We Eat with Our Eyes Too

 

Above: Chicken noodle Soup and to the left, pizza with veggies and sausage

The chicken noodle recipe is below. The pizza is for color. I'll share that another day! 

I recently saw a friend's Facebook post, showing a meal this person loved, which was served at a local restaurant. Since I read the post as well as looked at the picture, I could see that it was a tasty pasta dish. But it really stopped me, because it was so monochromatic in color! It was a tan, bland looking pasta dish. I'm sure it was very good! The description sounded good but the picture was unappealing to me. I admit, I'm a big ol' foodie and I can cook and bake a bit above average if I do say so myself! I wondered why the restaurant didn't add some color to the dish, to appeal to the eyes too. I know we eat with our taste buds and bellies but we also 'eat' with our eyes and this is important to this self-proclaimed foodie. So restaurant owners listen up: when you serve a dish, add some color even if it's parsley! But also, would it hurt to add peas, mushrooms, peppers and onions too? No it wouldn't! Could tomatoes add some appealing red color to the dish? Yes! In addition, these colors add nutrition and balance to our diet! 

Even when I make chicken noodle soup as I did yesterday, I added celery, onions and carrots to the chicken, broth and egg noodles. (That's all of the ingredients, except herbs, salt and pepper.) The carrots add color and great nutrients too! When I reheat the soup, I might even add in some small pieces of broccoli and zucchini for more color and value. Just do it for me, chefs of the world. Whether you are a home or restaurant chef, add that color so that I want to come back for more! Please? Thanks and you're welcome! 

Recipe for Chicken Noodle Soup

I made enough for about 6 folks with the following:

4 chicken breasts with a tablespoon of olive oil in the crockpot, set on high. 

After 1.5 hours, reduce heat and add chicken broth, sliced carrots, celery, and onions. I used about one cup of carrots and 1/2 cup each, the other two veggies. Cook on low an hour more. 

In a separate pot, boil your desired noodles. I used about half a bag of no yolk dumpling noodles from the store. Cook for 12 minutes, then add to the soup. Add seasoning of your liking. I added a rosemary-garlic blend, paprika, Cavendars Greek seasoning blend, and pepper and home-made Fines Herb mix. There is usually enough salt from the blends and the chicken broth. Cook for another 30-40 minutes! Enjoy!