Matzoh Ball Soup (4 versions)

Version #1:

Cut up 1 or 2 skinless boneless chicken breasts

Dice a potato,

An onion (sweet is as good as any kind)

A carrot

Various trace vegetables, including but not limited to: turnip, parsnip, cabbage, more carrot, zucchini, apple, green beans, and peas: fresh, frozen or canned with juice.

No: broccoli, cauliflower or beets. The cruciferous vegetables get bitter about being overcooked, and beets are for borscht. 

Brown the chicken pieces with the onion, then add all the rest of the vegetables and enough water to make it soup, not just a soggy stir-fry.  Season to taste with salt, pepper, tarragon, parsley, sage, rosemary, love.  Cook at a gentle bubble for half an hour.  

1 package matzo-ball mix (half a cup of matzo meal is all it is)

1 or 2 eggs

1 inch off the stick of butter

Melt the butter, crack the egg, mix it all up with a butter knife.  It’ll wipe off nicely.   Leave it in the fridge for a little while.  Use your butter knife to nip off bits the size of a nickel (up to a quarter if you want, no larger), and drop them into the simmering soup.  All done in about another fifteen minutes. 

Version #2: 

Put a chicken in a roasting pan with all the vegetables (heavier on the potato and carrot) and spices.  Cook till done, have a nice meal, boil everything that’s left over  until you can take out the bones and gristle.  Do the matzo balls.

Version #3:

Use leftover KFC.

Proceed.

Vegetarian version:  as above, but skip the chicken.