by Chef Jeremy McLachlan

Let's not mince words. Never trust a skinny chef! I know I'm overweight like many chefs — we love to cook and we're constantly tasting what we cook. We even eat our mistakes! How else would we know we've made an error? We're also a bit stressed — imagine cooking hundreds of meals and then going home and cooking more! This is one of the many reasons I love my wife. She cooks too! She makes a wonderful soup that's perfect for trimming some pounds after the holidays.

As my fellow blogger and Salty's Co-Owner Kathy Kingen says in her January blog on Soup Philosophy, "It's comforting and colorful, it cheers a chill and warms the heart, its the perfect comfort food."

This month I want to share with you some of my favorite soup recipes. First, check out Salty's chefs recipes online at saltys.com/recipes/soup and here are two of my favorites: Butter Me Up Squash Soup and Dungeness Crab Bisque with Fennel Pesto.

Here I share my wife's version of the famous Wedding Soup, Minestra Maritata, Italian for "married soup" because it marries meat with green veggies succeeding in creating a wonderful flavor. My wife's version is more about chicken and includes pasta noodles, Parmesan cheese, egg and spinach. This soup fills you up and makes you feel great. My wife makes this at least twice a month and that is not often enough in my opinion!

Wedding Soup

Serves 3-4

Ingredients

2 quarts chicken broth, low sodium
1 sweet onion, chopped
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
4 celery ribs, chopped
2 bay leaves
3 grinds black pepper
1 1/2 chickens, cooked, shredded or cubed
1 cup small dry pasta (ancini di pepe, corallini, orzo, stelle, pearl pasta, etc.)
1 lemon, zest
1 lemon, juiced
3 eggs
1/2 cup Parmesan, ground
1 cup fresh spinach, chopped
salt to taste

Directions

1. Place the chicken broth, onion, carrot, celery, bay leaves and pepper into a large soup pot.
2. Bring to a simmer and cook for 40 minutes.
3. Add chicken and lemon zest and bring back to a simmer.
4. Add noodles and cook until al dente.
5. Add lemon juice and salt.
6. Right before you are ready to serve the soup, mix eggs with ground Parmesan cheese.
7. Pull soup off burner and using a spoon slowly stir in the egg-Parmesan mixture.
8. Add chopped spinach and serve with crusty bread.