Italian Chicken Soup

I always think if you have to cook once, it should feed you twice. If you’re going to make a big chicken and vegetable soup for lunch on Monday, you stick it in the refrigerator and it’s also for Wednesday’s dinner. ~ Curtis Stone

Italian Style Chicken and Vegetable Soup

On Tuesday of this week, another foot of snow blanketed upstate New York. My husband, who was working from home, and I watched the fluffy snow crystals fall from the heavens at the rate of an inch per hour. Since nothing is as it appears, we realized that what we perceived as serenity and purity was a big nuisance to the people who had to climb into their cars and navigate the icy roads. Thank goodness for the perception differences that allow us see nature’s glory.

Snowy weather definitely calls for hot soup, so I decided to make Italian chicken soup. This recipe originally appeared in a Pillsbury publication many years ago. It was so good that I have been making it ever since.   A few alterations make this more bountiful.

In a large soup pot, heat a tablespoon of olive oil. Add the chicken and cook until it is lightly browned. NOTE: Do not crowd the pan when browning or the chicken will steam rather than brown. Remove the browned chicken to a bowl as you continue to cook all of the pieces.

Add another tablespoon of oil to the pot, and brown the onion, celery and garlic until soft yet still crisp.

Stir in the basil, pepper, water, broth and tomatoes. Add in the cooked chicken and bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat and cook on low for one hour. Stir in the corn and cook for an additional 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, bring a pan of water to a boil. Add salt and cook bucatini, broken into fourths, for 10-12 minutes.

To serve, put some pasta in a bowl and add soup. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.
NOTE: For soups that require pasta, I cook the pasta in a separate pan and add it to the individual bowls when served. This helps to keep the pasta al dente when the leftovers are reheated.

There is something so soothing about chicken soup.  It’s probably because our Moms and Grandmothers made it when we were sick to make us feel better.

Italian Chicken Soup

By Patricia Rio Published: February 7, 2014

• Italian Chicken Soup

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  1 vote, 5.00 avg. rating (97% score)
• Yield: 4-6 Servings
• Prep: 35 mins
• Cook: 1 hr 10 mins
• Ready In: 1 hr 45 mins

I always think if you have to cook once, it should feed you twice. If you're going to make a big chicken and vegetable soup for lunch …

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 large boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into 1
• 3/4 cup diced onion
• 3/4 cup diced celery
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 1/2 teaspoons dried basil
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 cup water
• 20 ounces chicken stock
• 1 14.5 ounce can stewed tomatoes, undrained
• 10 ounces frozen corn kernels
• 1 1/2 cups bucatini pasta, broken into fourths
• 2 tablespoons parmesano reggiano cheese, grated

Instructions

1. In a large soup pot, heat a tablespoon of olive oil. Add the chicken and cook until it is lightly browned. NOTE: Do not crowd the pan when browning or the chicken will steam rather than brown. Remove the browned chicken to a bowl as you continue to cook all of the pieces.
   
2. Add another tablespoon of oil to the pot, and brown the onion, celery and garlic until soft yet still crisp.
   
3. Stir in the basil, pepper, water, broth and tomatoes. Add in the cooked chicken and bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat and cook on low for one hour. Stir in the corn and cook for an additional 5 minutes.
   
4. Meanwhile, bring a pan of water to a boil. Add salt and cook bucatini, broken into fourths, for 10-12 minutes.
   
5. To serve, put some pasta in a bowl and add soup. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. NOTE: For soups that require pasta, I cook the pasta in a separate pan and add it to the individual bowls when served. This helps to keep the pasta al dente when the leftovers are reheated.