Stella's chicken soup

Stella here.
Nothin' much t' report except that it's cloudin' up again an' gonna rain... again.
If that ol' "April showers bring May flowers" thing pans out, we oughta be up to our bustles in posies come May!

I hadta run in t' th' IGA earlier cuz I run outta de-tergent. Pain in th' backside an' annoyin' t' boot. But I called up Molly Eldredge an' she rode along cuz there was some things she was out of, too. Seems she'd had comp'ny over th' weekend, some cousins from away who was headin' up t' check on their camp. Wanted t' see how it'd fared over th' Wintah.
So we each grabbed a shoppin' cart an' fetched what we needed an' was back here t' th' Pier Road in under an hour.
Only thing I splurged on was a package o' store-made hot cross buns. I do enjoy all them little bits o' colored fruit they put in, although I know they're all loaded up with colorin's an' chemicals I can't pronounce. Still, ev'ry now'n then I'll break down an' buy somethin' like that cuz it'd be more trouble'n it'd be worth t' make up a batch m'self.

When I was a kid livin' down around Boston, my ma'd buy Easter buns from th' Eye-talian bakery ev'ry year, an' my wasn't they some good! Wish I had that recipe! I might tackle makin' 'em in spite o' th' extra effort.

Dropped Molly off at her house an' now I got th' wash just about done an' some chicken bones cookin' up in a pot f'r soup.
Y'know, I wish I could understand some o' these folks wailin' 'bout how ex-pensive things are - an' yet they'll throw out a what's left of a perfectly good chicken they had f'r supper without usin' what's left t' make some soup that'd last 'em a couple o' days.

"Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without" 's what I learned real fast when I married Harvey. 'Round here we don't waste nothin'. I'm happy t' say that both th' girls is still like that, even though Jeannie's got a decent-payin' job an' Deb'n her husband're still doin' fairly OK 'tween his fishin' an' that antiques business they run.
Deb told me recently that in spite o' th' economy bein' what it is, folk'll still put money inta antiques.
Go figure!

MY CHICKEN SOUP
So all y'gotta do's take time once y'r chicken bones're all stewed up (use enough water t' about cover 'em in whatever pot y' got handy) is t' let 'em cool down so's y' c'n take off whatever meat's left on 'em... an' if' y'ain't done if y'd be surprised how much meat y' c'n find. Y' learn a whole lot about how a chicken's put t'gether, too!
'Course Jeannie won't do that, bein' a vegetarian an' all, but Deb's a whiz at it.

Int' th' stock y' put th' meat (watch out f'r them little neck bones... y' always use th' neck) an' any skin. Y' c'n scoop out th' skin later if y' don't like it but it adds t' th' flavor.
Then y' chop up an onion an' some celery an' some carrots. Toss 'em in with a pinch o' oregano an' a little pepper.
I ain't gonna tell y' how much 'cuz y' need t' decide f'r y'rself. If y' got one carrot, use one carrot. If y' got two, use two. Same f'r th' other stuff.
Go easy on th' oregano, though.
I don't use no extra salt 'cause o' Harvey's blood pressure, but you c'n use however much y' like 'r let folks add their own when y' serve it.
Y' c'n add peas or green beans or whatever else y' got around (fresh, frozen 'r leftovers, it don't make no never-mind) that y' like. Sometimes I'll open a can o' tomatoes an' dump 'em in.
Noodles is good, but so's rice or potatoes. I don't peel potatoes if I use 'em, just scrub 'em good an' cut 'em up.

Back when we still had th' wood stove an' I was cookin' on that I kept that soup pot on th' back an' just added more things an' some water when th' soup started t' run low. 'Cause it kept simmerin' th' whole time it never spoiled. My ma'd had a fit if she'd known I done that, but I never had a mite o' trouble. Wouldn't try that on th' stove we got now, though!

Some folks say they like dumplin's but I never got th' hang of 'em so I stick with th' rice or noodles 'r such.
An' that's how I make chicken soup.

Gotta go now. Wash is done.
Love,
Stella