Chicken Noodle Soup

Hacking and whacking a chicken into pieces is a great way to release pent-up tension. The bonus is when all that hacking and whacking leads to chicken stock, and even moreso when there's a natural progression to chicken noodle soup.

I eat a lot of soup-- it's an easy lunch, and during the winter, it's a comfort.  Add a piece of toast or a grilled cheese sandwich and you've pretty much got me hooked. The only problem is that despite my adoration of soup and it's cousin stew, I don't make it often enough. This means I resort to a canned, oversalted version that still gives ease when it comes to packing a lunch quickly but certainly gives up a lot of flavor in return.

The answer?  Bite the bullet and cleave the chicken.

First, I make stock. Then, that stock turns into soup.  Then, that soup goes into my mouth and I'm ridiculously satisfied.

This recipe is adapted from Cook's Illustrated The Best Recipe.

Chicken Noodle Soup 

Stock

Tools: heavy cleaver, very sharp chef's knife, kitchen scissors, large bowl, plate, large stock or soup pot, cutting board, measuring cups and spoons, strainer

Ingredients: one whole chicken (4-5 lbs), 2 quarts boiling water, 1 tablespoon vegetable oil, 1 medium onion at medium dice, 2 tablespoons kosher salt, 1 celery rib with leaves, 3 medium or 2 large bay leaves

Okay, so, hacking a chicken up the first time can be kind of tough.  I know the first time I did it, I was grossed out and decidedly not very good at it.

But the key is practice.  First, I had to get over my fear of the raw chicken. So what if it looks like a skinless, headless, baby?  Put that thought aside and concentrate on what matters: it will be delicious! It's waaaay more economical!  It's not like I have to behead and pluck the thing, so break out the knives and have at it!

I've used a few different books to guide me through the dismemberment of a chicken body, but they all boil down to the same thing: find the weak spots and use them to your advantage.

When making chicken stock, the most flavor can be extracted when the bones are cut into smaller pieces.  According to the editors of Cook's Illustrated, this allows chicken pieces to "release their flavorful juices in a short period of time."  

This guy demonstrates it with ease:

I'm totally not that skilled. (Again, practice!)  

Once you have your chicken separated into parts, you'll want to break out the meat cleaver and hack everything but the breasts into smaller pieces.  Start with the back, cleaving it into three or four sections, then cut those sections again into halves.  Cut the wing at each joint, leave the tip intact and hack the other two pieces into halves.  The thigh and leg bones can be hacked into three or four pieces each.  Now, it's time to bust out the stock.  

In your stock/soup pot, heat the oil over a medium flame or heat setting until it gives off that familar shimmer and starts to let out wisps of smoke.  Add the chicken breasts and gently sautee them on each side. 

 

Remove the breasts and set them aside.

Add the onions and sautee until softened, about four or five minutes.  

Remove the onions to the large bowl.  Add 1/3 of the chicken pieces to the pot and cook them until there's no longer any pink.  Repeat with the rest of the chicken peices.  Once everything is sauteed, add all the pieces (except the breasts), the celery rib with leaves, and the onion back to the pot.  Reduce heat to low and cover that pot.  Simmer until the juices are released and your kitchen starts to smell a little ridiculous.  While the peices are simmering, you should bring 2 quarts of water to a boil.

     

Add the water, salt, bay leaves and chicken breasts to the pot.

Cover and simmer for another 20-25 minutes until the chicken breasts are cooked through.  Remove the breasts and set aside.  Strain the stock into a large bowl or other container and discard the peices and parts.  

Skim the fat from the stock.  Once the chicken is cool enough to handle, remove the skin and shred into pieces.

Oh, snap-- you just made ridiculously divine stock-- now, what to do with those breasts?

Why, make chicken noodle soup of course.

Tools: Measuring cups/spoons, cutting board, sharp knife, peeler, soup pot (you can use the same pot), wooden spoon or spatula

Ingredients:  2 tablespoons chicken fat or vegetable oil, 1 medium onion cut into a medium dice, 2-3 large carrots (or 1 cup of baby carrots) peeled and cut into 1/4 inch rounds, 2-3 celery ribs cut into 1/4 inch slices, 1 recipe (2 quarts) of chicken stock + the shredded chicken breasts; 2 cups of wide egg noodles, 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme, 1/4 cup of fresh parsley (or 1.5 tablespoons dried parsley flakes) ground pepper & salt to taste

Heat the fat or oil in the stock pan over medium heat.  When it's ready, add the onion, carrot and celery and saute for about 5 or six minutes until it's soft and slightly coloring.

Add the thyme and stir.  Add the shredded chicken and stir.  Add the stock and simmer for about 15 minutes to let the flavors get cozy with one another.  

      

Add the noodles and cook for about five minutes, until they are starting to tender.  Add the parsley, and then salt and pepper to taste.

