It’s been a rough week.


Wouldn’t you know, the morning of our anniversary, A. would wake with a 101 degree fever? Of course.


My girlfriends and I have been known to commiserate about the ‘man flu’. You know…the way our men get helplessly pathetic when they have the slightest cough. They moan, they whine, they’re completely worthless. And, we dote on them. Because it’s our job…it’s what we do.


Us women? We continue on with the worst of colds. We work, we cook, we take care of the things that need to be taken care of… Without complaint. (Until everything’s said and done, of course. But, that’s another story.)

So, the morning of our two year anniversary, A. woke complaining of his scratchy throat, his achy body and his pounding head and I thought, “hmm…man flu…it’ll be gone soon, especially with a bit of my attention.”


Sadly, I was wrong. A. had it pretty bad. It wasn’t just a teeny cough or a slight allergy induced headache. He was full-on sick. For a week. It pretty much sucked.


So, being the good wife that I am, I pulled out that anniversary chicken and made him a get-better-goddammit-chicken-soup.


And, it seemed to help. That and the glass of whiskey I served with it (old family remedy).

Get Better Chicken Soup

6 cups chicken broth
2 cups water
at least 2/3 of a roast chicken, shredded or cut into bite-size chunks
1/2 cup chopped onion
4 gold potatoes, cubed
5 carrots, sliced
1 bunch green onions, sliced
1/2 – 1 cup greens, chopped
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 T butter
juice of 1 lemon
1/4 cup Italian parsley, chopped
2 T bouquet garni (A fantastic spice for chicken soup. Find at Penzey’s or most specialty markets.)
fresh ground black pepper, to taste
grated parmesan
smoked paprika
Preparation:
Combine chicken broth, water and chicken in large pot. Bring to boil over medium high heat. Reduce heat to medium. Add potatoes. Cook for 5 minutes. Add carrots and onions. Continue cooking over medium heat.
Meanwhile, saute garlic in butter. When garlic is soft, remove from heat and add lemon juice. Add mixture to soup mixture. Add greens, parsley and spices. Cook until vegetables are soft and spices are melded, about 10 minutes more.
Serve topped with grated parmesan and a couple of smoked paprika sprinkles.

Another Hearty Soup – Smoked Sausage Cassoulet