Jordan Kapp is a guidance counselor at Pascack Valley High School. His favorite holiday recipe is classic chicken matzo ball soup, passed down from his mother.
“This soup reminds me of being a kid in Queens, [New York]. My mother would cook this all the time,” said Kapp. “Nothing better than to smell fresh chicken soup on a cold day. [It] cures sickness and tastes like home. It’s the ultimate comfort food.”
Kapp described how his family shares his sentiments about the classic soup.
“Currently, if it is in my fridge or stovetop, it’s the first thing that is eaten by my family or guests,” said Kapp. “Consistently the most requested soup.”
Classic Chicken Matzo Ball Soup
Ingredients:
- 4 large carrots
- 1 stalk of celery
- 1 large sweet onion
- 1 small parsnip
- 3 chicken backs (bones)
- 1 pound of skinless thighs or breasts
- 1.5 tablespoons of salt
- 1 teaspoon of black pepper
- 1/3 cup of chopped fresh dill
Instructions:
- Simmer chicken bones and onion for 2 hours in half gallon of water. Remove and discard bones.
- Rough chop carrots, celery and parsnip into bite sized pieces. Add these vegetables, dill and breasts/thighs to broth. Slow boil for 30 minutes.
- Remove chicken and shred, place back in pot.
- Add salt as needed.
- Follow recipe for matzoh balls on Streit’s Matzo Ball Mix box.
- Alternative: Make rice or egg noodles in a different pot.
- Assemble matzo balls, rice or noodles in bowl and ladle chicken soup into bowl.
