Most of my posts here are recipes. And I have to tell you that I fully intended this post to be a recipe. But, as usual, I didn't use measuring utensils and I forgot to write anything down, so now, you have yourself here a technique piece. I hope you enjoy, and I will definitely try to take measurements the next time I make some of my soup :)
You know what I love about soup? There aren't very many rules. You don't have a chemical reaction, as in baking. The only thing you really need is the broth and something to put in it. I used to be a very picky eater. Going by my old standard, I'm a positive foodie now. But others, I know, would still classify me as picky. That's fine. I'm happy trying things at my own pace.
What does that information matter to you? Well, I had never tried parsnips or turnips before my Mother-in-law put them in some homemade chicken noodle soup at Christmastime in 2011. And she didn't ask me if I would mind if she put them in, she just did. So I braced myself before tasting that first bite. And you know what? The flavor of that broth, that soup, was so much more improved I couldn't believe it was still just your basic chicken noodle soup! The parsnips and turnips added such a richer flavor note that I loved it. Truth be told? I put turnips and parsnips in every pot of chicken soup I make now. I find that when I leave it out, the flavors are just too lacking for my taste.
Now, this past weekend, both of my boys were down with pink eye (bacterial) and a virus. And I had just developed an ear infection. I was tired and just wanted some comforting food. When I'm sick like that, and it's cold to boot, the only thing that spells comfort food to me is s-o-u-p.
But I really didn't have it in me to boil a whole chicken to get the broth and the meat for my soup. And I didn't want a whole 4 qt. stock pot full of soup to freeze and keep. I decided to compromise - I went to the grocery store and picked up a medium parsnip, a large turnip, and deli-counter roast turkey breast (I didn't realize it was turkey until I got home and was opening the package; no matter, it was still delicious) that had been previously shredded. So that cut a ton of time off the top for me. I peeled and diced my parsnip and turnip and some carrots I already had on hand. I tossed in two handfuls of my previously chopped and frozen onion and celery and a couple teaspoons of chopped garlic and sauteed them all in 2 Tbsp. of butter to release the flavors and soften them. Then I poured in 6 c. of water and 2 Tbsp. of better than bouillon soup base (chicken flavor). I brought it to a roiling boil for somewhere between 15 minutes and a half hour (I'm not sure on the time because one of my kids pooped his diaper, the other was having a potty crisis, and my husband wasn't home). Basically, I got my veggies good and cooked in the broth. But then, instead of adding my herbs, chicken, and pasta, I ladled half of my soup up and put it in a pyrex to cool on the counter a bit before freezing. You see, now I have a ready-made soup base, to which I will only need to add meat, seasonings, and a starch! Voila! After I had the set-aside portion dished out, I added some water (the boiling had reduced the liquid level), my shredded turkey, and a half a box of ditalini. I brought it back to a boil to cook the pasta and then I was ready to go. I had my semi-homemade soup and quicker solution for the next time I might want to whip up some soup, semi-homemade style. And really, setting aside a portion to freeze and use as a soup-base later worked very well, because I had much less soup I felt compelled to eat right away. And by using just the veggies and the broth, I can add whichever meat and seasonings I want to change the style of the soup.
So now you know that I like soup as comfort food, and that I love turnips and parsnips in my soup. Seriously, you have to try them. But I also tend to add both dill and parsley to my homemade chicken noodle soup. I read an article in a Women's World issue that talked about the different health benefits of all of the components of chicken noodle soup and each had health benefits (I can't remember what they were, but they were good). I had never thought to add dill to chicken noodle soup before that article. Parsley was pretty standard (as long as I remembered), but the dill was a new thought. Well, as with the turnips and the parsnips, I loved it. You can almost always find dill and parsley in my homemade chicken noodle soup now. And I really don't feel like I need to add more than that - those simple ingredients combine together to bring such a wonderful, full flavor to my soups that I don't even need to add any other salt and pepper.
What is your favorite addition to chicken noodle soup? Have you ever had parsnips and turnips before? Would you try them?
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