Roasted Vegetable and Brown Rice Soup

Though this soup is not most visually alluring soup, it is so,so tasty.  The roasted vegetables bring a depth and flavor concentration that make it hard to remember there isn't any meat in there!



Oh..and it's easy too!


Ingredients:

2 quarts of Chicken Stock
2 medium Broccoli Crowns
2 small Zucchini
2 Carrots
10 Mushrooms
1 Onion
1 clove Garlic, chopped
3 Tb Sesame Oil
2 Tb Tamari
3/4 cup dried brown rice

Ingredient Explanation:  Store bought chicken or vegetable stock are good substitutes for the real thing.  Make sure you get stock though and not broth.  Tamari is a wheat free soy sauce substitute.  Soy sauce works great here too. 

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2. Chop the broccoli, zucchini, carrots, mushrooms and onion in your favorite soup eating shape.  I prefer a medium chop. 


2. Drizzle a bit of sesame oil on the sheet pan and add your chopped vegetables all mixed together.  Add chopped garlic and top with a bit of sesame oil and a drizzle of tamari. 

3. Put the vegetables into the oven for 40 minutes and while those are roasting, bring chicken stock to a boil in a pot big enough to hold the stock, rice and vegetables.

4. Once stock is boiling add brown rice and turn down to medium low.

5.  After 20 minutes stir the vegetables.  At 40 minutes the veggies will be ready to add to the stock.  They may look a little past done but that is when they are perfect!


6. Cook for 20 more minutes to bring the flavors together and to get the rice to the appropriate consistency and then you are done!  Enjoy!

Rich Chicken Stock

The ultimate comfort, aromatherapy feel good food.  Chicken stock is not only good for chicken soup (although it rocks there too!), use it when cooking rice, polenta or your favorite grain.  It makes everything taste better!

So simple Directions:

Put into a pot (at least 5 quarts):

Roasted Chicken Carcass
Several Stocks of Celery
Several Carrots cut in half
Several Onions
Couple Cloves of Garlic
3 Bay Leaves
Bunch of Peppercorns
1 Tb. Apple Cider Vinegar

Cover with water and bring to a boil.

Ingredient Explanation:  You may have noticed the vagueness of my measurements.  That is because chicken stock is vague by definition.  What you have on hand gets thrown into a pot and miraculous, amazing broth emerges.  Though do note that there is not need to cut off the leaves or the skins of your vegetables, wash them and rough chop them into several pieces and you're good! 

Also note, making sure you have roasted your chicken and picked it of the majority of the meat is wildly important.  To amp up the flavor after you have thoroughly picked your chicken throw it into the oven at 350 degrees for an hour before you throw it into the pot.

Once stock comes to a boil reduce to a slow simmer and let roll for 4 hours or so.   (On my electric stove I bring it down to 3)

Strain the liquid out and put strained stock back on the stove to simmer for another 2 hours. 

This step isn't entirely necessary but makes the stock so full and delicious you won't want to skip it, plus I find that I need to add less salt if I do this step as all the flavors concentrate.  Once the stock is cool enough to taste, here is where you will add salt for the first time.  Add sparingly.  You can always add more as you cook with the stock but you can't take it away. 


Voila!  Amazing stock.  You can use this right then or let it cool and put it into the refrigerator overnight.  The next day skim off the fat and use. 


(Note:  If you have made this stock properly it will set up in the refrigerator like Jello.  This is not fat it is collagen and it is the yummy goodness.  The fat is usually white or yellow and is on the very top. )