Cold-Weather Series: Chicken Noodle Soup

  What happened? I had plans to start this blog and cram it with tasty budget food -- then somehow, the time got away from me. 

It's time to try again -- and what better than a bowl of chickeny-golden goodness. A bowl helps with sniffles (it's a fact!) and reminds you that Life can't be all bad. 

Try it with the biscuits in the previous post. Or toast. Or crackers. Dip them in the broth and slurp them down -- I won't tell.

CHICKEN NOODLE SOUP 

LIKE MAMA (HOPEFULLY) USED TO MAKE

1 chicken breast, chopped (if you deboned a breast, keep the bone, as well)

2 chicken bouillon cubes

8 cups water (add more later, if needed)

1-2 chopped carrots (about a cupful)

chopped onions (ditto)

chopped celery (ditto ditto - leaves included)

--plus any bits and pieces of leftover veggies you've got in the crisper--

1 teaspoon basil, marjoram -- or both

slight bit of garlic (about 1/8 tsp)

2 teaspoons each of salt and pepper (fresh-ground, if possible)

1/2 package noodles

Dump everything but the noodles in a kettle or slow cooker. Simmer for at least 3 hours -- and preferably 7-8 on low. Ten minutes before you plan to eat, turn the heat up remove the bone and add the noodles. Serves up to 6 hungry people -- the soup will stretch to 8, if you add more water, two more bouillon cubes, more veggies (if you've got them) and the full package of noodles.

You don't have to go without, if your time is limited. Try this semi-homemade version, instead-- here.

Cold-Weather Series (Our First): Biscuits & Gravy

    As the weather gets colder, and the holidays approach, your cooking budget can look downright chilly. We're starting a new series on cold-weather foods that warm your stomach, and keep your outlook downright sunny, as well. Here goes.  (For a while at least, these will also run concurrently at the Holiday Goodies blog, as well. Take a look.)


     Mid-November...and it's only our first snowfall?

That's misleading. Colorado's mountains have been experiencing white stuff for weeks now...but down here in the 'flatlands,' our weather's been warm and sunny. LOTS of warm, especially. No moisture, either.

But this morning, the clouds moved in. The mountains have 'disappeared' off the horizon, and a sleek blanket of white flakes has dropped from the sky.

Time to start thinking about warm, delicious food that doesn't cost TOO much. (After all, Christmas is coming soon.) And what better to begin with than a Brick family favorite:

BISCUITS AND GRAVY.

Daughter #2 will practically kill for this on a cold winter morning. In fact, she wanted to give her high school friend a special gift for graduation -- and took her a plateful, hot out of the frypan. I'm not sure Friend appreciated it as much as Daughter did...but the thought was there.

This is incredibly easy to make, even if you're a beginner. 

You'll need the ingredients for baking-powder biscuits (butter, flour, salt, baking powder, milk;  recipe how-to's and amounts are here), plus 1/2 - 1 pound of sausage meat. About a cup of milk...20-30 minutes, and a little bit of juggling. That's it.

Here we go.

Start frying the meat over medium heat in a frying pan.  (A handful of chopped mushrooms or onions can be added here, if you like. A little chopped kale or red pepper is good, too.) Meanwhile:

Get the biscuits mixed, cut out and baking in the oven.

Your meat should be somewhat brown at this point. Now scrape off the leftover flour from the biscuit-making area, and dump it into the frypan. Stir until flour is absorbed. (If you've already cleaned up from your biscuits, add 1/2 cup of flour to the pan, instead). Salt and pepper generously.

Add a cup of milk, stirring as you go -- mixture should thicken in just a minute or two. Wait until it bubbles, then turn heat down to warm. (Add extra milk or water if needed, to make a thick gravy.)

At this point, your biscuits should be done. Pull them out of the oven, then turn both the oven and stovetop off.
    Each plate gets one or two biscuits, split open and a generous serving of gravy poured over. Serve immediately; leftover biscuits are good for 'dessert,' spread with butter and jam. Serves 2-4.

VARIATIONS:  Start with 1/3 pound of chopped bacon, instead of sausage.
     Or try Red-Eye Gravy:  use the pan juices from fried ham as a starting point. Add a few tablespoons of coffee, along with the milk.


Yummm...

The golden lab(s), that is...

Welcome!

    Hey there -- my name is Cindy.

I grew up on a small farm in central Michigan, not far from the Big City. (Grand Rapids)

We never had much money, but that didn't stop us from eating good.  (Yes, fellow English majors, I know I'm supposed to use 'well' -- but that food was GOOD.)

I was fortunate to grow up with resourceful grandmas, aunts, uncles and my mom. People who knew how to grow delicious food, and stretch what they had to feed a houseful of kids, pets -- and often relatives and friends, who'd wandered in at suppertime: "We thought we'd stop by to say hello," murmured hungrily.

And they all got fed. Well-fed.

Now I live in the flatlands of Colorado, with the Brick, two hungry dogs and a coop-ful of chickens. Our daughters and a boatload of friends often visit. And it seems like they're always hungry!

I've learned a lot in 5+ decades of cooking on a small budget.  And I want to share it with you.

WELCOME!