Good Old Chicken Vegetable Soup

It’s that time of year—runny noses, sneezing, achiness, and watching old movies on TV. In my book that means it’s time to make chicken soup. It really will cure what ails you. Or, well…it’ll definitely make you feel better. Chicken soup is pretty high up there on my list of comfort foods. And, with snow already falling in NJ—yes, in mid-October—I’m envisioning  steaming mugs of soups and stews.

This Chicken Vegetable Soup was one of the first recipes I made when starting on the journey of food elimination. We’d always had Chicken Noodle Soup but at the time I thought giving up gluten meant giving up pasta. It took some searching before I realized there’s a great variety of gluten free noodles and pastas out there.

So, to compensate for the lack of noodles and to avoid a thin, anemic rendition of chicken soup a few more veggies, a potato, and some beans were added. Oh, and a chopped tomato.

You may want to check out Diana Eblin’s The WHOLE Gang blog for a list of more gluten free chicken recipes. It’s this week’s Friday Foodie Fix.

Chicken Vegetable Soup

1 chicken (about 3 lbs.)

1  parsnip 

1  turnip 

1  potato (or a few small red potatoes) 

2  bay leaves 

6 stalks celery 

3 carrots 

1 small onion

2  leeks

1/2 tsp thyme

1/2 tsp basil 

salt and pepper 

1/2 can white beans 

1 tomato

1 tablespoon olive oil

Place all ingredients (except the tomato, beans, two carrots, four stalks of celery and olive oil) in a soup pot. Cover with cool water and bring to a boil.

Reduce heat. Simmer gently for one hour or until chicken falls off the bone. Skim off foam from time to time.

Take the soup off the burner. Remove the chicken and debone it when cool enough to handle.  When the broth is cool strain it from the vegetables. Retain the parsnip, turnip and potatoes. Use the other vegetables for some other purpose or discard.

Dice or slice the remaining celery and carrots.  Sauté them in the olive oil in a separate pot large enough to hold the soup for a few minutes. Pour the strained broth into the pot. Bring to a simmer. (Can add some chopped greens — escarole or spinach — at this point if you have some on hand.)

Dice the tomatoes and add to the simmering soup. Once the vegetables have softened (10-20 minutes) take the soup off the heat. Dice the already cooked parsnip, potatoes, turnip, and chicken and add, along with white beans, to the pot.

Add salt and pepper to taste and serve.

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Mojito Mint Chip Ice Cream

OK, so what prompted ice cream making in the middle of the coldest fall since I don’t know when?

I could tell you it’s because I’m sure Indian Summer is just around the corner. That I’m prepared for the upcoming hot spell since there’s now about a pint of Mojito Mint Chip Ice Cream in the freezer. (Not buying it?)

Truth is the grocery store had some really nice mint and there was a freshly opened can of coconut milk in the fridge. I’ve been wanting to make Mint Chip Ice Cream and this weekend the opportunity just presented itself.

This isn’t just any Mint Chip Ice Cream. It’s Mojito Mint Chip.

Mix mint, lime, sugar and rum and you’ve got a pretty nice Mojito. And, guess what? That combo makes a pretty nice Mojito Mint Chip Ice Cream, too.

Mojito Mint Chip Ice Cream

2 cups coconut milk*

2 cups fresh mint leaves

1 teaspoon arrowroot

1/3 cup sugar

Pinch of salt

3 teaspoons fresh lime juice

2 tablespoons light colored rum (optional)

About 12 mint leaves

1/3 cup Enjoy Life Chocolate Chips

Wash, dry and coarsely chop the mint leaves.

Heat the coconut milk in a heavy bottomed saucepan over medium heat until it’s hot. It does not need to reach a simmer.

Take the pan off the heat and add the mint leaves. Stir to assure the mint is fully immersed in the milk. Cover the pot and let stand for about an hour.

Pour the infused milk through a sieve into a ceramic or glass bowl. Press the mint leaves to release all the milk. Discard the mint leaves.

Return the mint infused milk to the saucepan. Whisk the salt, sugar, and arrowroot into the mixture. Bring to a simmer over medium heat whisking frequently taking care not to burn the milk. Add the lime juice and if you’re including the rum, add it now. Turn down the heat and stir for a few minutes to let the liquid thicken slightly.

Take the pan off the burner and let it cool. Transfer to a glass or ceramic bowl and refrigerate for a few hours until it’s cold.

Pour the cold mixture into your blender, add the 12 mint leaves and blend a minute or so until the mint leaves have been reduced to flecks.

Freeze according to your ice cream maker’s directions. (Mine took about 20 minutes to freeze.) Just as the ice cream starts to thicken add the chocolate chips.

Place the ice cream in a container and then into the freezer. It will get very hard so let it defrost about 5 minutes on the counter before you serve it.

*Use a better grade of coconut milk—not coconut cream or light coconut milk.

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