Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup

This is a must try recipe if you are a soup lover! I make this soup at least once every couple of weeks in the fall and winter. We love it so much that I started making two batches at a time. The two of us will eat it for 2 or 3 days for both lunch and dinner. Yeah, it's that good :) Plus, it's not hard to make- at all. It doesn't even involve any measuring cups or spoons. This recipe is all about what you like and prefer.

What you need for one batch:

1 Chicken breast (for the recipe you need the breast with the bones & skin still intact)Carrots

Celery

White Onion

2 small Tomatoes (optional)

Noodles 

Chicken Soup Base (not bouillon)

The Process:
The first thing you need to do is fill a big pot to the top. I usually fill mine to the metal buttons (from the handles). It's important to fill as much as possible because it's going to boil down a lot. Next, put it on the stove and turn the heat to high. Now add the chicken breast and allow to boil for    
an hour, or until your chicken looks cooked.

{Sometimes a funky film will form- it's okay, just scoop it out & discard.}

While your chicken is boiling it's smart to chop up your veggies.

For the onion, just cut the ends and tear off the skin. That's all! No crying involved :) You can add this to the chicken as soon as you do it.

You can cut your carrots and celery as thick or thin as you like. Just note that the thicker they are, the longer they will take to cook. You will need about 2 cups of each. Now for the most important step of this recipe...

****keep the leafy part of the celery and chop it up****

This will add so much yummy flavor to your soup! I promise you won't know what hits you when you try this later!

If you choose to use tomatoes (I usually use them but didn't have any last night) just quarter them and scoop the seeds out. Easy peasy!

After your chicken & onion have boiled for an hour, add your vegetables. Also turn your heat down to medium high. You'll want to keep a slow boil for the remainder of the time.

I typically let it all boil together for another hour. After that, carefully take the chicken out and plop it onto a cutting board. At this point the chicken will be cooked completely and the meat will be falling off the bones. Next, remove all of the skin and bones. Make sure to get all the bones out. There are a couple single, small bones.

We shred the chicken, because that's how we like our chicken in soup. but you could totally cube it if that's your kind of thing.

Discard bones & skin and put the chicken back into the pot. Let it cook some more.

In the meantime, fill another pot with water and bring to boil. Add your choice of noodles & cook them until their soft-- not dente! The softer your noodle, the less they will soak up your soup broth.

We use Ditalini noodles (half a box for 1 batch). We also like to add a couple different kinds of tiny noodles. This time I added Pastina (tiny stars) & Orzo. {I love using ABC noodles!} I add these directly to the soup because they can't be strained. If you like a lot of broth, add about 1/4 C of each. If not, add more.

Once your {separated} noodles are cooked thoroughly, strain them. Next, using a measuring cup, add the noodles to your soup. As you scoop, stop and check your consistency. Add as little or as much as you like!

Last step! Get your chicken stock and start off with 3 tablespoons. Add more to taste. By now your noodles and veggies should be soft, if not, let it cook a little longer.

When it's done, grab a ladle and serve yourself up some piping hot, delicious soup!

Enjoy!