Serve with a grilled cheese sammich (made with whole wheat bread) and enjoy heaven in your mouth.

This makes about 8 portions.  We usually have one bowl the first night and then I package up the rest in individual servings for lunches and maybe even a quick dinner the next night.

Chocolate Mayonnaise Cake

Ok, ok, ok.
I'll admit it.  When I first heard the words mayonnaise and cake together, I had the reaction that most people do: EW.  Then I thought about it for a second-- mayonnaise is just eggs, vinegar and oil (with a teensy bit ofsalt, dried mustard and pepper) and cakes need fat and eggs.  Chocolate flavors are always punched up by vinegar, and I have a few chocolate cake recipes that use vinegar exclusively for that purpose.  So why such an aversion to mayonnaise cake?

I did a little research and realized this kind of cake has probably been served to me on more than one occasion, because another typical name for it is War Cake or Depression Cake, and it's apparently very popular among the Mormons and in Utah.  I'd  be shocked if this wasn't the chocolate cake served at many a church outing, and I'd wager even a Job's Daughters potluck or two.

Still, the idea of plopping some mayonnaise into a cake batter still turned my stomach.  I'm really not a big fan of mayonnaise, and it's main purpose in my life is for cheeseburgers, french fries, and egg salad.  When Nate makes me a tuna sandwich, he knows: go super light on the mayo.

Despite my aversion, I was still fascinated by the idea.  So when Nate asked for a mayonnaise cake for his birthday, I figured it was the perfect opportunity to test the recipe and put the "ew" feelings to rest once and for all.  This cake is just about as simple as a cake can get and I had everything I needed in my pantry.  The only real difference between recipes was the frosting, which varied from fudge to brown sugar to buttercream to whip cream.  I decided to practice my vanilla buttercream frosting for this cake, because I wasn't sure how chocolate on chocolate would work out and I'm not keen on brown sugar frosting. (Nate gave me a serious look when I even mentioned it!)

Chocolate Mayonnaise Cake
Tools: Measuring cups and spoons, mixer or spoon & whisk for mixing, two 8-inch cake rounds.
Ingredients:
Cake:
      1 cup mayonnaise
      1 cup white granulated sugar
   3/4 cup cold water
      2 cups all purpose flour
      4 tablespoons unsweetened baking cocoa (I prefer Ghiradelli)
      2 teaspoons vanilla extract
   1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

Frosting:
   3 cups powdered (confectioner's) sugar
   1 cup softened butter, unsalted
   2 tbsp very hot water
   2-4 tbsp whipping cream or half-n-half
   2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp almond extract
pinch of salt



Preheat the oven to 350.  Grease and flour two 8 inch round cake pans.

Sift together and then whisk the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt to distribute evenly.



Whip the mayonnaise and white sugar together until throughly combined.



Slowly add the cold water and vanilla until mixed, and then the flour mixture, beating on medium speed for two minutes.



Pour the batter in measure into the prepared pans and bake for 20 to 25 minutes.  Let cool in pan for 10-15 minutes, then remove to wire rack to cool before frosting.



Frosting:
--I didn't take pictures of this, but it's pretty simple.

Cut the butter into chunks.  Add the butter to the confectioner's sugar and beat on low speed until it starts to look crumbled.  Slowly add the hot water and increase the speed to medium high.  Cream until light and fluffy.  Add the vanilla and almond extract.  Continue beating, adding a tablespoon of cream at a time until you reach the desired consistency, and ta-dah!



This cake turned out to be pretty delicious.  The original recipe I used said this would fill two 9-inch rounds, but unless they're measuring with some other kind of inch, an 8-inch round is the max.  The cake didn't rise quite as much as some others I've made with cake flour, butter and eggs but it had a distinct moistness to it that I really enjoyed.  Next time I think a lighter frosting is in order, to really highlight the chocolate flavor. I was surprised by the intensity of the chocolate! I could eat this this cake plain with a glass of milk and the world would be A-OK.





Fin!

Why On Earth Have I Been Buying Bread?

Bread-making is intimidating.

There's no mincing words: it scared the shit out of me.  The BFF works at a bread company, and I know what good bread is supposed to taste like.  The last time I'd made bread, I was a helper to my step-mother and I was ten.  And I didn't do much other than add some flour and punch the risen dough once or twice.  When I thought of making bread, I thought: hand-kneading, giant mess, an entire day spent on something I can buy at the store.

For the past month I've been watching what I eat, counting calories and trying to work off some of this quit-smoking-stopped-exercising-started-baking-like-mad-weight, and that includes reading a lot of labels on foods. And while I don't know that I'm quite on the "high-fructose-corn-syrup-is-the-food-apocalypse" bandwagon, I have noticed that it's in quite a lot of bread.  Not only that, but there's also a lot of other crap in bread that doesn't really belong there- things to preserve shelf life and maintain flavor, added vitamins and fiber because most people don't eat enough on their own, and a vast difference in calories, sugars, and salt between the different brands.

