Cream of Chicken and Rice Soup

After being inspired by my cousin Jacqueline's amazing blog (go check it out!), and my mother's gourmet cooking, I have finally decided to start keeping track of all of my family's fantastic recipes. If there is one thing we all bond over, it is definitely our love of food! 

In order to survive Chicago's freezing cold winter, my momma makes sure to fill us up with some hot, thick, and creamy soup.  Our family favorite by far is her Cream of Chicken and Rice Soup.  Like everything she makes, it is her own variation.  There are two things this woman doesn't do: follow recipes and measure. Luckily for her, her dishes always come out perfect.  However, anytime somebody asks for a recipe, it's a little bit of this and a handful of that. It is my mission to make her measure so we can finally have some recipes to follow.

Now, on to the good stuff!

To get started, you need to throw some Uncle Ben's original long grain rice in a pot with some water and chicken bullion.

And a pic of the Maggi chicken bullion:

In the next pot, you start by melting some butter.  Then add the carrots, celery, onion and chicken.

It's cooking!

Yes, my mom still cooks even at 8:55 p.m. 

Both pots are taking their sweet time.

After the chicken has had some time to cook, it is time to add the flour/water mixture.  It turns into a big, sticky, brownish ball.  I couldn't get any action shots of swirling it around because of my phone camera.

This is what happened when I tried to get an action shot.....

Pre- mixing

And finally the deliciousness is starting to come together.  We tried to be fancy like Jacqueline and show of some cooking shots....we still need some practice!

And of course, what would a "Cream of...." Soup be without the heavy whipping cream?!

It just makes everything taste better.

And there you have it.... delicious soup!

Our attempt at showing off.. :-)

This soup is amazing! Definitely worth trying.  My favorite part is that it's not super thick and creamy like some restaurants serve it.  Instead, it is more of a "light" creamy soup...whatever that means.

Now it's time to enjoy some soup on this cold, January day....BRRRR.

Cream of Chicken and Rice Soup

Ingredients:

1/2 cup Uncle Ben's original long grain rice

Between 3/4 lb to 1 lb boneless skinless chicken breast cubed into tiny pieces

8 cups water

2 cubes Maggi chicken flavored bullion

4 tbsp butter

2 stalks celery, chopped 

Handful of shredded carrots, chopped

Small onion, chopped

1/2 tsp pepper

1/2 cup flour mixed with 1/2 cup water

8 fl oz. heavy whipping cream

Directions:

1. Pour 1/2 cup of Uncle Ben's rice, 2 cubes of chicken bullion and 8 cups of water into a large pot-uncovered. Leave on high until it boils, and then turn down to medium.  Leave on medium until rice is fully cooked.

2. In the meantime, melt 4 tbsp butter in a separate pot. Add the chopped celery, shredded/chopped carrots, chopped onion, pepper, and cubed chicken and cook on high.  There is no need to add salt because the chicken bullion has enough salt.  Once the chicken is no longer pink, after about 5 minutes, put on medium and cover it.

3. After cooking on medium for about 40 minutes, add a mixture of 1/2 cup water and 1/2 cup flour to the chicken pot.  Cook on high for about 5 minutes while constantly stirring it.  It turns into a brownish ball.

4. The rice should be fully cooked by now.  Add the rice, including the broth, to the chicken mixture.  Cook on high for a few minutes until the chicken mixture melts.

5. Change the heat to medium.  Add the heavy whipping cream and slowly stir it in.  Cover the pot and let it cook for about 10 more minutes.

6. ENJOY!