I am proud of my boys and thankful that tonight they were a bit adventurous (or tolerant) of their mother’s need to make soup for dinner. I offered a small compromise in the form of corn tortilla chips with queso . This is the soup I made for dinner, from scratch and it was good!
Acorn Chicken Soup 2 boneless chicken breasts 1 small acorn squash 8 cups chicken broth 1 medium onion chopped 6-10 gloves of garlic chopped 2 carrots, peeled and chopped 2 stalks of celery chopped 1/4 c chopped flat leaf Italian parsley 2 bay leaves 1 c fregola pasta season with sage, thyme, basil, red pepper flakes to preference
Slice squash in half, scoop out the seeds, lay cut side down on a cookie sheet and bake at 350F for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool. Once cool enough, peel and then cube the squash. Set aside.
In a Dutch oven, saute the onions, celery, carrots, garlic and parsley with olive oil. Once onions are wilted and starting to brown on the edges, remove from pan. There will be bits of everything left in the pan. Place chicken breast in the pan, cover with 1 cup broth, cover and simmer on medium heat until just done. Remove chicken from broth. Once cooled, shred or cube. Add back all the veggies, the seasonings and the rest of the broth. Cover and let simmer for 20 minutes. [Optional: scoop out all the veggies and discard. I do this because my sons are finnicky enough. Flat leaf parsley will be an insurmountable gastronomic expectation.] Add back the chicken breast and the fregola. Cover and bring to a slow boil for 20 minutes. Add the squash and recover. Boil for 15 more minutes. Serves 6 as a starter or 4 as a meal.
This is fregola pasta. My newest favorite. 