Good day for chicken soup!

It snowed a half a foot or more somewhere in MN to day, so today's recipe is chicken soup...

Chicken vegetable soup

You just can't predict soup weather in Minnesota! In March we had an 80° day. Today northern Minnesota got 8 inches of snow. We all go figure.

I was totally getting overdosed on brownies so I decided to make something healthy for a change.  This recipe has evolved over the years so now I call it completely my own (especially since I add an ingredient most people don't add, but it makes a delicious soup.)

Recipe:

3 1/2 or 4 pound cut up fryer

6 unpeeled carrots cut in thirds

2 onions peeled and quartered (I use yellow or white onions)

1 parsnip cut in thirds

1  yam  cut in thirds

2 stalks of celery  cut in quarters

4 cloves garlic  peeled, but not smashed

1.5 tablespoons salt

To add after soup is completely done: 

1 package peeled mini carrots

2 cups sliced celery

Broccoli florets..to taste. 

Directions:

Place chicken in an 8 quart stock pan.  Fill with cold water until chicken is just covered. Bring the water to a boil and then boil for about five minutes.  While waiting for the boil, wash the parsnip and carrots and celery and prepare the vegetables.  Set aside.  Skim the foam out of the pan as it boils.  Add salt to boiling chicken.   Add prepared vegetables and simmer for about an hour and 15 minutes.   Remove chicken to a separate bowl.  Remove chicken meat and return skin and bones back to the soup.  Simmer for another hour (if I am pressed for time, I don't put the skin and bones back in and don't simmer for another hour.)   Strain soup to remove all cooked vegetables and debris.   So now you can do a couple of different things. If I use all dark meat (thighs or legs), I cool the soup, put it in the refrigerator overnight, and then take all the fat off the top before reheating it and adding the mini carrots and celery and broccoli.   If you use less fatty chicken,

then as soon as you strain the soup, put it back on the heat and add mini carrots and celery.  DO NOT ADD BROCCOLI YET!  Simmer for about half an hour. Then turn off heat, add broccoli, and wait for about 20 minutes.  Add chicken meat.  The broccoli will be cooked and the soup will be ready to eat!