Time out for sick food

It's cold and flu season here in the upper Midwest, and a college classroom is full of germy students spewing viruses in dry, overheated spaces. Usually my flu shot, frequent hand washing, and policy of not touching door knobs directly works pretty well. But this year, I've ended up with some type of pharyngeal virus. My neck is stiff, my throat feels full of gravel, and my nose burns.

Some ET patients say that colds seem to last longer for them. Not sure if there's any hard science behind the claim, but seems reasonable that if the body is "distracted" by a chronic illness, it may take longer to fight off routine viruses.

So: I've got my sugarless cough drops, my Breathe-Rite strips, my neti pot, my Vicks, my Tylenol and Mucinex, and my vaporizer, all things that make me feel better. But the real comfort comes from my sure-fire sick foods: onion soup and chicken noodle soup.

Not sure why these soups are so soothing; seems to have something to do with heat and viscosity. They won't cure you, but they'll sure make you feel better while you're eating them. And both are super super easy to make, so here ya go:

Chicken Noodle Soup
1. Brown one pound of skinless, boneless chicken strips with a medium onion, peeled and coarsely chopped, in a heavy pot in a few tablespoons of olive oil. You can also add celery (chopped stalks or leaves), finely chopped spinach or kale if you have some that needs to be used before it spoils, and a few cloves of minced garlic.

2. Add just enough water (or a combination of canned chicken broth and water) to cover the chicken. Bring to a boil and then simmer about 45 minutes. I like to add a few sage leaves while the soup simmers.

3. When the chicken is tender and onions translucent, add 4 cups of water and 4 cups of noodles (I like the homemade Kluskis). Bring liquid to a boil then return to simmer until noodles are tender. You may need to check the soup after a few minutes to make sure you have enough liquid so noodles don't stick and burn.

Onion Soup
1. Peel and slice four or five medium-sized yellow onions and brown in two or three tablespoons of oil in a heavy pan.

2. When onions are golden brown, add enough water to cover the onions plus two cups of beef stock. (I prefer home made stock, but store-bought works fine; you can also substitute a little V8 juice for some of the water.)  Again, you may like to add a few sage leaves and some minced garlic. Bring to a boil and then simmer until onions are translucent and the soup has thickened slightly, about 45 minutes.

3. While the soup is simmering, slice a loaf of Italian or French bread. Place slices in a large roasting pan and drizzle with a quarter cup of olive oil or melted butter. Toss the slices a bit so that the oil is distributed evenly (note that the bread should not be saturated with oil; you just want some oil on the front and back of each slice). Bake at 350 about 40 minutes, stirring every 20 minutes or so, until the bread is crisp and beginning to turn golden. If you like Parmesan cheese shake a little on the toast and toss in the last 10 minutes of baking.

If you don't want to fool around with making toast, use Holland rusk or those large-sized croutons you get in the salad aisle.

4. Put a couple slices of toast in the bottom of your soup bowl, top with a little grated cheddar, and ladle soup on top.

Be well!

Home