This warming soup, inspired by Sage Mountain Farm's recipe, takes full advantage of San Diego's winter bounty. This is a flexible recipe, so feel free to increase the veggies and substitute what you have in your CSA box for any ingredients you don't have on hand. To make it vegan, simply omit the chicken and cheese and start with a vegetable broth as your base.
Ingredients
- 1 local chicken (whole or use equivalent weight in boneless pieces), broken down
- 1 bunch carrots, chopped
- 3 celery stalks, chopped
- 1 onion (large), chopped
- 2 tomatoes (medium), diced
- 1 small bag tomatillos, diced
- 8 cloves, divided garlic (3 cloves minced, 3-5 whole cloves)
- 1" finger, more to taste Fresh ginger, grated, chopped or sliced
- small handfuls Herbs: fresh sage, rosemary, thyme, 1 bay leaf
- 1 winter squash (medium butternut or delicata), peeled, seeded, and cubed
- 1 sweet potato (medium), cubed
- 4-5 baby potatoes, quartered if they are large, halved if small
- 2 apples, diced
- 1 zucchini, cubed
- 1/3 cup long-grain brown rice
- to taste salt and black pepper
- 1-2 lemons, halved
- 1/4 cup, more to taste shredded Parmesan cheese
Instructions
1. Boil chicken in a large pot of water (about 8-10 cups) with chopped carrots, celery, onion, tomato, tomatillos, garlic, ginger, and herbs for one hour.
2. If using bone-in chicken, remove chicken from broth, shred and discard bones, then add shredded chicken back to the pot. Dice remaining vegetables and apples and add them to your pot. Cover and simmer for an additional 45 minutes, adding more water as needed.
3. Add 1/3 cup long-grain brown rice to pot and cover. Simmer for another 15-30 minutes, or until rice is tender. Remove from heat.
4. Season with freshly ground salt and black pepper, to taste. Finish with a generous squeeze of lemon juice and a sprinkle of freshly grated Parmesan cheese, if you like.
