Mama's Chicken Noodle Soup

We're nursing illnesses here...which means Chicken Noodle Soup!  When I was a little girl my mom would often make me chicken noodle soup when I was sick, and it was the ONLY thing good about being sick (well, in addition to being able to sit on the couch and watch I Love Lucy all day long, haha!)  I don't remember ever eating the soup when we were well, so being sick really was a special treat.  My favorite part has always been the homemade noodles--which my mom made without a pasta machine--they are nice and chewy.  My kids love those noodles too--so much so that chicken noodle soup can't be called chicken noodle soup without them!  That love definitely makes the extra effort of making the noodles worth it.

Would you like to have the recipe?  Here's my version of the soup that I used to have growing up.  If homemade noodles and boiling chicken is more than you have time for, you can easily substitute pre-made noodles (I especially love the fresh ones!) and rotisserie chicken.  I think you'll be surprised though by how the noodles actually don't take that long to make, and clean up is pretty easy too.

Ingredients:
1 onion
1 bunch of celery
2-3 carrots
2 tablespoons olive oil
1-2 garlic cloves, minced
64 oz of chicken or vegetable broth
2 chicken breasts
1 teaspoon dried thyme
fresh parsley (optional.  If I have it I thrown in a handful.)
salt to taste
noodles (see below)

I start out by sauteing the onion and garlic in the olive oil.  Then I throw in the celery and carrots and cook until the onions become translucent.

When the onions become clear I add the broth and keep the stove set at a light boil.  I add the WHOLE chicken breasts and spices and boil for about 45 minutes.

While the chicken is boiling I start preparing the egg noodles--no pasta machine required!  In place of a pasta machine, I just use a rolling mat, rolling pin, fork, and a knife to cut out the pieces.

Here's what you'll need:
1 egg
1 cup flour
dash of salt
small drops of water until it reaches a dough like consistency (or you can add another egg in place of the water)

I start out by putting a pile of flour (including the salt) on the middle of my mat.  Then I push the center of the flour down.  Crack and egg in the center of the pile.  Use a fork to incorporate the flour into the egg. Keep working the dough.  Add water drop-wise until it starts resembling dough.  You can begin kneading it at this point.

Roll out the dough until it's about 1/8-1/4 inch thin.  Use a knife to cut the noodles into pieces.  If the dough is too sticky, add some flour to dust the noodles and make it so that they don't stick together.  The noodles only need about 3 minutes or so to cook in the boiling soup, so you can add them when the rest of your soup is almost done.

After your chicken breasts are cooked, remove them and shred into bite sized pieces.  Add the chicken and the noodles back into the soup and boil the noodles for about 3 minutes, until they reach a chewy, gummy consistency.

Voila!  You're done!  I hope you enjoyed this little peak into one of my family's favorite recipe!