It's tricky to think of chicken soup with rice without thinking of maurice sendak's "Chicken soup with rice, " A sadly under-read and yet fabulous children's book that starts with this immortal line: "In january it's so nice, while slipping on the sliding ice, to sip hot chicken soup with rice. "Read it out loud. It's so fun to say those words in that order. And he's absolutely right. There is great warmth and comfort to be found in a hot bowl of rice-laden chicken soup. And if the said soup is made with fresh, local ingredients, all the better. Some recipes may call for cooking the rice in the soup, but if you cook it separately the broth will stay clear. If clear broth doesn't interest you (and neither does having to clean the extra rice-cooking pot), simply add another 2 cups broth or water to the pot, add the rice along with all the vegetables, and cook 15 to 20 minutes until the rice is wonderfully tender to the bite. Tip: if you use homemade chicken broth, pull the chicken out of the simmering broth after it's cooked through, remove the meat to use in this soup, and return the bones to continue flavoring the broth.