soup

Aaron had a sore throat this weekend so I made him a chicken soup with the stuff I had around the house. It's a pain to get to the grocery store for an item or two, so I just made something up based loosely on the memory of a recipe for Bohemian Chicken Soup out of the Canyon Ranch Cookbook packed in a box not to be found for several years, most likely. It's warm and yummy and slightly spicy, which helps scratchy throats.

Made up Bohemian Chicken Soup

2 onions, chopped

1 clove garlic

1 tbsp oil

salt and pepper (lots)
cayenne pepper, several dashes

1 tbsp Bell seasoning

red pepper flakes, 1 dash

2-3 chicken breasts, cubed

2+ cups chicken stock (I like the Trader Joe's Fat Free Low Sodium Free Range Organic)

water enough to make it a soup

2 cups fresh cauliflower, chopped in big chunks

1 cup broccoli (I only had frozen)

handful of mushrooms (I used dried shiitaki, but fresh button are better)

Dumplings:

1/4 cup whole wheat flour

1/4 cup regular flour

some Parmesan cheese (2-3 tbsp)

2 tbsp. skim milk

1 egg

cayenne pepper (several dashes)

salt and pepper

I sauteed the onions and garlic in oil and added the spices. After translucent, I added chicken and some water. after a minute, I added stock, mushrooms, and several cups of water. I let this cook a few minutes, then added cauliflower. Because I used frozen broccoli, I added that 10 minutes later so it wouldn't get soggy. 5 more minutes, then I added the dumplings, slowly, plopping small portions of the dough off the edge of a spoon into the soup. Then it was done. And Aaron's throat cleared up.