Soup

It's raining in sunny, Southern California, and my thoughts turn to soup. Today is Wednesday, and as I look at the Food section in the LA Times, they have an article on soup! http://www.latimes.com/features/food/la-fo-anna14-2009oct14,0,4620809.story (I prefer the Food section to the Dining Section in the New York Times http://www.nytimes.com/pages/dining/index.html as it focuses on food with more recipes.)
After checking out the story, I've decided to stick with my chicken soup.
Italian Chicken Soup
The reason I call it Italian chicken soup is that the broth I make is not a chicken broth, per se, but actually what the Italians call a meat broth. I think it is more flavorful.
Ingredients:
1. 3-4 lbs chicken parts (the ones that are stuffed into a whole chicken) These include the heart, gizzard and neck which tend to have more flavor. When I make a whole chicken, I take the parts out and throw them in a plastic freezer bag so they are available at a later date. If you haven't done this, you can use a whole chicken and then it is part of the meal.
2. 2-4 lbs Beef soup bones (only get the ones that do not include the spinal cord. Prions are not destroyed by cooking)
3. 2 onions
4. The top of a bunch of celery (including the leaves)
5. 4-6 peeled carrots
6. 3 garlic gloves
7. 4 stalks parsley
8. 8 pepper corns (or pepper to taste)
9. Salt to taste (at least 1 tbsp, probably more)
10. Crust of parmesan cheese (if you have one)
Throw this all in a big pot, cover with water and cook 2-3 hours.
Drain the broth and then cook with vermicilli or broken up fideo until soft. (about 5-10 mins) Serve with parmesan cheese, after putting some of the chicken and carrots in the soup.
Buon Appetito.