Chicken Noodle Soup

I have always liked chicken noodle soup but it always seemed like a long process and too hard.  I found this recipe a few months ago and we love it.  I use a rotisserie chicken from Costco and shred it.  I also don't put as many noodles in as it asks for.  I use the Country Pasta Noodles Homemade Style egg pasta.  I use maybe a 1/4 of the package and break it up into smaller pieces. I have never done it in the crock pot.  On the stove it takes about 45 minutes.  I made this again tonight and it was very yummy!!

Chicken Noodle Soup

2 teaspoons butter

1 cup sliced celery
1 cup chopped carrots

1/2 cup chopped onion (I use a couple shakes of dried chopped onion)

1 teaspoon thyme

1 teaspoon poultry seasoning

4 (14 oz) cans of chicken broth

2 chicken bouillon cubes

2 cooked chicken breasts cut up

Half a package wide egg noodles (about 6 oz)

Saute celery, carrots, and onion in butter for two minutes (or until tender).  Add thyme, poultry seasoning, chicken broth, and bouillon.  Bring to a boil.  Add chicken and noodles. Cook on low for 20 minutes.  Serve immediately with warm homemade bread.

Crock pot Instructions: Throw almost everything (butter, celery, onion, thyme, poultry seasoning, chicken broth, bouillon, 2 raw chicken breasts, but NOT the noodles) in the crock pot & cook on low all day (4 hours on high).  Remove chicken, chop, put back in pot.  Add egg noodles, and let cook for 15- 20 minutes longer on low.  Do NOT let the noodles cook for too long... you will have mush for dinner instead of yummy delicious soup.  Serve with a loaf of Rhodes Bake & Serve bread that you set out to thaw when you started the soup!  There's no shame in doing that once in a while.

Here are even more shortcuts with the crock pot:  

- Use frozen chicken breasts.  Just throw them right in the pot.  Easy!  

- Chop a TON of celery and carrots the first time you make this soup.  Put a cup of carrots & a cup of celery in a quart size freezer Ziplock.  Freeze for later use.  Throw them in the crock pot frozen.  They cook up just like fresh.