PART 1: ORCHARD UPDATE
Wow, it’s cold. Our peaches and blackberries are not
accustomed to subzero temperatures. As a result, my husband is going on his
fourth sleepless night of monitoring farm weather station temperatures and worrying about bud damage on two of our significant crops. Only time will
tell how back-to-back cold nights impacted this year’s crop. We will be cutting
some peach branches and forcing their blooms to evaluate bud loss.
Unfortunately, we won’t know how the blackberries faired until spring. More
soon….. think warm thoughts until then!
PART 2: KITCHEN FRENZY
This cold weather has me in a kitchen frenzy. Over the
past 2 days we have made soup, goulash, shephard’s pie, angel food cake and
multiple salads. While fretting about the temperatures leaves me feeling
helpless, cooking seems to lessen my pain.
This is an Eckert family favorite recipe I learned from my
mother-in-law. She makes it without a recipe so I had to take notes when she
walked me through the steps. My kids adore this soup and there are rarely
leftovers. I like this soup thick but you can always add more water or broth to
thin it down.
Chicken and Amish Noodle Soup
Stay warm and eat well this winter, Angie
Ingredients:
1 Tbs vegetable or canola oil
1 cut-up whole chicken (3 to 3
1/2 lb)
Kosher salt
Freshly ground pepper
1 small onion, diced
4 large carrots, cut into
chunks, divided
4 celery stalks, cut into
chunks, divided
5 cups water
2 tsp Better than Bouillon
Chicken Base*
1 bay leaf
1/2 package of Amish
Noodles (approximately 8 oz.)
Directions:
Season the chicken pieces with
salt and pepper. In a large stockpot over medium-high heat, heat the oil.
In two batches add the chicken pieces to the hot oil and cook until well
browned, 4 to 5 minutes per side.
Return all chicken to the pot and add all of
the onions, half of the carrots, half of the celery, water, chicken base and
bay leaf. Bring to a boil then reduce the heat to medium-low. Cover and simmer
gently until the meat is nearly falling off the bones, about 1 hour. Skim off
the foam and discard. Transfer the chicken to a plate and let cool about 10
minutes. Strain broth through a fine mesh strainer or a colander lined with
cheese cloth. Measure remaining broth. Discard bay leaf and vegetables.
Remove skin and bones from
chicken. Tear chicken into pieces.
Add enough water to reserved broth to measure 5 cups of liquid and
return to stockpot. Add chicken pieces, remaining carrots and celery to
stockpot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low; cover and simmer about 10
minutes or until carrots are nearly tender. Add noodles and simmer another 10
minutes. Salt to taste and serve.
*If you don’t have
access to the Bouillon Chicken Base, substitute 2 cups of chicken broth and
reduce water to 3 cups.
At our Country Store this month, our Amish Noodles are on SALE. Pick up any two bags for only $6, regularly $3.99 each. This deal expires 1/31/14. Check out our other specials by viewing our insert sheet here:
http://www.eckerts.com/insert.htm.
While the ham was
warming in the oven, we prepared the glaze and set it aside to cool. As it
cools, the glaze thickens making it the perfect consistency to brush on the ham
during the last stages of baking. Tangy Dijon mustard perfectly balances
sweet fruit juices and honey, making this a delicious way to add a burst of
flavor to Eckert's juicy, slightly-salty ham. 
