What's for Shabbat Dinner? - Chicken Soup with Matzo Balls

This is a combination of a couple of different chicken soup recipes I have tried over the years. It is fairly simple to make and it is always better homemade than store bought. I have also tried to make matzo balls many times and mine have always come out so dense so I got a great tip from my Mom to substitute club soda for the water in the simple recipe that is on the back of the matzo meal box. It worked like a charm...my matzo balls were very light and fluffy!

Ingredients:

SOUP

1 (31/2 lb) chicken cut into 8 pieces

12 cups of water or enough to cover the chicken by at least an inch

1 large carrot, peeled, cut into bite size pieces

1 large parsnip, peeled, cut into bite size pieces

1 large onion cut into bite size pieces

4 medium stalks of celery, cut into bite size pieces

1 bouquet garni of 15 parsley sprigs, 15 dill sprigs, 1 tablespoon whole peppercorns (wrapped in cheesecloth and tied with cotton string)

3 T chicken consomme mix

1 chicken stock cube

Preparation:

Rinse chicken and place in a large soup pot.

Add water and bring to a boil over high heat. Skim any foam,residue, or fat that rises to the surface using a large spoon or skimmer and discard.

Once boiling, reduce heat to a simmer and add carrot,parsnip, onion,celery,bouquet garni, consomme mix and stock cube.

Simmer, covered, for 1 hour and 30 minutes.

Remove the bouquet garni.

Remove chicken from bone and either add back to the soup or use for something else.

Adjust seasoning.

Either serve with the vegetables or strain them out for clear broth.

Garnish with fresh parsley and/or fresh dill.

Matzo Balls

Ingredients:

2 T vegetable oil

2 large eggs, slightly beaten

1/2 cup matzo meal

1 tsp salt

2 T club soda

Preparation:

Blend oil, eggs, matzo meal, and salt together. Add club soda and mix until uniform. Cover and place in refrigerator for 15 minutes. Bring a large pot of water to a brisk boil (you can add some leftover club soda to the water as well). Reduce flame and drop balls approximately 1 inch in diameter formed from refrigerated mixture. Cover pot and cook 30 to 40 minutes.