Chicken noodle soup is the ultimate comfort food, for me at least. Especially on chilly, rainy, or dreary days. It also is the best help in fighting sickness. It is packed with vegetables, protein, liquids to hydrate, and the warmth fills you to the core. I know many people have their own versions, but here is mine. It can be altered in any way you see fit. I roasted my own whole chicken and picked the meat off but you can also just buy the whole chickens roasted for you from your supermarket deli, or cook chicken breast right in the soup and cut them up when they are cooked. If you have never made soup I urge you to try this. Soup is one of my favorite things to make because really you can do so many combinations and it is always a big bowl of comfort. My whole 8 qt stock pot full cost me $9. That is way more than you would get out of canned soup for that price and so much more rewarding.
Chicken Noodle Soup
3-4 Whole Carrots, peeled
1-2 Medium Sized Onions
3-4 Stalks of Celery
3 Yellow Summer Squash or Zucchini
1 Potato
1 Ear of Corn
1 Bay Leaf
Chicken (As much or little as you want in, however you want to buy it)
1 Can of Diced Tomatoes, or your favorite pasta sauce
1 Box of Chicken Stock, amount does not matter, you can use all stock or stock/water combo
Salt and Pepper
Reems Frozen Egg Noodles (or any pasta of your choosing)
1. Dice onions, carrots and celery. I like chunky soup so I make them a medium size rough chop. This combination is called mirepoix and is the base to many soups. Saute them in your pan with a little oil and the bay leaf. Cook until just slightly starting to brown.
2. While the mirepoix is cooking, take time to chop the rest of the vegetables. I slice the squash on the diagonal, chop the potato, and use the Pampered Chef kernel cutter to remove the corn from the cob. Add ingredients to the pot along with stock/water to fill pot. Leave space so it does not boil over. Add the tomatoes or a little bit of your favorite pasta sauce for extra flavor.
4. Let cook for as long as you want. Simmer until the flavor is where you want it. If chicken is already cooked you can add it whenever. If you want to you can cook chicken in the soup now and pull it out, cool it and pick it apart to put back in the pot. This adds a great natural flavor to the soup. Check seasoning throughout cooking adding salt and pepper as needed.
5. When soup is ready, add the frozen egg noodles and cook for about 20 minutes until noodles are cooked. *Remove Bay Leaf!!
6. Serve with warm bread and save some for lunch the next day at work. The flavor will be even better the next day. And the noodles will soak up more soup making it a great thickness.
Enjoy and feel free to try this in a cock pot too. This will surely be a hit for your family on those cold days!
