Tis’ the season for being sick every other week for the next two months. My nose is red, my lips are chapped and I’m pretty sure I haven’t been able to properly hear since Thanksgiving.

My boyfriend is a lucky man.

Throughout the years I have developed several defensive strategies against the common cold.  I have chugged  DayQuil through a straw and I’ve plastered so much Vicks on my chest that my co-workers are under the impression I exclusively wear EXTREMELY mentholated perfume.

That being said, there is absolutely nothing that cures me faster than my mother’s homemade chicken soup and I consider it a testament to my newfound adult agency that I can now make this glorious broth all on my own.  (Admittedly when I am sick the first thing I do is call my mom and beg her to come make it for me. Those aren’t my proudest moments…)

For the first time ever I am sharing my mom’s recipe with everyone. Let it end all your sniffles and keep your sinuses clear.

Ingredients:

1 small chicken (3-4 lbs)

1 bag of baby carrots

5 celery stalks

4 chicken bouillon cubes

1 small yellow onion

2 tablespoons of dried parsley

Salt

Pepper

2 cups of white rice

Directions:

Clean small chicken and remove contents of cavity. Rub salt on the chicken and inside it. Cut the small onion in half and place one half of it inside of the chicken. Put chicken into pot and cover completely with cold water. The chicken should be completely submerged with an inch of additional water.

Add the entire bag of baby carrots and 4 celery halves into pot. Next, add approximately 1 tablespoon of parsley and a teaspoon of salt and pepper.Bring contents of pot to a boil. While the soup is coming to boil skim off any fat ( white broth and oil).

When the pot reaches a boil, add the 4 bouillon cubes to four separate places in the pot. Add an additional dash of parsley.

Let soup simmer on low heat for an hour.

After the hour is up, skim off all the fat until the broth looks mostly clear. Remove the chicken, put it into a bowl and rinse it in cold water. Remove the 4 stalks of celery and the onion halve. Discard them.

Cut up 1 1/2 cups of fresh celery and throw it into the pot. Add the other half of onion into the pot. Keep pot covered.

Remove the skin of the chicken and cut it into pieces.Put the pieces into the pot. Add a pinch more of salt and pepper and then continue to simmer for a half an hour.

While the soup is simmering, prepare two cups of white rice.

When the soup is ready remove the onion half.

Soup will be ready to serve and you can add rice as desired to your bowl of soup. I would personally refrain from putting the entire contents of the rice into the soup pot because I prefer my rice a little less soggy. 

Soups on!

An adorable picture of me brewing my cure-all soup.