Chicken Noodle Soup

Before Jack was born I had never made homemade soup. Before he started eating real food I actually didn't cook much at all. Well nothing fancy or elaborate, just mac n' cheese from a box or spaghetti with the occasional meat sauce, and other processed foods. The idea of making my own soup was daunting. But then I did it and I've never looked back.

Sometime last winter I got the idea to make chicken noodle soup. I searched all over the web for the perfect recipe and came across one that is absolutely wonderful. I love the idea of being able to make a batch of this soup for a sick friend or family member. Or to have ready after the kids come in from playing in the snow. When Jack is older and has gone off to college (scary thought!), I want him to come home looking forward to specific dishes he's grown up with. I expect this will be one of them. It's a delicious, warm, satisfying, comforting soup that's actually very easy to make. I much prefer giving my family homemade soup because I can control the salt content. And I know I'm doing something right when throughout the meal Jack is saying, "Mmm, so good. Like soup" and at the end his bowl is completely clean. :) 

The recipe I use I found on food.com. As with anything, it can be modified to suit your taste but I pretty much stick straight to the recipe.

Ingredients:
8 cups water or 8 cups canned chicken broth (I use 2 containers of reduced sodium or no salt added chicken broth)
1 cup carrot, cut into 1/4-inch slices (I use 4-5 carrots, peeled and sliced)
1 cup celery, cut into 1/4-inch slices (I use 4 celery stalks)
1 cup onion, chopped (1 medium onion)
1 garlic clove, minced
2 bay leaves
½ teaspoon dried thyme
4 teaspoons salt, to taste (I only use 1 teaspoon)
½ teaspoon fresh ground pepper, to taste
1 (3 ½ lb) roasting chicken (I always get one that's a little over 4 pounds)
3 cups wide egg noodles, uncooked


Directions:
*Combine water or broth, carrots, celery, onion, garlic, bay leaves, thyme, salt, and pepper in a 4-1/2 to 6 quart slow cooker 
*Place whole chicken on top of vegetables 
*Cover slow cooker with lid and cook on low for 8 to 10 hours or on high for 4 to 5 hours. 
*Transfer chicken to cutting board. Discard bay leaves. Add noodles to slow cooker, cover with lid, and cook (on low or high) for 20 minutes.
*While noodles cook, remove and discard skin, fat, and bones from chicken; shred meat. 
*Skim fat from soup and discard. Return chicken to soup and serve. 

Before making this soup, I had never worked with a whole chicken before. They're not that pretty but it sure tastes good! I also didn't realize just how hot the meat gets and how easily it breaks apart. You have to be very careful you don't burn yourself when removing the chicken and then while shredding the meat. Last night the whole thing fell apart and I had to go searching for lost bones in the soup. Luckily I retrieved them all and the soup was as tasty as ever!


If you won't take my word for it, just look at this face:

I love it and obviously so does he! :)


And thanks to Pinterest, I got the wonderful idea to freeze portions in a muffin tin. I use a large muffin pan and once they're frozen, just pop them out and store in a freezer bag. One is the perfect sized portion for Jack and it's really great to be able to pull out a healthy meal in a pinch. I still make boxed mac 'n cheese (can one really live without it?), but I now have a lot of healthy homemade meals in my rotation, including soup. I never would've thought that cooking could be so easy and rewarding (and fun!), but it really is!