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Mark the end of Hanukkah with this matzo ball soup recipe

This Friday, Dec. 18, marks the end of Hanukkah. And while there are traditional dishes for the Hanukkah season, such as latkes, kugel and sufganiyot, many Jewish families make sure to include the year-round comfort food dish of matzo ball soup.

The matzo balls are made from Matzah meal, which is unleavened bread crumbs. It can be found in the ethnic sections of most grocery stores. The soup itself is generally made with a chicken broth that includes a couple of Matzo balls in it.

225 recipe writer Tracey Koch put together a recipe that includes a hearty homemade chicken stock. This may take a bit more time than using store-bought stock, but it is totally worth the effort.

She suggests starting with the carcass of a roasted chicken, and adding aromatics like carrots, celery, fresh herbs, salt and pepper all covered with cold water. To keep the stock clear—and this is the tricky part—you must very slowly bring it up to a slight simmer and, without stirring, keep it at a slight simmer the whole time. Never let it reach a boil. If the stock does become cloudy, it will still taste the same, but you want the visual appeal of a clear soup for this traditional dish.

Read on for more on how to make your own matzo ball soup this season. The story was originally published in a January 2015 edition of 225.