Chicken Soup for the Soul...

Chicken Soup is one of my favorite things. Homemade chicken soup tho... can't be from a can. Yucky. And, I LOVE roasted chicken. So much flavor, and better texture than plain old chicken breasts, although I use those quite a lot too, in different capacities. A few years ago, when I was working, I became very aware of how much food I was wasting. See, when I learned to cook, I learned to cook for 7 people. So, then I got married, and I kept cooking for 7 people. Couldn't help myself. So, while everything didn't go to waste, more did than I would like. Finally I worked out a system where I would make a few large meals in a week, and stick leftovers in Gladware, and we'd eat lunch and some dinners off the leftovers until they were gone. Worked great.

In my efforts to be frugal, and use my resources, I noticed something. I would roast a chicken and use the meat for different recipes, but then I'd throw the bones out. And, then I'd go to the grocery store and spend $10 or so a month on different broths. (Good chicken broth, organic, free range, low sodium, etc., is TOTALLY worth the money. Makes a world of difference in the taste of your meals.) So, I started making my own broth. Here's my general process with the leftovers of a roasted chicken dinner.

This time I started out with Cat Cora's Saffron Honey Roasted Chicken--YUM! Of course, I can't leave a recipe alone, so after I'd roasted it a bit I added Potatoes, Peppers, Carrots, Celery, and Garlic & Shallots and the like.

Here's her recipe, instructions simplified by me a bit, cuz I'm not typing out detailed instructions for roasting a chicken:

Cat Cora's Saffron Honey Roasted Chicken

1 Whole Chicken

Butter

Kosher Salt

about 1/4 cup Honey

About 2 TBSP Water

1/2 Tsp Saffron Threads

Wash Chicken, Stick in Roasting Pan.

Melt Butter and Drizzle over the top, turn chicken to fully coat, only use enough butter needed to coat Chicken. Salt with Kosher Salt.

Roast Chicken in 400 degree oven.

Mix remaining butter, honey, water and saffron, heat on low till warm. Brush over chicken a few times in the last half hour of roasting.

Make sure internal temp reaches 170 degrees.

There's the basics for ya. :-) I poured the rest of my honey saffron mix over my veggies, and added a bit of chicken broth to keep my veggies moist. It was awesome.

So, once you've eaten your meal, you've got roasted chicken&roasted veggies. Who eats leftover roasted veggies? They're smooshy at this point. So, here's what I do to get at least a few more meals out of my chicken dinner.

Pick your chicken bones, and separate the veggies from the chicken, best you can. Everyone should have chicken pickin' skills.

Or, just make your 2YO do it. Debris is an awesome chicken picker. And, she loves it.

Stick the skins, bones, etc, in a saucepan, and keep the meat separate. Try to not mix them up. I'm pretty much terrible about this. But, mostly I succeed.

Bag up your chicken. LABEL IT WELL! It does you no good if you can't tell what it is after it's been in the freezer a month. Then, put all your roasted veggies in the blender, food processor, etc. While you're at it, pull every kitchen appliance you have out of your cupboards and set around your workspace, as seen below. Take a picture and send it to me, so I can feel better about my kitchen cleaning skills. :-)

Pretty, huh? And, yummy. This will make an awesome, colorful and delish wintertime potato based soup with a little kale and bacon added. Serve with crusty bread, and you look like you've slaved away all day. (If you did, it wasn't over dinner!!)

Again, I cannot emphasize labeling enough.

Now, we're on to our broth. Fill your stockpot up with water over the top of the chicken skins and bones.

Here's my basic recipe for broth. Stuff is interchangeable for sure, I've made it before with just chicken, no veggies and spices. Although I think it is better with all this stuff in it.

For this batch I used:

Carrots

Celery (with the leaves! Those add so much flavor!)

Fresh Thyme, Oregano, Basil

Onion

Garlic

Red Bell Pepper (one of my favorite things!)

Fresh Ground Salt and Pepper

Also, can add wine. Sometimes I add red for a darker chicken broth, but if you use white I would recommend a Chardonnay. Most winemakers oak Chardonnay to death, so it's not one I usually care to drink, IMHO the grape doesn't usually stand up to the oakiness that well. But it gives great depth of flavor to chicken broth. If you use red, I recommend a Merlot. That's some stuff that can handle all the oak! Columbia Winery makes a reasonably good Chardonnay that won't break the bank. Bogle Vineyards makes a good Merlot, also. These are both in the $8-10 range.

Anyway, on to the process... VERY rough chop your veggies.

I usually don't even chop my herbs. Just stick them in the pot. There's a lot of flavor in the stalks, and this will all get strained at the end, so it's not necessary to cut anything small. I usually leave most of the seeds in my red peppers cuz I think they're yummy.Stick this stuff all in the pot, bring to a boil and then turn down to Med/Low or so, and let simmer for at least an hour, or longer if necessary. Just remember to add more water as needed. I usually start mine in the morning, and let it go for a few hours while I do other things around the house.

After it's boiled, stick it in the fridge for a couple hours, couple days, whatever, to cool. Scrape the fat off the top, and proceed with straining. I strain it into my Pyrex measuring cup. That way I can have specific amounts of broth frozen. Usually I do one 4 cup bag (for soup), one 3 cup bag (for soup), two or three 2 1/2 cup bags (cuz that's the amount I need to make rice for our family--broth makes rice taste awesome!), and one 1 or 2 cup bags for miscellaneous uses. That way, whatever recipe I'm making I'll can just peel the frozen chunk out of the bag, and stick it in the pan or pot, and it's the perfect measurement.

Sadly, this stuff has been boiled to death, and has reached the end of it's usefulness. Toss it!Now, next time you're sick, pull out a bag of broth, a bag of roasted chicken, some pasta, and maybe a carrot or two. Bring to a boil, give it a dash of cayenne to clear your nose out, a pile of fresh grated parmesan (cuz everything is better with parmesan) and enjoy! So worth it!