I looked at a few recipes online but went back to my Best Recipe cookbook from Cook's Illustrated to read a little about making bread and it's different components.  While learning about the different kinds of flours and bread types I realized-- DOH!  I have a standing mixer with a dough hook at my disposal!

So I decided, screw it.  I'm broke and can't do much outside of the house, and a ten dollar investment in a couple of different flours and some yeast will at least keep me entertained for a couple of hours, and I might even come out with some really good, homemade-i-know-everything-that-went-into-it bread.

So I give you:

Whole Wheat Bread with Wheat Germ and Rye Flour
This is a bread you *can* make by hand, but I haven't tried.  The recipe makes two loaves, and the editors of Cook's Illustrated pretty strongly discourage making this with a low-horsepower mixer.  Even my pro standing mixer got a little hot while kneading this with the dough hook on low, so I'd take their word for it.

Tools:  Measuring cups & spoons, standing mixer, instant read thermometer, two loaf pans, spatula, surface for kneading, large bowl, plastic wrap or kitchen towel
Ingredients:
2 1/3 cups of warm water (110 degrees)
1 1/2 tablespoons of active dry yeast (that's 1 tbsp + 1.5 tsp)
   1/4 cup honey
      4 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
2 1/2 tsp salt
   1/4 cup rye flour (I used dark rye flour)
   1/2 cup toasted wheat germ
      3 cups whole wheat flour
2 3/4 cup all purose flour, plus extra for work surface



Grab your standing mixer's bowl.  Use the instant read thermometer to make sure your water is as close to 110 as possible to get the best activation from the yeast.  I used tap water and just waited for it to get to temperature.  Add the hot water, yeast, salt, honey and butter into the bowl of the standing mixer and stir together with a spatula.



You'll start to smell the yeast pretty quickly.  If that doesn't get you salivating, I don't know what will!

Add the rye flour, wheat germ and one cup each of the white and wheat flours and stir until mixed.



Snap your mixing bowl back onto the mixer. Attach the dough hook.  Mix in the remaining flour slowly on low speed until it's smoth and elastic.  The first time I did this it took the full eight minutes, but the second time it only took seven.  They aren't kidding when they say that temperature, barometric pressure and humidity play a big part in how the dough comes together!



While that's working, I clean my workspace and "lightly" flour it.  The first time I did this, I floured a lot lighter-- but this sticky, sticky dough really needs a good surface that it won't stick to, so if you're worried about the denisty of your bread and adding too much flour during the first quick knead, use a tiny bit less of the AP flour.  I can't tell a difference in the bread between the first and the second time, so honestly I wouldn't sweat it-- the ease of moving the dough outweighs any negligble change in texture or density.



Transfer the dough to your floured surface and knead just long enough to confirm it's soft, smooth and ready for the rise.  This should really take longer than 45 seconds if your standing mixer has done it's job. (Yay, dough hook!)

Place the dough in a lightly greased container or bowl about twice the volume of the dough.  You really don't want it to be able to get too crazy with the rise, so don't use a  bowl that dwarfs the dough.  Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a damp kitchen towel.  (I'm going kitchen towel next time but I used plastic this time.)



Let the dough rise in a warm, draft-free environment (I put mine in the microwave or oven if I haven't been baking something else) and let rise for about an hour, until the dough has doubled in volume.

Get your surface floured again, if it's not still prepared, and grease your loaf pans lightly.



Punch that baby down gently and divide into two equal pieces.  Press each peice down until about an inch thick and shape into a rectangle that isn't longer than your loaf pan. (Seriously, follow that advice because otherwise it's a pain in the ass to squish it together.)  With the long side facing you, firmly roll the dough into a cylinder.  You can make this pretty tight, because you want the dough to stick to itself.  Pinch together the seam, flip it, and put it seam side down into your loaf pan.  Press it down and flatten it until all the edges tough the sides of the loaf pan.



Turn your oven to 375 so that it's preheated.

Cover the loaf pans with plastic wrap or a kitchen towel and let the dough rise for twenty minutes or so.  You want it to be nearly double or double in size.  Pop those bad boys in the oven.



Bake at 375 for 20-30 minutes, or until the instant read thermometer shoved in the middle reads 205 degrees.

Transfer immediately from loaf pans to wire rack to cool to room temperature.



Slice and enjoy!



I am excited to get this bread recipe down pat and try a few others.  I'm totally over the intimidation and am even more stoked on lunchtime sandwiches.  I love the slight sweet undertone the honey provides this bread, and the heartiness added by the wheat germ.  The rye flour really helps give it a solid base flavor.  Nate and I devoured a whole loaf the first day it was made, and I made tarragon chicken salad with some leftover roasted chicken and put it on this bread- delicious!