And so it begins...

And so it begins... I have been threatening to do this for a long time, so I might as well get on with it.

But first, I should probably introduce myself: My name is Reina Victoria Kutner. I have spent most of my post-college career in the journalism world, trying to make a name for myself and make my way to the big time. This was, of course, before this world came crashing in on me, and my husband, Ari, and I were both left unemployed, laid off from our respective jobs.

But I do have another passion. It started after I got married. I got a cold, which, my husband being who he is, prompted him to kiss and cuddle with me despite my warnings that he would get it too. He got it, and all of a sudden, I was forced to make chicken soup. My mom tried to talk me through it, but she confused me more. My brain was going a mile a minute, terrified of the task ahead. But that's when a miracle occurred.

I took a simple leftover roast chicken, which was easy to make, and created a chicken soup. When I tasted it, I was shocked: It didn't taste like anyone else's. I have never tasted something like that, and it was absolutely delicious. It still had its amazing chicken soup powers, such as being a laxative for the nose and making people feel better at will, but it tasted amazing.

I realized then I could be so much more in the kitchen. I could develop flavors that I never expected. Using what I knew about cooking, I could become a great cook. I started to experiment, and found great enjoyment in developing my own trademark dishes. I may not be a gourmet and fancy-pants chef, nor have I been professionally trained, but I can tell you that most of the people who come to my house like my food quite a bit.

But there is a twist to my story: I started kept kosher in my senior year of college. For those of you not aware of what exactly being kosher entails (and surprisingly, this is the question I often get asked the most when I mention that I am), it means following biblical guidelines for eating. This means no pork, no shellfish and no mixing milk with meat. It also means only being able to buy meat that has been through a special process called kashrut, which includes killing an animal humanely and making sure it is rid of excess blood. For me, this was a conscious choice, as I felt that if an animal was going to give its life for me to eat it, we should respect it as much as we could.

I find it hilarious that I live in a cheeseburger world, where pork seems to be a culinary god for many chefs in the United States and shellfish is considered sacred. But, as I have found as a writer, being a cook without access to all the things that a regular chef does has made me even more creative in the kitchen. I have been able to play with vegan and vegetarian elements, and with several tricks of a kosher cook, been able to mix up things -- all while suffering from whatever bout of unemployment has come along.

I have started working on my memoir/cookbook, "Young, Broke and Kosher," but it seriously needs a kick in the ass in order to get started. Hence, this blog comes into play. I will write as though I am writing for my book, tracking my days as an unemployed editor trying to find my place, as well as my different recipes that I come up with in my kitchen, which has been lovingly nicknamed "the postage stamp" by my best friend due to its small size. Hopefully, if we get some following, I will start posting some videos of me cooking as well.

So, as the Israelis say... b'tayavon!

REINA'S CHICKEN SOUP
1-2 cups leftover cooked chicken with drippings (bones optional)
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion
3 stalks celery
1 large carrot
3 cloves garlic
4 cups water plus 4 teaspoons chicken bullion
2 tablespoons za’atar
2 teaspoons ground cumin

Chop the onion, carrot and celery into large pieces. Finely chop the garlic. Saute the vegetables in a large soup pot with the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the leftover chicken and the chicken drippings, constantly stirring the mixture.

Add the chicken bullion and water as well as the za’atar and cumin. If using bones, wrap them in a cheese cloth and drop them in the liquid. It will release more chicken flavor.
Let simmer for at least an hour and serve.

Quick Tip 1: The roast chicken that you prepare for this should be delicious as well. When I make this soup, I usually use za'atar on the chicken itself that I have prepared the night before. If you do this, reduce the za'atar to taste.

Quick Tip 2: If you want to add noodles to your soup, cook them separately and drop them in when you’re ready to eat. Otherwise they’ll get mushy.

Quick Tip 3: If you don’t like za’atar (a combo of thyme, sumac and other Middle Eastern spices), herbes de province also work well.