We’ve lived in plenty of places that require a menu full of soups and chili to get through the cold winter months. Strangely enough it was only this year that I made my first pot of chicken noodle soup. It was funny actually, when they asked what was for dinner and I told them chicken noodle, Matthew started to describe Chicken Tortilla Soup. “The one with the beans and corn that’s spicy?” he asked. “No, Matthew. The one that’s orangish and has the white noodles, right Mom?” Lindsay attempted to clarify, describing our Thai Chicken Noodle Soup. I shook my head. “Nope. It’s chicken noodle. It’s not spicy . . . I know I’ve never made it before, but common, you guys have had to have at least tried chicken noodle soup before?” Their eyebrows narrowed and they shook their heads. My kids are 10 & 12 and they’ve never had chicken noodle soup. Weird.

I originally found this recipe on eatingwell.com, but we made a few tweaks to make it our own. Mainly I upped the amount of veggies, liquid, and added seasonings. Their recipe also called for breasts from two rotisserie chickens, but after using every little bit I could, one rotisserie chicken was plenty. This makes enough to serve 8-10, and keep in mind that those egg noodles continue to soak up the liquid, so you’ll need to continue adding broth to the leftovers.

Ingredients:

• 2 Tablespoons salted butter
• 1 Tablespoon olive oil
• 1 large yellow onion, diced
• 3 medium carrots, peeled & diced
• 4 stalks celery, diced
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic (2 cloves)
• 4 Tablespoons flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons garlic salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground thyme
• Fresh ground pepper to taste (I used about 1/2 teaspoon)
• 4 cups chicken stock/broth (plus more for leftovers)
• 3 cups whole milk
• 6 oz uncooked extra wide egg noodles
• 1 rotisserie chicken (shredded, chopped, however much you can get off)
• 1 cup frozen green peas
• Italian parsley for topping (optional)

Directions:

• Get out your favorite chopping knife and go to town on those veggies.
• Dump the onion, carrots, and celery into a large pot along with the butter and olive oil.
• Cook veggies on medium high until they’ve softened, about six minutes.
• Add minced garlic and cook for an additional 2 minutes.
• Sprinkle flour onto the mix and stir to coat. After about a minute pour in the chicken broth and milk.
• Allow mixture to come to boil.
• Add the uncooked noodles, cover, and cook until the egg noodles are al dente. (Package directions may vary if you choose regular or whole wheat.)
• Stir in chicken and peas and cook an additional couple minutes until the chicken and peas have warmed through and you’re happy with the consistency of the noodles.

Serves 8-10