Best Chicken Soup Recipe for Colds and Flu

So you are under the weather huh? Has your family spread their sickly germs around and you are just waiting for your turn? Maybe you don’t live near your mother close enough to take advantage of her cooking and caring for you. Are you coughing? Can’t breath through your nose and you’re wheezing? Feel like a cold’s coming on or you know you got one bad?

Well continue to read and get this great recipe I have concocted which creates a few twists to your normal homemade chicken soup recipe made specifically to help clear your nasal passages, open your airways and to help you start to feel better as soon as you have your first spoonful.

Containing fresh garlic, onions, rosemary, jalapenos, red cayenne pepper, cumin, scallions – it is with these fresh ingredients that help shorten your cold and open your airways allowing you to breath, aids in making your coughs productive and take rest to start healing.

How this recipe came to being:

Recently, my partner’s son was in from overseas, and while my guy was preparing for his son’s visit, he went out and bought what seemed like the farm when in came to the amount of chicken he brought home. I never had so much frozen chicken in my house. And though we hadn’t had our first colds of the year, we started taking turns every week in making our versions of homemade chicken soup. We came up with many versions – all delicious, each having their own characteristics and variations of added seasonings.

What we learned is that homemade chicken soup regardless of how you make it, or what ingredients you put into it, hot chicken soup is always good for the body and soul especially when you are feeling under the weather.

Now we obviously know there are a lot of moms and grandmothers out there who swear (OK they don’t actually swear, well at least some of them don’t swear out in public – OK some of them do and you probably have seen those few moms on the Jerry Springer show, but I digress). But these mothers and mothers of mothers certainly promise that their chicken soup recipe is simply the best to help cure colds – one thing is for sure, mothers (including yours were right). Sipping hot fluids really do help thin out mucous sputum and help open up the nasal passages – and as there are a countless number of ‘mothers’ out there, there are certainly a countless number of different versions of chicken soup to help you during your colds…

There really are scientific results stating how hot chicken soup can shorten a cold’s duration while relieving symptoms – so what are you and I waiting for? Here’s my latest version. And if you are curious to read wikipedia.com’s comments on the history and healing properties of chicken soup – simply click…

My version with the added red chili pepper flakes and sliced jalapenos really help open up your airways and allow your nose to actually breath again while the fresh rosemary helps your lungs function. So shall we get started cooking?

The cooking process is rather simple, you will be adding the ingredients along with the chicken and water and allowing it all to boil then simmer for at least 90 minutes until the chicken is done. Then removing the chicken allowing it to cool so that you can remove the meat from the bones. Then cooking your noodles separately if you want to add them to your soup, then adding the last of the reserved veggies to your soup and returning the now-deboned chicken along with the noodles to the soup and serving it up to you and your family.

Ingredients:

• One large Soup Pot
• chicken pieces – I used three leg quarters (legs and thighs)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 stalks celery – diced (reserve one stalk)
• 2 jalapenos – diced (or more)
• 2 medium sized onions – diced
• 3 large carrots – diced (reserve one carrot)
• 2+ teaspoons kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon fresh cracked pepper
• 1 teaspoon+ red pepper flakes
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 4 tablespoons of FRESH rosemary, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin
• 4-6 whole ‘cloves’ of allspice
• 2 large bay leaves – fresh or dried
• 6-8 cups of water
• 2 tablespoons of ‘better than bouillon’ chicken flavored paste (optional)
• 4 stalks of scallions – diced and added at the end.
• 2 cups dried noodles (optional & cooked separately near the end)
• chopped fresh parsley or cilantro added at end or to the bowls when serving.

Directions:

• Gather your ingredients and place your large stock pot on your stove or even use your slow cooker.
• Add olive oil to your stock pot (if you are using your slow cooker omit this step and simply add your ingredients to the slow cooker starting with the vegetables first, then add the chicken, then the water and turn it on)
• Remember to reserve one celery stalk, one carrot and all the scallions – you will be adding those last to the soup pot once your chicken has cooked and you have removed the meat from the bones and replaced it back into the soup – this keeps them slightly crunchy and adds color)
• Add diced onions, celery and carrots to the mix and turn the heat under pot.
• Allow the vegetables to sweat for 5-7 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• While vegetables are cooking, remove skin off chicken and separate legs from thighs.
• Add chicken to pot, add all remaining ingredients: garlic, spices, salt and pepper, jalapenos, etc. (except for one carrot, one celery stalk, scallions)
• Add water to pot enough to bring the water level to about one inch from the top.
• Allow to come to a boil, then lower heat and allow the soup to simmer for at least 90 minutes.
• Scoop out chicken. Let cool slightly so it is easier to remove meat from bones.
• While noodles are cooking (see next step) and chicken is cooling, add the reserved diced carrot, celery and scallions to the soup.
• When removing meat from the chicken bones, I like to keep the chicken in chunks.
• Cook noodles separately and when done drain and rinse noodles before adding to soup.
• Serve up in bowls to feed your cold and starve your fever!

