My poor husband is sick. The kind of sick where he comes home early from work (which doesn’t ever happen), and goes to sleep for the night at 7pm. Besides stocking up on all of the essential flu medicines, the only thing I can think of to help him is soup. Something about chicken and rice soup is as comforting as it gets. I don’t know if the soup is remotely medicinal, but it always makes me feel better, and whether you are sick or not, it is a really healthy meal. This is a variety that you can make on the fly, as you usually have very little notice when someone comes down the flu. It is also great for a last second cozy supper on a grey or cold day.

Because the soup is a “fast” variety, I depend on a simple recipe with few ingredients, and store bought chicken stock. This recipe makes enough for 6-8, but I make it just for the 2 of us, with lots of leftovers.

Chicken and Rice Soup

-2 Large skinless, boneless Chicken breasts, (or about 1-1/2 lbs)
-8 cups of chicken stock
-8 cups of water
-1 large sweet yellow onion chopped
-4 large carrots chopped
-6 large stalks of celery, chopped
-1 cup of rice
-2 whole sprigs of fresh thyme
-1/2 cup of fresh parsley, minced
-kosher salt and black pepper

1) I take a large soup pot and fill it with the chicken stock and the water, and heat it over medium heat.

2) Then put the whole chicken breasts, and the vegetables in the stock, and let the chicken slowly simmer until just cooked through, about 15 minutes.

3) Remove the chicken breasts from the liquid, and set aside. Add the rice and whole thyme sprigs to the soup, and continue to simmer. Chop the chicken and add it back to the soup along with the parsley.

4) Season to taste with kosher salt and black pepper and serve hot.