April 14, 2021
April is in full swing and the weather has been unpredictable to say the least. Warmer days and colder days seem to fluctuate from week to week. The beginning of April brought forth rain showers and plant buds. This week brought back colder days and cozy socks. With the temps dipping this week, I just had to squeeze in one more comforting dish before Spring weather resumes. Earlier this week, my cravings for warm, comforting foods began to creep up again. This time, it was in the form of soup. I had recently been making a ton of soups – a soft food diet required by my dentist as I recover from dental work. As I graduate slowly back to firmer foods, I’ve been remaking another one of my favorite comforting soups, my golden chicken soup served with some cheddar scallion biscuits. I love the warm spices of cumin and curry in the soup. The spices add a deep earthy flavor, a beautiful golden hue, and some much-needed spunk to the soup. The addition of the cheddar scallion biscuits to the soup is reminiscent of a chicken pot pie. My golden chicken soup with cheddar scallion biscuits is essentially a lighter version of chicken pot pie, but with a twist. To help add even more depth of flavor to the soup, I added a couple teaspoons of chicken bouillon powder. I like to use the Lee Kum Kee brand of chicken bouillon powder to flavor my soups. Growing up, my family always had a steady supply of the Lee Kum Kee chicken bouillon powder in the pantry. It was the basis of many quick soups, stocks, and flavor enhancers in family dishes. When I moved to the Midwest, I still gravitate back to the familiar flavors found in the soup base. The rest of the soup cooks up fairly quickly. Once I get started on the soup, I let it do its own thing while I shift my focus to the savory cheddar scallion biscuits. The biscuits come together almost as quickly as the soup. I decided on making a variation of my cheddar and chives biscuits by swapping out the chives for scallions. I folded into the biscuit dough some leftover shredded cheddar cheese from when I whipped up some cheddar crisps on St. Patrick’s Day. The combination of the sharp, savory cheddar and bright, pungent scallions makes for the perfect flavor profile to incorporate into biscuits. The soup with biscuits reminds me very much so of chicken and dumplings. Nothing warms the body and soul like a comforting bowl of chicken and dumplings. My golden chicken soup with cheddar scallion biscuits really does do the trick in helping me stay warm on both the inside and outside until the warmer weather returns.
For the golden chicken soup:
· 1 large chicken breast, diced
· ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
· ¼ teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
· 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
· 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
· 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
· 1 small onion, diced
· 2 stalks celery, diced
· 2 carrots, peeled and diced
· 2 teaspoons chicken bouillon powder
· ½ teaspoon kosher salt
· ¼ teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
· ½ teaspoon cumin
· 2 teaspoons curry powder
· 4-6 cups of water
· 2 ounces frozen green peas
For the cheddar scallion biscuits:
· 2 cups all-purpose flour, plus additional for rolling out the dough
· 1 tablespoon baking powder
· ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
· 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
· 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold and cubed
· 4 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, grated
· 2 stalks scallions, finely sliced
· 1 cup whole milk, cold
For the egg wash:
· 1 large egg
· 1 tablespoon water
Directions:
1) Preheat oven to 425°F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.
2) Sprinkle the diced chicken breast with salt and pepper. Set aside.
3) Heat a skillet on medium high heat. Once hot, add in 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil. Carefully transfer the diced chicken breast to the skillet. Cook the diced chicken breast until lightly golden, about 3-5 minutes. Remove the skillet from the heat.
4) Prepare the soup by heating a large pot set on medium heat on a stove. Melt the two tablespoons of butter in the large pot. Sprinkle in the all-purpose flour. Cook for 1-2 minutes until the roux develops a light golden-brown color. Add in the diced onion, celery, and carrots. Sprinkle in the bouillon powder, kosher salt, black pepper, cumin, and curry powder. Let the vegetables and spices cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Pour in 4-6 cups of water. Cover the pot with a lid and let the soup cook for 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add in the frozen green peas in the last 2 minutes of cooking.
5) While the soup is cooking, prepare the cheddar scallion biscuits by combining the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar in a large bowl. Add in the cubed unsalted butter. Use a pastry cutter to cut the butter and flour together (or use your hands to press the butter and flour together) until you achieve a crumbly texture.
6) Once you achieve the crumbly texture, fold in the grated cheese and sliced scallions. Add in the whole milk. Stir until a dough begins to form. Dust your work surface with flour and pour out the dough. Gently bring the dough together forming a large, thick circle. Use a biscuit cutter (or cookie cutter in any shape you like) to cut out about 10-11 biscuits. Place the biscuits on the baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Whisk together the large egg and water to make an egg wash. Brush the biscuits with the egg wash prior to baking.
7) Bake the biscuits in the preheated oven for 13-15 minutes. Remove the biscuits from the oven when they are puffed up and golden brown.
8) Scoop the soup into two large serving bowls. Top each bowl of soup with one or two biscuits right before serving.
Takeaways: I used a heart shaped cookie cutter to cut out the biscuits since it was the first cookie cutter I grabbed from my drawer. I like to top the golden chicken soup with biscuits immediately before serving to prevent the bottoms of the biscuits from getting too soft. These biscuits are on the tender side and remind me a bit of the dumplings in chicken and dumplings soup. Check out my chicken soup with parsley dumplings for another take on chicken and dumplings.