Warm-Your-Soul Chicken Soup

​Your grandmother was right: Chicken soup is one of the best remedies for a common cold, and judging by the number of people in Anchorage coughing and sneezing, looks like this recipe is going to be worth its weight in gold. 
The ingredients of a basic chicken soup are not fancy in any way; chicken broth, chunks of chicken, vegetables, and maybe some salt and pepper for seasoning. But it's exactly those elements that make it good, and good for you. Hot broth soothes a sore, scratchy throat; vegetables provide vitamins, and chicken is thought to have anti-inflammatory properties, perfect for the achy, stuffy head. 
The Flying Chef recipe goes a bit further, with a bunch of onion, a few potatoes for bulk, tomatoes, and some heat from spicy peppers. I cook it in a crock pot, but a deep dutch oven will work as well; just make sure heat is low and slow for best results if you go that route.
Serve this soup in big mugs, with some warm bread, and perhaps a blanket and cozy fire. 

Spicy Crockpot Chicken Soup
Ingredients:
1 large yellow onion, thickly sliced
2 large potatoes, peeled and sliced in to chunks
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
3 stalks of celery, chopped
4 cloves garlic, crushed or minced
4 tomatoes, cut in quarters or eighths
1 bunch cilantro, chopped
2 jalapeños (remove seeds), diced
1 bag of frozen sweet corn
2 tsp salt
2 tsp cumin
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp black pepper
2 cups chicken broth (want to make your own? Go HERE) 
2 or 3 cups leftover chicken, cut in to bite sized pieces


Procedure:
Honestly, there is no real technique; just put all ingredients into the crockpot or dutch oven, and cook for six to eight hours on low (if using stovetop, add ingredients, bring to boil, reduce heat, and simmer on low for two hours). Need soup faster? Hit "high" on the crock pot for four hours, but longer and slower is always better. 

~TFC 

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