Cold Weather = SOUP!

So how many times have you felt the crisp coolness of the fall weather and said, "This is Soup weather." ? Well, not only do I do that, but I make the soup too! I've found that, lunchtime can be a bit of a struggle for "what to eat". This is more often then not when we choose to eat out instead of something healthy. This definitely will have an impact on my ever growing waistline and turns out to be a bit expensive too. Never fear! Ween is here!!
Yes, soup, it's what for LUNCH! Every day, I have a bowl of soup for lunch. Not those salty, processed, canned soups, Heck No! But Home made, and delicious soups that take little effort and they just bubble into the most wonderful lunches! With a good base, then most any soup is possible.

I find that, for me, home made chicken stock is super easy and definitely delicious. How do you make it? You ask? Well, it takes just a few things and a little time.
1. I always start off with a whole chicken. I use this meat either in my soups, or I use it for a meal like chicken tacos or chicken spaghetti.
2. An onion - Really, what is soup without an onion? I cut up an onion and put it with the chicken.
3. Celery - A few stalks of celery cut up into big chunks is another must for a good soup base.
4. Carrots - The last "must' in my chicken stock. Peel a few carrots, and cut up in chunks as well.

Now your ready to start the stock making process.. Is that a real process/?  Fill the really big stock pot(hopefully you have one) with water and add some seasonings.. such as.. I add Onion Powder, Garlic Powder, Season salt.. and good amount of regular salt. Then.........let it cook. Thats right, just let it cook.
Not for 30 mins, not for an hour.. let that sucker cook for 2 to 3 hours. Make sure it doesnt go dry, but let that sucker cook. If you cook it a long time, the flavors will all come out into the water and you will have some awesome broth.
If you lucky, you can just make a bunch of stock and freeze it for when you want it. I usually make it, then start my soup once the stock is done. This weeks soup? Chicken Soup with Orzo pasta.

Easy to make. I simply take the already made stock from the information above and add to it,....
The chicken meat that you pulled off the whole chicken from the stock.
One onion, diced
Four or Five Carrots, peeled and chopped into small pieces
Three or Four Celery stalks, diced

I let these ingreedients cook for a while, (hour or so) so that the veggis are nice and soft. It is then that I add the pasta
1/2 to 1 Cup of uncooked orzo pasta - depending on the size of your soup.
I also let this cook anywhere from 30 mins to an hour.
IMPORTANT -  Season your soup. Soup cannot survive on broth alone, it must have salt and pepper and any other seasonings you see fit, like Onion powder or Garlic Powder. I dont have measurements for your seasonings because I do not know how large your soup pot is or how much you made, so use common sense, taste it and add a little at a time. :)

Once it's done, I let it cool a bit and put it into lunch size containers for us to enjoy through the week. Healthy, delicious, and I only cooked once for a weeks worth of lunches!
Next time your thinking about whats for lunch, think about a nice bowl of soup.