Autumn is the perfect time for rich, warm, and inviting meals. This trio of fall recipes covers everything savory and sweet, and brings the best of the season’s offerings into your kitchen.
Ingredients
- 6 quarts cold water
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 4-6 peppercorns
- 3 cups vegetable scraps (Save the peels and cutoffs from onions, carrots, garlic, celery, leeks, sage, parsley, thyme, rosemary in a bag in the freezer. Use when making your stock.)
- Bones from 1 whole chicken (When you cook a whole chicken or turkey, save the bones in a bag in the freezer.)
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 3 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup shortening
- ¾ cup milk
- 2 quarts chicken stock
- 1 quart water
- 1 whole chicken breast, bone-in
- 2 yellow onions, diced
- 3 Russet potatoes, diced
- 4 carrots, diced
- 4 celery stalks, sliced
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- ¼ teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon fresh parsley, chopped
Preparation
Stock
Makes 4 quarts
In a large stockpot, place chicken bones, vegetable scraps, salt, and peppercorns. Cover with cold water (~6 quarts, depending on size of pot).
Cook on low heat and bring to a simmer; skim any foam off the surface of the stock to ensure broth is clear. Once foam dissipates, continue cooking uncovered at a simmer for 3 hours. Strain stock through a sieve. Ladle broth into containers. Keep in fridge 1 week or freeze up to 3 months.
Biscuits
Makes 6
Pre-heat oven to 400°. Combine flour, baking powder, and salt into a large mixing bowl. Cut in shortening until the mixture looks mealy. Stir in milk. If dough is too dry, add a little more milk, one tablespoon at a time, until the dough just comes together.
Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured counter. Lightly knead/fold 4-6 times.
Press down flat until it is roughly 1” thick. Using a biscuit cutter, punch out rounds until all dough is used.
Place cut biscuits on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 10-14 minutes or until golden brown.
Chicken Stew
Makes 3 quarts
On low heat, combine stock, water, and chicken breast in a large stock pot. Bring to simmer; skim any foam off the surface of the stew as it appears.
Once chicken is cooked and the foam has stopped (~30 min.), add in diced vegetables, salt, pepper, and thyme. Cook another 90 min. on low heat. Stew should be just at a simmer. Do not use a lid; this will allow the liquid to reduce and stew to thicken slightly.
Take chicken breast out of the soup, remove the meat from the bone and discard the bone. Chop the meat into bite-size pieces and return to stew. Garnish with chopped parsley just before serving.
Yields 1 Serving
