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Scroll down to learn more about chicken soup's healing properties and its role in a famous NYC shooting and shocking attempted murder.
To see the recipe in blog post form continue reading...
"The bottom line is," says Dr. Patty Quinlisk, medical director of the Iowa Department of Public Health, "our grandmothers were probably right and chicken soup really does work for the cold and flu." Researchers "looked at people who had these viral illnesses and, believe it or not, gave some of them chicken soup and didn’t give some of them chicken soup and watched which group did better. The chicken soup-eating group did better and got well faster and felt better..."
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Another famous
New Yorker who loves
chicken soup: Curtis Sliwa.
New Yorker who loves
chicken soup: Curtis Sliwa.
Local NY radio and television commentator Curtis Sliwa is also the world-famous founder of the Guardian Angels organization.
In the summer of 1992, Sliwa was nearly shot to death in the back of a stolen cab by gunmen who picked him up on the Lower East Side with intentions to assassinate him.
Click the arrow in the window below
to see this YouTube video or click here
to view it on YouTube...
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Curtis Sliwa survived the shooting (hear his account of it at this link). As he healed from his wounds, the owner of the 2nd Avenue Deli, a legendary Jewish deli here in NYC, sent him chicken soup every day. Sliwa credits this "Jewish penicillin" for helping him recover, and he even repaid the favor by agreeing to represent the Lower East Side in a worldwide pickle eating competition (but that's another story).
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| Cleo's beloved Aunt Mary |
My own beloved Aunt Mary (pictured left) cooked up something very close to this soup for me when I was feeling poorly. My aunt was incredibly supportive through much of my life. I loved her very much and now that she's gone, I think of her as my guardian angel.
Whether you make this soup for yourself or someone you care about, I sincerely hope it brings you good feelings and good health! ~ Cleo
Cleo Coyle's
One Hour Chicken Soup
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Cleo Coyle has a partner in
crime-writing—her husband.
Learn about their books
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Guardian Angels founder Curtis Sliwa's Aunt Mary used a fairly common method for making her chicken soup. She threw the chicken and veggies into the pot and turned up the heat for about 4 hours. I prefer my method, which is done in one hour, and is just as healthy. Just be sure to use white meat chicken. Properties in the white meat are especially helpful for cold and flu sufferers; they also have anti-cancer properties--and that's why I specify using 1/2 of a whole split chicken breast. May you eat with joy and in good health! ~ Cleo
Makes about 2 quarts (about 6 servings)
Ingredients:
2 quarts (8 cups) cold water
2 quarts (8 cups) cold water
4 cloves garlic, smashed
2 bay leaves
2 bay leaves
1/2 of a whole, split chicken breast, bone in, skin on (see image below)
1 medium yellow or white onion, chopped (about 1 cup)
5 to 6 ribs of celery, chopped (about 2 cups)
4 peeled carrots, chopped (about 2 cups)2 envelopes of Goya's Sazon without Annatto (or see my note
below for other options)**
Finishing salt (such as French Grey or another coarse sea salt)
**Note: This soup will be bland without seasonings. Although Goya Sazon is my favorite, you can substitute 2 bouillon cubes combined with a spice blend that includes onion and garlic powders and ground black or white pepper. Certainly, add any other herbs or spices that you enjoy (e.g. cumin, paprika, thyme, rosemary).
DIRECTIONS:
Step 1: Pour the cold water into the pot. Throw in the smashed garlic and bay leaves. Bring the water to a brisk boil. Place the chicken into the pot, skin side down. (The meaty part of the breast should be submerged in the water.)
Boil uncovered for 35 to 40 minutes or until the meat is tender enough to come off the bone and be shredded with two forks. The water in your pot will boil down during this process. Add in fresh water to replace the water lost, but do not add more water after this step.
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| From ingredient list, this is what you want: 1/2 of a whole, split chicken breast, bone in, skin on. |
Boil uncovered for 35 to 40 minutes or until the meat is tender enough to come off the bone and be shredded with two forks. The water in your pot will boil down during this process. Add in fresh water to replace the water lost, but do not add more water after this step.
Step 2: When the chicken is cooked enough, remove it from the pot. Add the chopped vegetables, and seasoning (Goya Sazon or 2 bouillon cubes and your own spice mix), and boil for another 10 minutes. While veggies are cooking, remove the skin from the breast and the meat from the bone and shred the breast meat.
Step 3: When the carrots are fork-tender (10 minutes of cooking should do it), remove the bay leaves from the pot, and add the shredded chicken. If your split chicken breast was particularly large, hold back a bit of the chicken meat from the soup because you don't want to overload it. Add only enough to keep the ingredients balanced.(*Note: If you'd like to make this a chicken noodle soup, this is the point where you'd add your noodles and cook until they're soft.) Cook the soup for another 6 to 8 minutes and...eat with joy!
🍴
To download this recipe
in a free PDF you can print,
save or share, click here.
in a free PDF you can print,
save or share, click here.
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| Click here for free recipe PDF. |
☕
Eat (and read) with joy!
~ Cleo Coyle
~ Cleo Coyle
A "Best Book of 2018!"
Suspense Magazine
"A magnificent cold case
mystery." ~ Fresh Fiction *
"He is hardboiled in the tradition
of Philip Marlowe, and she is a genteel
Miss Marple; yet the two opposites
make an explosive combination..."
—Midwest Book Review
