Old Hen Pastina Brodo
- 1 large whole chicken (4-5 lbs.)
- 1 onion, peeled and halved
- 1 carrot, peeled and left whole
- 2 whole ribs celery
- 1 tomato, peeled, seeded and very finely diced
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 lb. Pastina
- Gray salt
- freshly-ground black pepper
- 1/2 -cup packed mustard greens (or other greens)
- Parmesan cheese for grating
- Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. Rinse the chicken well with cold water and place in a deep ovenproof roasting pan with the onion, carrot, celery, tomato and bay leaf.
- Add enough cold water to come up about 2/3 the sides of the bird.
- Bring to a simmer on top of the stove, straddling two burners if necessary.
- Cover, place in the oven and braise until the chicken is completely cooked (about 1-1/2 hours).
- Remove from the oven and turn the chicken over in the broth to cool.
- Remove the cooled chicken from the broth.
- Shred the chicken and strain the broth into a stockpot.
- Reserve.
- Bring a pot of salted water to boil.
- Add the Pastina and cook for about 15 minutes or until done.
- Drain and set aside.
- Bring the reserved broth to a simmer, season with salt and pepper and add the cooked Pastina.
- Add the chicken and greens in order to wilt the greens and heat the chicken.
- Ladle into bowls.
- Grate Parmesan over the soup and finish with freshly-cracked pepper.
chicken, onion, carrot, celery, tomato, bay leaf, pastina, salt, freshlyground black pepper, parmesan cheese
Taken from www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/old-hen-pastina-brodo-recipe.html (may not work)