I was feeling a little under the weather yesterday. Probably just a cold, but I had a cough and some sniffles.
Chicken soup is the cure for that, or so I am told. Thankfully I had the ingredients for this soup on hand.
I almost always have a chicken carcass or two in my freezer. I always save them when cutting down chickens to make a dish.
Cooking the carcass with the onion, parsley and celery leaves gives the broth a lovely poultry flavor. You could get this from store purchased broth. But, I love doing things from scratch and using the whole bird.
The barley gives the soup some heartiness. It is sturdier than rice, but not quite so much as noodles. It is a nice middle point.
I actually liked not having any actually chicken in the soup. It had plenty of chicken flavor though!
It was the perfect soup to curl up on the couch with. It really is good for your soul - not feeling well or not!
CHICKEN SOUP
2 Chicken Carcasses
1 Onion, Sliced
3 Tablespoons Butter
5 Cups Water
1 Sprigs Parsley
1/4 Cup Celery Leaves
1 1/2 Teaspoons Salt
4 Teaspoons Pearl Barley
2 1/2 Cups Boiling Water
1/4 Teaspoon Salt
1/4 Cup Diced Carrot
1/2 Cup Thinly Sliced Celery
2 Tablespoons Parsley
Brown bones and onion lightly in heated fat in a soup kettle. Add butter, 5 cups water, parsley sprigs, celery leaves and salt. Heat to boiling. Reduce heat and simmer for 2 hours. Strain. Drop pearl barley into boiling water. Add 1/4 Teaspoon salt, cover and simmer for 1 hour and 15 minutes. Add strained broth to barley with carrots and sliced celery. Boil 10 minutes. Sprinkle servings with parsley.
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