Comfort by the Bowl

Last month I invited readers to share soup recipes as a way of connection during the cold, darkness of winter. I have been overwhelmed with responses! The process of making soup, the slow cooking, the simplicity of ingredients, the ability to pause and savor, make soup the ideal mindful food. Soup is also part of our collective cultures, it gives us sustenance and connects us when the world feels very divided. I am grateful to my friend Karen for sharing her wonderfully satisfying Chicken and Kale Soup. In the spirit of mindfulness she remarks, "The more you gently simmer it, the tastier it will become"  Enjoy mindfully and keep those recipes of comfort and connection coming!

KAREN’S CHICKEN AND KALE SOUP

Ingredients for One Full Soup Pot
Olive oil
2 large, chicken breasts, with skin and bones
6-8 Celery stalks, leaves included
1 large yellow onion
Big handful of fresh parsley
Ground black pepper, about 2 teaspoons (we like it spicy, less if desired)
Thyme (2 -3 teaspoons dried), lots, if fresh, remove little leaves from stems
3 boxes of chicken broth
1 1/2 pound of carrots (about) sliced into rounds
Several large bunches of washed kale.  Remove leafy parts from thickest stems and chop, not too finely

Recipe
Wash, dice/chop onion, celery, parsley, thyme
Drizzle olive oil into soup pot, enough to cover bottom of pot and a bit more
Saute chopped onions, celery, parsley, thyme, ground black pepper in oil
Stir frequently
When ingredients are thoroughly sauted, add the chicken breasts to pot
Stir the ingredients while continuing to saute, turning chicken breasts frequently to
mix with the celery, onion, herbs
When the chicken breasts begin to brown, add one box of chicken stock, or more, so as to barely cover the chicken with stock
Stir the pot, so chicken stock mixes in with everything else
Bring pot to simmer, add two other boxes of chicken stock
Simmer gently until the chicken meat is cooked and tender
Remove the chicken breasts, let cool enough to removed meat from the bones
Return the chicken meat to the gently simmering pot
Add carrot rings to soup
Add chopped kale to soup
Simmer gently until the carrots are tender
Soup is ready!  Enjoy!  The more you gently simmer it, the tastier it will become!

Serve with some sort of artisan/tasty bread. We like to have St Andre cheese for the bread, or some type of chedder