Budget friendly chickenstrone soup

The Flexitarian Foodie – Real Food – Conscious Living by Jax Moorcroft is a collection of proudly South African, budget-approved and family-friendly recipes which proves that eating and living an eco-conscious lifestyle doesn’t have to be complicated and expensive, but it does improve our health and that of the planet. It’s crammed with the most delicious recipes – many of which show you how to make the most of one dish, two or three ways. Take this Chickenstrone soup, for example. It all evolved from Meal One: a garlic and rosemary roast chicken, perfect for Sunday lunch. Leftovers are used in Meal Two – a chakalaka coronation chicken on sourdough. Then, using the leftover chicken bones and some basic veggies, you get Meal Three – this healthy, budget friendly soup.  R290.

Chickenstrone soup

Serves 4

Bone broth is a popular buzzword these days, and for good reason! Brewing the leftover bones helps break down the connective tissue and cartilage compounds to render the beneficial collagen, as well as to extract all the nutrients, minerals and amino acids found in the bones themselves that would otherwise go un-eaten and unused. Making use of ALL the meat (and now the bones) from the roast chicken not only limits food waste, but gives you more banquet for your buck, stretching an otherwise pricey piece of meat over three separate meals. But let’s face it, bone broth probably won’t exactly inspire your inner culinary diva – well, not until you jazz it up a little and use the bone broth as a base for something that will entice your inner Epicurean. Reserved bones, carcass and cartilage from roast chicken (freeze leftover bones to use at a later stage if you don’t feel like a chicken-based meal two or three times in a row).

What you’ll need: leftover chicken bones, carcass and cartilage; 2 litres chicken bone broth stock; 1 onion, chopped; 2 ribs celery, chopped; 2 carrots, chopped; 1 teaspoon tomato paste; 1 cup chopped fresh tomatoes; 1 cup chopped butternut; 1 cup chopped sweet potato; 2 bay leaves; 1 cup pasta of your choice (for a gluten-free option, look out for pasta made from lentils or chickpeas); 2 baby marrows, chopped; 1/2 cup peas; 1 cup cooked cannellini beans; 2 cups fresh baby spinach; Freshly grated parmesan (vegan parmesan, or organic dairy source)

Method:

1. In a large stockpot, add the reserved chicken bones, carcass and cartilage from the roast chicken (or straight out of the freezer if you’ve been saving up the bones).
2. Pour over the stock, add the onion, celery, carrots, tomato paste, fresh tomatoes, butternut, sweet potato and bay leaves, and bring to a bubbling simmer.
3. Once bubbling, turn down the heat and simmer for 30–45 minutes, or until the hardest root vegetables are cooked through.
4. Using a colander, strain the liquid into a heat-proof bowl, keeping  the vegetables aside.
5. Discard the bones, cartilage and bay leaves.
6. Return the vegetables and the strained liquid to the pot.
7. Bring the soup to the boil and add the pasta.
8. Once the pasta is almost cooked, add the baby marrows, peas and cannellini beans and cook for a few minutes until the baby marrow is soft but not too mushy.
9. Remove the pot from the heat and add the baby spinach, stirring it in so that it wilts.
10. Serve in giant soup bowls with chunks of rye sourdough, or seed crackers for a low-carb option, and a liberal grating of vegan or good quality organic or grass-fed dairy parmesan.