chicken soup -- it'll cure what ails you.
except for the clap. if you've got the clap, you might want to get that shit checked out. seriously.
for the rest of us, however, home-made chicken soup has the power to turn the tides of war in the epic battle between sickness and health.
my favorite chicken soup isn't made w/ chicken at all; it's made w/ hotdogs. when i was a kid, my mother would prepare a similar recipe anytime i was under the weather. i've updated the mom's original w/ a fresh technique and the addition of some chopped greens, in this case kale.
agini bebe soup w/ hot dogs
1 cup celery, small dice
1 cup onion, small dice
1 cup carrot, shredded
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 quarts chicken stock
1 quart water
1 bay leaf
2 cups agini bebe pasta
4 hotdogs, sliced on the bias
2 cups kale, roughly chopped.
evoo, as needed
salt & pepper, to taste
1. in a 6-qt pot, add about 2 TBS of olive oil and get to sizzling temp. add the celery, onions, carrot, and a HEAVY pinch of kosher salt. lower the heat and GENTLEY sweat the veggies medium-low until limp, not browned (the veggies should barely sizzle) -- 8 minutes. add garlic and cook until fragrant, 1-2 mins.
2. add the chicken stock and water to the veggies. bring to a boil, and then reduce to a simmer. at this point, feel free to add any number of fresh or dried herbs to the mix. i'd go w/ a bay leaf (fresh or dried) and handful of parsley stems. simmer for about a half-hour, making sure to frequently skim any "gunk" that rises to the top.
3. at the 30-minute mark, remove the bay leaf/herbs out of the pot and add the agini bebe pasta. bring to a boil, reduce to an aggressive simmer. cook for 10 minutes. after 5 minutes, add the sliced hot dogs and chopped kale. cook for another 5 minutes.
taste. season. serve.
© 2009 c. c. villani @ "mission: insatiable" - http://missioninsatiable.com
