Large hens, or soup chickens, make the best broth, but the meat can be tough. Sheila solved this problem by simmering a couple of chicken breast halves in the broth at the end of cooking time and then dicing them up and returning them to the soup.
For the broth:
1 soup chicken (3 1/2 pounds), cut into 8 pieces
3 carrots, halved
2 celery ribs with leaves, halved
1 onion, unpeeled, quartered
1 parsnip, halved
6 garlic cloves, unpeeled, crushed
4 sprigs dill
4 peppercorns
Salt, to taste
For the soup:
2 carrots, cut into 1/4-inch dice
2 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves (4 ounces each)
1/4 cup alphabet pasta, or 2 ounces angel hair pasta, broken into quarters, cooked al dente
2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
1. Prepare the chicken broth. Place the chicken in a large soup pot with the carrots, celery, onion, parsnip, garlic, dill, peppercorns, and salt. Cover with 9 cups of water.
Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to medium-low, and simmer, partially covered, for 1 hour. Skim off any foam that rises to the surface. Let rest 10 minutes.
2. Strain the broth. Discard the chicken (which will be tough) and the vegetables, and reserve for another use. Return the broth to the pot. (Makes about 8 cups.)
3. To finish the soup, add the carrots and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium. Add the chicken breasts and simmer, partially covered, for 10 minutes. Remove the chicken breasts, cut them into small cubes, and return to the pot along with the alphabets. Simmer until the pasta is cooked and then stir in the chopped dill. Serve hot.
6 portions
