Every day my inbox gets flooded email newsletters. There are a few, however, that I secretly love to read. One of those is the Epicurious Recipe Flash, which gives a sneak peek at Epicurious’ new recipes and featured articles. Yesterday the “6 Foods to Fight the Flu” guide caught my eye. Sam and I decided to make the Hearty Chicken Vegetable Soup featured in the guide. Like many of the people who made comments on the recipee, we decided to make a few changes of our own: we switched the amounts of chicken broth and water; added a chopped potato, a glug of Marsala wine, plenty of fresh herbs; and Sam insisted we add diced jalepeno to give it kick (and I’m glad we did!). The recipe below reflects our changes, but feel free to change it however you like.

 

Hearty Chicken and Vegetable Soup

Ingredients

Serves 4-6

• 4 cups chicken broth
• 1 3/4 cups water
• 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 4 medium carrots, cut diagonally into 1/3″ thick slices
• 2 medium celery ribs, cut crosswise into 1/3″ thick slices
• 1 medium potato, cut into 1/2″ cubes
• 2 tablespoons Marsala wine
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley
• diced jalepeno for garnish

Directions

1. Bring water and broth to a simmer in a 2- to 3-quart saucepan. Add chicken and simmer, uncovered, 6 minutes. Remove pan from heat and cover, then let stand until chicken is cooked through, about 15 minutes. Transfer chicken to a plate and cool 10 minutes. Reserve poaching liquid, uncovered.
2. While chicken is poaching, cook onion in oil in a 4-quart heavy pot, covered, over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until softened but not browned, about 6 minutes. Add garlic and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add carrots, celery, salt, and pepper and cook, covered, stirring occasionally, until softened, 8 to 10 minutes. Add poaching liquid and marsala wine and simmer, covered, until vegetables are tender, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat.
3. While vegetables are cooking, shred chicken into 1/4-inch-wide strips (about 1 inch long). When vegetables are done simmering, stir chicken into soup along with parsley, herbs and jalepeno.

Recipe adapted from Epicurious. Read the Flu Foods Guide.