Chicken Meatball Soup and Biscuits

I woke up feeling pretty crummy a couple days ago. Not death-warmed-over flu terrible, just icky. But I knew what would make me feel better: chicken meatball soup. Homemade chicken soup really does contain some magic that nourishes your whole body. As always, it made me feel a whole lot better -- until the soup ran out. So I made another batch for lunch today. Little Man got very excited over this soup, and he *loved* his first biscuit.

Chicken Meatball Soup:

• 8 cups chicken broth
• 1 pound ground chicken (or turkey)
• 4 carrots, peeled and sliced
  
• 1 parsnip, peeled and sliced
  
• 1/2 onion, chopped
  
• 1 baby zucchini, sliced
  
• 1 large yukon gold potato, cut into small cubes
  
• 1 1/2 tsp tarragon
• 2 tsp parsley
• 1/2 tsp sage or poultry seasoning
  
• salt and pepper
• 100 grams (about 1/4 pound) white rice spaghetti
  

1. Heat the broth to a slow boil, then add the carrots, parsnip, onion, zucchini, and potato.
2. Pull small chunks off the block of chicken. I use one hand (keeping the other one clean in case my toddler gets into something!) and shape the bits into roughly round shapes about the size of a large grape. As I form each one I drop it into the soup. Don't worry too much about shaping the meatballs; odd shapes work just fine.
   
3. Add tarragon, parsley and sage. Add salt and pepper to taste. Boil for 20 minutes (or more).
4. Break the pasta into 1-2 inch pieces and drop into the soup. Boil for another 20 minutes, then turn to simmer until you are ready to serve.

I used to always make my great-grandmother's baking powder biscuits to accompany soup. I made a few modifications to my scone recipe and -- voila! Savory biscuits. Not the same texture as baking powder biscuits (I prefer this biscuit texture as it is much smoother and flakier) but a similar taste.

Biscuits:

• 1 cup brown rice flour
• 1/2 cup sorghum flour
• 1/2 cup tapioca flour
• 3/4 tsp xanthan gum
• 1 Tbsp baking powder
• 3/4 tsp sea salt
• 1/2 cup solid coconut oil (chill in the fridge to make solid)
• 3/4 cup coconut milk

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
   
2. Whisk together the flours, xanthan gum, baking powder and sea salt.
3. Use a pastry cutter to mix the coconut oil into the dry mix until you get pea-sized crumbs.
4. Use a wooden spoon to combine the coconut milk with the crumbs. Stir/fold until just combined.
5. Divide mixture into 9 biscuits. Shape gently with your hands and place on baking sheet.
6. Bake for 20 minutes, or until lightly browned around the bottom edges.