Variations & Tips:

• You can easily allow this to cook for much longer of course, just remember, the longer you cook the chicken in, it might be a bit ‘drier’ despite it being cooked in the soup.
• Adding additional jalapenos or red pepper flakes at the end will bring up the ‘heat factor’ opening up the most stubborn of stuffed noses.
• Adding a squeeze of lemon juice to the bowl will also up the vitamin C content.
• You can ‘cheat’ with the chicken and buy a pre-cooked roasted chicken, remove meat from bones and ’start’ the soup with the bones only and adding the meat after 90 minutes. – This is especially helpful for those too weak and need a quick fix of chicken soup. Just be sure not to add any of the skin to the soup.
• By adding the jalapenos, red chili flakes and cayenne pepper in the beginning, the soup takes on a gentle heat mellowing out the spiciness of the jalapenos. I personally like to add more red chili flakes and sliced jalapenos into my bowl just before serving to make it extra spicy – it gets my nose passages to open up so fast, I simply love being able to breath again.

So share with us how you healed you and your family using my version of chicken soup.  Hope you are feeling better real soon!

Roast Beef or Rib Eye Roast Beef Hash – Left Over Dinner Ideas

I had so much rib eye roast left over from the other week’s holiday dinner party, I immediately saved some of it and threw it into the freezer. Making new food dishes from leftovers are easy with using just a little creativity – your family will never know. And with a little preparing and thinking ahead, you can freeze this ahead of time and make it on another day.

Now making hash is not anything new to me, nor making hash out of other ingredients such as roast beef, rib eye roast or from ham. Nor is this idea of making hash out of something other than corned beef new.

In fact, my recipe comes from my ‘family bible’ which lovingly is really just our old cookbook with recipes that are over 60 years old, easily, if not older. Everyone in my family has a copy of this book, which of course is no longer in print, and no I will not share its title with you…sorry, but this chef maven has to keep some of her food secrets hushed.

I happen to have one copy of my mothers and another of my grandmothers, both copies of this cookbook has hand written notes, little additional copies of recipes torn from one magazine or newspaper adhered to the pages are added here and there, making each book special to me. My own copy has in fact my own little notes, such as when I halve the recipe or make 1.5 times the recipe and need to know the exact amount of ingredients. But let’s get back to the hash shall we?

Of course, I love it when it when hash is made from corned beef, don’t get me wrong. But has made with these other cooked meats is just as dandy – I assure you! And with the cost of food as of late, with no chance that they will lower in prices anytime soon, you bet your burned oven mitts I am using up foods in a variety of ways in order to save my family money whle still providing good healthy slow food meals.

So let me show you how to make hash with using left over roast beef, rib eye roast or even ham. This is not your mashed up hash people – which is one way I would never serve any hash quite frankly in my home. It’s sort of scary looking if you do make hash all mashed up – since to me it looks like baby food, and since we are not babies here – let me show you how adults eat and make REAL hash.

Ingredients:

• 2-3 cups left over cooked roast beef/rib eye roast or ham – diced into 1-1/2″ cubes or larger sizes.
• 2 or 3 cups boiled potatoes cut into same size as your cooked meat – we have used red potatoes normally – but any type of potato will do as long as they have been boiled or at the very least par-boiled for 10 minutes. Leaving the skin on is optional.
• 1 large onion – finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves minced
• 5 tablespoons ketchup
• 1 small can of evaporated milk – or 1/2 cup rich milk or cream
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• ***Equipment needed
• Glass pie pan or shallow oven-proof pan, large bowl, slow oven on 300 degrees, one lazy afternoon.

Directions:

1. Grease pie pan or shallow baking dish with butter, including up the sides.
2. In large bowl, add all ingredients and gently stir till combined. You do not wish to mush up the potatoes.
3. Place wet mixture into greased shallow roasting pan or the glass pie dish and place onto middle rack in the slow oven.
4. Stir mixture every 30 or so minutes – gently since as the potatoes cook more, they can become very tender.
5. At last 20 minutes of cooking, you may wish to push up the heat to 375 – to make your hash extra crispy.
6. Serve with a large salad for dinner – or throw on eggs on top and bake for 10 minutes in oven for a great looking brunch dish!
7. Voila – real and awesome corned beef hash!

The total cooking time should be about 2 to 3 hours at 300 degrees. I like to up the heat for the last 20 minutes, to 375 to make it extra crispy. But the slow long cooking time really allows for the moisture to evaporate leaving just the wonderful seasonings, crispy parts that thrill your taste buds.

I find that when I make ham hash or roast beef hash, the amazing taste is so close to that of corned beef hash, it always astonishes me. Go figure….have fun with this one!

Sorry I don’t know where this photo came from, but I found it too funny not to share.

National Date-Nut Bread Day is September 8th

Date-Nut Bread reminds me of that canned moist bread you could purchase at the grocery store, yes it is actually canned, like a can of baked beans while date-nut bread also reminds me of fruit cake. I will tell you this, date-nut bread is quite different from both. This is one of those quick breads which in this case, are slightly moist and oh so good for you!

