Chicken Soup for the Soul

We all know that chicken soup is good for the soul.  As a matter of fact, there are books with that phrase in the title.

I happen to believe that chicken soup is one of the best comfort foods when the weather gets chilly.  I've been making huge batches of my favorite recipe and I'm going to share my recipe and take photos as I do it.  Here goes. First the recipe...

Sandy's Chicken Soup with Homemade Noodles



1 - 2 1/2 - 3 lb ready to cook broiler, fryer chicken, cut up

3 quarts water

1 medium onion, quartered

a few sprigs of parsley (I use the dried kind)

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. whole black peppers

2 cups uncooked fine noodles

1 cup diced celery

1/2 cup shredded carrots

2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. dried thyme, crushed

1/4 tsp. dried oregano, crushed

Place chicken in Dutch oven, or deep kettle.  Add next five ingredients.  Simmer, covered for one hour.  Remove chicken from broth. Cool and remove meat from bones; dice meat.  Strain broth; return to kettle.  Bring stock to boiling; add remaining ingredients, except chicken.  Return to boil.  Cook, covered, stirring occasionally for 10 minutes or until the noodles are tender.  Add chicken; heat.  Makes 2 1/2 quarts.



I use organic chicken



Cutting up the chicken






Removing the skin

 I've adjusted the recipe a bit. I put in some celery stalks with the initial cooking and after straining the broth I add some more parsley, additional chopped onion and celery when adding the carrots. I use a pepper grinder instead of whole black peppers. Also, I supplemented the water with some chicken broth.
When removing the skin, to get a better grip, I use a paper towel to grasp the skin.



Some of the onions and celery







 




Beginning the one hour cook time









Simmering








Homemade Noodles

Don't be afraid to make your own noodles as it is really easy and so much better than the packaged ones!  Here goes...

1 beaten egg

2 Tbls. milk

1/2 tsp. salt

1 cup all purpose flour

In a mixing bowl, combine egg, milk and salt.  Stir in enough flour to make a soft dough.  Cover and let rest for 10 minutes.  On a floured surface roll dough to a 16" x 12" rectangle.  Let stand for 20 minutes.  Using a pizza cutter or knife, cut into 1/4" slices. Let dry for 2 hours. (I have used them right away though.) They can then be stored in an airtight container and refrigerated till needed.  I only make them when I need them, so I haven't put them in the fridge.

When the soup is boiling good, dropping a few at a time so as to prevent them from sticking together, add the noodles to the broth and cook uncovered for 8 - 10 minutes.  Lower the heat and simmer while the noodles cook.  This recipe can be made with 1/2 cup of whole wheat flour and 1/2 cup white flour. 



Mixing the egg, milk and salt



Mixing in the kamut flour







As an alternative I used Kamut flour instead of the white flour for a batch of soup.  I found that about 3/4 cup of the Kamut flour is sufficient.  The rest of the ingredients remain the same.  The noodles turned out very well and would be a good substitute for people who are avoiding gluten.



After cutting, spead out to dry



If you have a pasta roller, it makes the job a little easier, but isn't necessary to make great noodles.







Rolling the dough, multiple times



Cutting the noodles

 



Here is the finished product, ready to freeze.  I made a very large batch to have a few meals in the freezer.  I serve this soup with my homemade rolls.  I'll post that recipe sometime.

Yummy!