Yesterday I put a whole chicken in my stockpot, filled it with water, 3 chicken bouillon cubes, 4 peeled cloves of garlic, some celery with leaves, a sliced scallion and salt and pepper. I turned on the burner and let it cook for about 4 hours or until the meat was falling off the bones. I then took out the chicken and poured the stock into a container that would fit in my fridge. My whole purpose was to make a very flavorful stock for a soup I wanted to try. Does that sound like too much work?
I think not! There really is no comparison in taste between a box of chicken stock or broth and homemade. I now have about a gallon of grease-free chicken stock because by putting it in the fridge for a few hours, the fat congealed and was easy to skim off. What is left is a rich stock that will add an explosion of flavor to your dish.
Not only will you have the stock, but of course, you will have enough cooked chicken to make lots of things like chicken spaghetti, chicken salad, chicken pot pie – the list is long! Now I know you can buy a rotisserie chicken, which I certainly do, but you won’t get that yummy broth.
Yesterday’s broth was used to make a recipe from Magnolia Table Volume 2, called Creamy Poblano Chicken Soup, and it was absolutely delicious! It was creamy without being too rich, and all the flavors worked so well together. You should try it!
I used some of the cooked chicken for the soup, but I had some left over, so I decided to go way back into my recipe “archives” and make some Chicken Mousse. I’m guessing you probably haven’t had chicken mousse in a while, if ever. (I actually think it was invented by my mother-in-law quite a few years ago.) It’s a nice cool dish – perfect for these sunny summer days.
CHICKEN MOUSSE
- 1 can of cream of chicken soup
- 2 envelopes of plain gelatin
- 1 8 oz. package of cream cheese, softened
- 1 tablespoon of worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon of onion powder
- 3 cups of chopped chicken
- 1 cup mayo
- 1 small jar of chopped pimentos (optional)
- 1 cup chopped celery
- 1 small can of sliced black olives (optional)
- 1 cup chopped pecans (optional)
Melt the gelatin according to package directions.
Mix together the gelatin, cream cheese, soup and mayonnaise until well blended.
Stir in the other ingredients.
Pour into a rectangular baking dish and refrigerate until firm.
Can be served as a salad or as a spread for crackers.
– Becky Lynn is a writer for EllisDownHome.com. She and her husband Bob enjoy spending time with their 8 grandchildren and traveling. Becky loves cranking up the music and heading to the kitchen to try out new recipes or cook for an upcoming party. She is passionate about continuing to be a life-long learner!
