Chicken Noodle Soup

I think in the world of blogging I could quite possibly make a name for myself as the Soup Queen. I love soup whether it is cream or broth based, vegetables only or with some meat, super smooth or a rich stew; you name it more than likely I will love it. 

One soup that everyone should probably have in their bag of cooking tricks is chicken noodle. And no, I do not believe that opening a can of Campbell's Chicken and Stars counts.

The mission I gave myself several weeks ago was to create a chicken noodle soup that was really rich, really hearty, and could cure the common cold. Mission accomplished with the soup below. (Ok.. I haven't tested it on the cold yet. I'll let you know the next time one of us is sick how it goes.) The best part- it's really simple! 

Chicken Noodle Soup

 Ingredients:

2 medium carrots

2 or 3 celery stalks

2 or 3 shallots

1 garlic clove (2 if it's really small)

1 tbls real butter

1 bay leaf

salt and pepper to taste

pinch or two of dried basil

9 cups of water

1 chicken boullion

1 whole rotisserie chicken 

1-2 cups of uncooked noodles

2 tbls flour  

Method:

1) Start by chopping the carrots, celery and shallots. 

2) Melt butter in a large stock pot on medium heat. Add carrots, celery, shallots to pot. With a garlic press, press garlic into the vegetable mixture. Stir well and let simmer for about 5-7 minutes. 

3) Add water, bay leaf, salt, pepper, basil and boullion to the pot. Now, this might sound a little strange but it will make your soup amazing- Take the whole chicken and put it in the soup! Cover and let simmer for 20 minutes. 

4)Remove chicken from the pot and remove all of the meat. Add the meat back to the pot then add the noodles. 

5) Put flour and a small amount of water in a rubbermade container with a TIGHT lid. Give it a really good shake to mix and then pour into soup pot. Stir well, replace lid and let soup simmer for 10-15 minutes. 

Enjoy! We will be having the leftovers tonight!

Ps- the cornbread is amazing too! Made with polenta due to the lack of cornmeal in France... still oh-so-good. Thank you Pioneer Woman!