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A Warm Winter Soup that Works Year-round

Quick Italian Chicken Soup

By Joan Leotta

Soup is a year-round staple at our house. We have replaced Sunday pasta (moved to Monday) with soup, to finish off a weekend with something light. Sometimes we accompany the soup with a salad or bread but the soup is always the star of the Sunday supper.

Rest Your Feet, Rest Your Soup

Making soup allows us to rest more and to invite others over who want a simple supper. And when making soup on top of the stove, one thing I find particularly important is the “rest.” Resting is important in making almost every soup. I start the soup, cook until finished, let it rest for at least an hour, and turn up the heat again.

Also important is separate cooking for noodles and rice. I don’t like the sheen of gluten in my soup. And if those soups are left over, the noodles or rice become mush. I cook my pasta separately to just below done, strain, and then put in a strainer in the soup. This way no pasta will escape while the noodles absorb the broth and leftovers will taste fresh. My grandmother did it this way and I simply follow her lead.

Soup is easy to personalize with whatever you like in addition to the basic recipe. By its nature, soup isn’t exact in process or ingredients, so it’s easy to cut down to just two servings or multiply to serve many guests.

Soups can be brothy or creamy. I’d like to put together a Soup Sunday Cookbook with 52 recipes from the years of Soup Sundays we have enjoyed, including recipes from friends and family.

Courtesy of Joan’s Grandma with tips from Aunt Helen

Grandma made this in large amounts starting out with a whole chicken and water. This version needs less cooking time and uses a no-MSG broth to fortify it and a couple of chicken thighs. Cooking the soup with the bones gives a good avor. If you are really in a hurry, clever Aunt Helen made the soup with no meat. It was done when the veggies were soft, about 20 minutes.

Serves 2

2 bone-in chicken thighs (Can be roasted rst for 30 minutes at 350˚) 2 carrots, chopped 1 stalk celery, chopped 1 medium onion, chopped 1-2 cloves of garlic, chopped 3 Tbsp. olive oil 1 can (15 oz.) no-MSG chicken broth 1 can (15 oz.) diced tomatoes, and a half-can of water Parsley, basil, salt, and pepper to taste ½ cup pastina or orzo or rice Grated Romano cheese (optional)

Sauté the chicken thighs, carrots, celery, onion, and garlic in the oil in a large pot until the onions and veggies are soft. Add the broth, diced tomatoes, and water.

Cook this covered for 30 minutes and then another 10 minutes uncovered on low, until the chicken is cooked through and the veggies are soft. Cover again, turn it o , and let it rest for 10 to 15 minutes. While it’s resting, cook the pasta or rice to just under done.

Heat the soup again. With the lid o , put the pasta into the soup in a strainer so it will not disperse but the pasta will gain a bit of the soup avor.

Serve with grated cheese.