Filipino Sopas

Sopas is one Filipino dish that can be good as a snack or a complete meal itself. Traditionally, it consists of boiling chicken or pork bones with salt and pepper. Once you get good tasting broth flavor, elbow macaroni is added which you cook till al dente. When the pasta is almost done, vegetables are added usually chopped carrots and cabbage. Once done, season with salt and pepper to taste and add a cup of milk to make it really creamy.

Now, me, I like to tweak my sopas and add whatever I can find in the fridge. I usually love making sopas after thanksgiving because of the left over turkey and ham. I also like to use left over rotisserie chicken when it's not thanksgiving or any chicken with bones...yes not deboned chicken because that's where you'll get the most flavor.

Sopas is so good when the weather is cold or when you're feeling down and out. It's comfort food and I love it. I made it cuz it was cold and we had a snow storm hit us....

Ingredients

Chicken with bones 4- 8 pieces

1 box Elbow Pasta

1 - 2 Bay Leaf

Salt and Pepper

Chicken Bullion

Water 5-8 cups

1 Carrot chopped

2 Celery chopped

1 Onion chopped

1 Garlic minced

4 Eggs hard boiled

1. Bring to boil the meat broth. I usually make the broth by boiling chicken with bones in water till the meat flavor comes out. Than I shred the chicken meat.

2. Add the elbow macaroni (other pasta shapes will do like farfalle, rigatoni and penne - but this would not really be a Filipino dish).Add dried herbs such as oregano, basil, thyme, rosemary).

3. The elbow macaroni is cooked till al dente. Just taste the macaroni a few minutes after boiling. When macaroni is almost done, added the chopped vegetables. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

4. Turn off fire and add the milk.

5. Add egg optional

and serve hot......