken bouillon cubes
salt
black pepper
1 C. dry *Goji berries (found at Asian markets and Health food stores alike.)
********************************************************************
(Soup)

Cooked cooled rice
Sliced green onions for garnish, optional
Diced chicken, optional
Diced carrots, optional
Diced celery, optional
Frozen peas, optional
Soy sauce, optional
Hot sauce, optional

Combine the first 8 ingredients in a very large stock pot and cover until the water is 2" deep covering the chicken.  Bring to a boil and simmer 1 1/2 hour.  Remove the chicken to a large platter to cool.
Add salt, pepper, and bouillon to the stock to taste.  Add the Goji berries and simmer at lowest setting for 20 minutes more then turn off the heat.  Remove the chicken from the carcass.  At this time you can strain the stock and freeze for use later.  It may be served pipping hot in a mug or you can add chicken, rice, and vegetables and serve as a soup.

To serve as a soup bring a portion of the stock to a rolling boil.  Add desired amount of the raw diced vegetables and simmer 15 minutes or so until tender crisp, add cooked diced chicken and return to a boil.   Place a half cup of cooled rice in a serving bowl and ladle the hot stock atop the rice and chicken.  Garnish with sliced green onions, hot sauce,  and a splash of soy sauce if desired.

If you freeze some of the stock leave 1" head space.  Cooked rice and cooked chicken also freeze well.  This concoction settled my husbands stomach and he was better next morning.

*Goji berries are a newly discovered super food known to have great restorative properties.

My pot of Lemon Grass was handy to have still sitting out on the patio to make this.  I realized it was going to be our first hard freeze tonight!  The temperature predicted to drop to 28 degrees!  So I pulled it all up,  cut the tops down to about 6",  and cleaned off the bulbs much as you would a green onion, but they are much harder and fibrous.  Using my butcher knife on a cutting board I trimmed the bottom root off.  After drying them of any moisture from rinsing them I placed them into a freezer bag and stowed them in the deep freeze to use another day.