Soulful Chicken Soup

Check out my blog post today over at Rue - all about gorgeous chicken soups - quite fitting as we're currently experiencing some of the most bone-chilling temps yet this winter.  My solution: a pot full of homemade chicken soup.  Ok, almost homemade.  When it’s too darn cold to even leave your home, you just have to deal with what’s in the fridge – which for moi, happened to be the remains of a rotisserie chicken and a gorgeous, emerald green bunch of kale.  And in under 45 minutes flat, I’d whipped up a steaming pot of a very soulful soup.  Not bad timing when you just want to pop back underneath a cozy wool throw on the couch.  Here the speedy recipe for Rue that’ll have you coming back for seconds.

Chicken & Kale Soup with Parmesan

1/2 yellow onion, diced

2 garlic cloves, minced

3 carrots, diced

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

1 quart low-sodium or homemade chicken broth

1 cup water

1 small pre-roasted rotisserie chicken, meat torn off  into pieces

1 bunch kale, roughly chopped

3 baby yukon potatoes, quartered

salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

2 pinches red chili flakes

1 piece of parmesan or pecorino romano cheese rind *for extra flavor

1 egg, whisked

1/3 cup freshly grated parmesan or pecorino romano cheese

In a large stockpot, heat the olive oil and saute garlic, onions and carrots over medium heat for 4 to 5 minutes.  Add in chicken broth and water, along with pieces of chicken, kale, potatoes, salt, pepper, chili flakes and parmesan rind.  *For a richer flavor, add the carcass of the chicken to the stockpot as well and remove prior to serving.  Bring to a boil, cover and lower heat to a simmer.  Simmer for about 20 minutes, add in whisked egg and cook for 5 to 10 minutes more.  Remove parmesan rind and carcass if using.  Serve with grated parmesan or pecorino romano cheese.