My Daily Challenge: Chicken Cheese Soup

I’m embarrassed to admit this—especially when so many of my friends  on the mainland are buried in snow. I am cold! This is one of our favorite cold-weather soups. My children like this soup so much that in the summer they ask me to make it and they eat it while they sweat.

Chicken Cheese Soup

3 large chicken breasts

Poach the chicken in a pot of water along with ½ an onion, 1 stalk of celery and 1 bay leaf. When done, cool and shred the chicken and reserve 2 c. of the broth.

2 stalks of celery, chopped

sliced mushrooms, as much as you like

about ¼ c. butter

2 cans, cream of chicken soup

2 c. reserved chicken broth

½ c. milk

1 lb. Velveeta cheese, cut into cubes

½ c. sharp cheddar cheese, shredded

After you’ve poached your chicken, melt the butter in a pot over medium heat and sauté the celery and the mushrooms.

Add the reserved chicken broth and cans of cream of chicken soup. Stir until combined.

Fold in the shredded chicken and add the milk. Add the Velveeta and the cheddar cheese. Stir until the cheese has melted.

Ladle into bowls and serve with salad and bread.

This soup is our family’s favorite. It’s very rich and filling comfort food, but so good!

My Daily Challenge: Chicken Parm Soup

Today is a soup day in Hawaii. We don’t get too many of them, so I hope to take full advantage of it.

This soup is one that our entire family enjoys and it only takes about 15 minutes to make. I got the recipe from Rachel Ray’s book, Just in Time.

4 T. Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1 pound of chicken breast, chopped into bite size pieces

   Salt and pepper to taste

4 garlic cloves, 3 chopped and 1 halved

   Red Pepper flakes, to taste

1 (28-ounce) can of crushed tomatoes

1 quart (4 cups) chicken broth

4 thick slices of Italian or sourdough bread

1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1 cup fresh basil, shredded or torn

Preheat the broiler.

Heat the EVOO in a soup pot over medium high heat. Add the chicken, season with salt and pepper, and cook until lightly browned, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the chopped garlic, salt, pepper and red pepper flakes to taste. Stir in the tomatoes and chicken stock and cook until heated through.

While the soup cooks, char the bread on both sides under the broiler. Rub with the garlic halves and drizzle with EVOO, then mound with handfuls of Parmesan cheese. Return to the broiler to melt the cheese.

Turn off the heat and stir in the basil. Ladle the soup into bowls and float the toasts on top. You’re done! Enjoy!