I made chicken broth the other night. I always keep a bag of chicken bones and parts in the freezer and it tends to get full just about the time I run out of chicken broth. I cannot remember the last time I bought a can or box of chicken broth. I freeze my homemade broth, some in 1 cup portions and some in 4 cup portions for soup. Out of a gallon bag of chicken parts and broth to cover, plus the quart bag of onion ends, carrot ends, and celery tops and ends that I also keep in the freezer I made 4 1 cup portions of broth, 2 1-quart portions to freeze and 1 quart to make soup from.
I started with my mom’s Middle Eastern Chicken Soup. But I used green and yellow zucchini from the garden instead of peas, and parsley instead of dill since my dill had up and died. ;( It was as good as ever. I served the soup with potato pancakes and applesauce. It was a great simple dinner for midweek. So the soup was basically:
This has just a bit of a kick to it, from the cayenne. If your family isn’t fond of spicy dishes, leave the cayenne out or lessen. My youngest just loved this, saying it was spicy but good. My eldest thought it was a tad too spicy, but after finishing up the original small bowl she filled up on potato pancakes so they were both happy with dinner. One spicy thing; one bland thing (the potato pancakes). And I’ve got a good lunch for tomorrow, which is a good thing as the morning is filled with phone calls and a fiddle lesson!
Chicken Soup with Rice and Squash
Ingredients
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 1 onion, diced
- 1 carrot, diced
- 1 celery stalk, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/3 cup raw rice
- 1/2 tsp cumin
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1-2 cups diced cooked chicken
- 1 green zucchini
- 1 yellow crookneck squash
- 1 large tomato, chopped
- the juice of one small lemon
- 3 sprigs fresh parsley, chopped
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Bring the broth to a simmer. Add the onion, carrot, celery, and garlic and simmer 10 minutes.
- Add the rice, cumin, cayenne pepper, and simmer 10 minutes.
- Add the cooked chicken, squash, tomato, lemon juice, and seasonings and simmer another 10 minutes or so.
I can never find enough motivation to make chicken broth at home. We usually cook chicken with bones and all..so really we do not end up with anything to freeze:)
I love the idea of making my own chicken broth. The problem is the size of my freezer. I have too much stuff in there as is! Maybe when I move into a house instead of an apartment and I can have a big freezer.
Soup sounds good!