Date Nut Bread

Yield: Makes 12 servings

See Cooking Videos

Ingredients:

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup packed light brown sugar

1 tablespoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup cold butter

1 cup toasted chopped walnuts

1cup chopped dates

1-1/4cups milk

1egg

1/2 teaspoon grated lemon peel

Directions:

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 375°F. Spray 9X5-inch loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray; set aside.

2. Combine flour, brown sugar, baking powder and salt in large bowl. Cut in butter with pastry blender or 2 knives until mixture resembles fine crumbs. Add walnuts and dates; stir until coated. Beat milk, egg and lemon peel in small bowl with fork. Add to flour mixture; stir just until moistened. Spread in prepared pan.

3.Bake 45 to 50 minutes or until toothpick inserted into center comes out clean. Cool in pan on wire rack 10 minutes. Remove from pan and cool completely on wire rack.

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Other Important tidbits of history on this Date, September 8th

Feast of St. Adrian of Nicomedia, patron of butchers – click on link to go to wikipedia.com to learn about St. Adrian – oddly enough tomorrow is Steak Au Poivre Day.

1621 Prince Louis II de Condé, known as the Great Condé, was born. He was a French general who loved to hunt and had a passion for rice. Several dishes have been named for him, including Consommé Condé and Creme Condé.

1636 The Great and General Court of the Massachusetts Bay Colony established Harvard College (New College), the first college in the Americas.

1930 Richard Drew invented Scotch tape.

1966 The first episode of the TV show ‘Star Trek’ airs. Chemically synthesized food on the Enterprise – we seem to be getting close to that now.

1978 ‘Grease’ by Frankie Valli is #1 on the charts

National Coffee Ice Cream Day is September 6th

Photo courtesy of restaurantwindows.com

So on this date, the National Food Day for September 6th happens to be one of my favorite desserts to splurge on: coffee ice cream. Have you ever thought to learn how to make some yourself?

I do not recall the very first time I had coffee ice cream, but I remember even back then I enjoyed the taste of it – though I certainly was not a coffee drinker back then.

As I got older, my tastes would shift as to what was a favorite flavor – I am no longer a huge fan of vanilla, too plain for me, I prefer a rich dutch chocolate or a good coffee ice cream and simply adore to make my own sauces for toppings. In fact I even have somewhere in this blog a recipe for making your very own coffee caramel sauce, a recipe I created and which is truly amazing and decadent to serve up to guests who will easily be impressed. The recipe couldn’t be any easier to make.

Here is a standard recipe for making homemade coffee ice cream.

Homemade Coffee Ice Cream From Scratch Recipe:

Ingredients:

• 6 egg yolks
• 4 tablespoons fresh coffee (finely ground)
• 8 oz (200g) soft brown sugar (light)
• 1 pint (500ml) milk
• 6 fl.oz (approx 185ml) very hot water

Tip: Make sure you use good quality, fresh coffee

Directions:

1. Take the finely ground coffee and pour the water onto it then let it stand for about 10 mins.
2. You then need to remove the coffee grounds so strain the mixture.
3. In a heatproof bowl mix together the sugar and egg yolks, then whisk until thick and pale.
4. Whisk in the milk and the coffee, then put the bowl over a saucepan of simmering (though not boiling) water or use a double boiler.
5. Cook until the mixture is thick (ie. until it forms a layer on the back of a wooden spoon) being sure to stir it all the time.
6. Take the saucepan off the heat and place the bowl to one side to cool.
7. If you want to prevent a skin forming on the mixture you can try covering the surface with a piece of damp, greaseproof paper.
8. When cool, transfer the complete mixture into an ice cream maker and follow the manufacturer’s instructions.

Once your ice cream has thickened in your ice cream machine, then put ice cream into a bowl with lid into your freezer to completely freeze (might take at least four hours) until ready to serve.

Here is one ice cream machine that seems to be worth investing in after I read its many reviews – available at Amazon.com: Cuisinart 1-1/2-Quart Automatic Ice Cream Makers

You can also try different types of flavored coffee too. As for what sorts of coffee to use, I would personally use that coffee which I had just grinded which frankly in my book, makes the best coffee regardless of what type or flavor the coffee is. My particular favorite flavor is Hazelnut, but at your local large grocery store, should you have a coffee grinder Krups Fast Touch Coffee Grinders(I have seen them for $20 on amazon.com) there are many flavors available to you. Make up your own concoction and make your own coffee ice cream today!

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Other interesting tidbits that happened in history on this day September 6th:
Courtesy of foodreference.com

St. Magnus of Fussen’s Day, patron of crops.

1620 The Pilgrims set sail from England aboard the Mayflower.

1800 Catherine Esther Beecher was born. American educator and author of ‘Miss Beecher’s Domestic Receipt Book’, etc.

1892 John Froelich made the first gasoline powered tractor.

1899 Carnation began producing evaporated milk.

~Chef Maven