Submitted by Aliza Chernitzky
My husband teases me that I casually mentioned to him once while we were dating, “Oh, by the way. I don’t know how to cook.” Being that my mother-in-law is a fantastic cook, he simply responded, “Oh.” and politely tried to disguise his concern.
And why, exactly, should I have known how to cook? Growing up, my parents owned a dairy restaurant in Cherry Creek called the Mediterranean Health Café where my siblings and I waited tables. Why would I make the effort to cook or bake when my parents were so talented? Why would I spend time baking a cake when my mother would come home regularly with amazing cookies, cakes and pies? And besides, I was far more interested in spending that time hanging out with my friends! Fast forward a few years, and indeed I did call my mother and mother-in-law for many recipes and dove headfirst into the cookbooks I received upon getting married. My husband is very relieved that I learned how to cook which is why he can tease me about that comment made decades ago!
I have found that I absolutely love cooking and baking, especially for Shabbos and holidays. My kids particularly love the chicken soup that I make for each Shabbos. When they are not home, they tell me how they missed it! If you’re looking for a recipe that delivers lots of flavor without any unhealthy
additives, check out the recipe below.
Ingredients
- 4-4.5 lbs chicken bottoms (This is key. The ratio of chicken to water is what gives the soup boldness of
- flavor.)
- 5 large carrots, cut into thirds
- 1 large onion
- 3-4 stalks of celery, sliced
- 1 sweet potato
- 1 large turnip or rutabaga
- Handful of sliced mushrooms (optional)
- 12 cups of water
- 1 container Imagine vegetable broth
- 1 TBL salt
- 1/2 TBL pepper
- Dried dill
Directions:
- Combine all ingredients in a pot besides the broth and dill. Bring soup to a boil.
- Lower heat and simmer for 2-3 hours
- Add the broth for the last half hour (by adding the broth at this point you get the full flavor without it evaporating during the cooking.)
- After soup has cooled, skim the fat, and strain (My kids like when I take out the sweet potato after the initial cooking as it falls apart and adds little orange pieces to the soup when reheated.)
- Sprinkle a few shakes of dill and enjoy.
- Yields 14-16 servings
