Inventing the Spring Chicken…. Soup

Triumphant Test Kitchen!

I love my chicken soup (as many of you know) and I created the Yucatán-ish soup (another regular pot now) in one go from a base recipe, meanwhile the “healing soup” took me months to perfect – (while healing from a relationship breakup – I knew I’d finally succeed with the perfect soup!) But Friday I wanted something lighter and without pasta – so while pondering making my favorite chowder – crab and chanterelle with bacon, I decided I needed 3rd chicken soup in my repertoire – one that was lighter (for spring), less ethnic than Mexican, more good veggies and that I could invent by taking my favorite parts from each of the 3 aforementioned soups – in a way that hopefully would combine well.

I set to work with my fave new bone broth – made with rotisserie chicken bones, added the lime bits from YS – then the usual mirepoix and garlic to start – adding zucchini as I had one that needed to be used, made my roux – then added creamed corn (the last in my freezer of fresh corn from the cob that I froze late summer a couple years ago – as my mother, a good ole farm gal, taught me to do) and diced potatoes (thinking of chowder) and got the soup going. Added a can of green chilis (thinking of my Thanksgiving leftover turkey soup) – Good, but nothing special, maybe even a little bland.   Added some parsley and threw it in the fridge for the night.  Yesterday morning, craving my new soup for breakfast, I warmed it back up, added a LITTLE cream and ladled out small bowls to test some ingredients – cilantro (too strong), lemon juice, lime juice, spinach and decided to use the bacon as garnish vs. putting it IN the soup.   Lime juice and chopped fresh spinach won spots in the dutch oven!  Adjusted seasonings and now we are talking!   That was moving toward – you got it – YUM!   The bacon garnish is awesome!  Took some over to Carrie’s porch while it was hot (asking for another opinion) and got a text back 15 mins later “Wow, that is good!”    decided the potatoes and parsley added little value, and wrote the rest down (yes, I DID) – it may benefit from a few more tweaks, but this is a keeper!!  As I’m the original spring chicken (remember, 7 year old Nora thinks I’m 36!), I thought that was a perfect name (at least better than “lighter, more veggie chicken soup with bacon”

What’s your favorite chicken soup?

today’s yummy bowl:

making broth – and a great tool for straining it!

testing one, two, three….

• This topic was modified 4 years, 6 months ago by Vicki.