Real Chicken Noodle Soup

This is homemade goodness! I was disappointed by the number of recipes I saw with bouillon or broth in them. My favorite chicken soup is made with a whole chicken, water, and veggies... and the taste is pure and delicious. No MSG or other fillers getting in the way. To make this truly from scratch, you could make your own egg noodles as well (try Delicious Homemade Egg Noodles) but pre-packaged ones do fine too. Adjust the noodle amount to how you like it... either a lot of noodles or a little. Enjoy this soup when you are under the weather or just as a warm comfort food. We love it served with a nice crusty bread with butter. Oh, and my 2 year old loves this too! It's perfect for little fingers and noodles and veggies are soft for them to chew.

• Ready In: 1 hr 15 mins
• Serves: 4-6

Ingredients

• 1  whole chicken, 3 - 4 lbs
• 3  cups carrots, peeled and sliced 1/4 thick
• 1  large onion
• 6  cups water
• 1  tablespoon salt
• 1⁄2 teaspoon fresh ground pepper (to taste)
• 1  cup celery, sliced, including some celery leaves chopped
• 1 1⁄2-2  cups  egg noodles, depending on your preference

Directions

1. Discard chicken parts on interior of chicken and thoroughly rinse chicken. Place in large stockpot or Dutch oven.
2. Add carrots, onion, water, salt and pepper.
3. Cover and cook over high heat until boiling.
4. Once boiling, lower heat to low to maintain a simmer, and cook for 45 minutes or until chicken is fork tender.
5. Remove chicken, and place on cutting board to cool enough to handle.
6. Add celery and noodles to pot. Simmer for 10 - 20 minutes, or until noodles are tender.
7. During this time, begin cutting up your chicken meat (we use only the breast meat) into chunks or shreds -- however you like it.
8. Add the meat to the soup before serving.