It Cures What Ails Ya!

My little Peanut has been feeling under the weather the last few days. I hate it when he's sick, but a teeny tiny part of me kind of likes it because it gives me an excuse to make a big ole batch of chicken noodle soup! I know I could make it any time I want....but I tend to save it for when someone is sick. It always makes you feel so much better when you are feeling under the weather. Some research says the effects of chicken noodle soup is really just psychosomatic. Whether it actually works or it's all in your head, if it makes you feel better then it doesn't matter. All I know is that when Peanut isn't feeling good, he asks for me to make him some soup!

I'm sure buying a can of chicken noodle soup, heating it up for a few minutes over the stove, and eating it might work. My theory is that anything made from scratch is waaaaaaay better than store bought. I have become a chicken noodle soup snob in the last few years and scoured Pinterest trying to find a recipe that I liked. I finally came across one that I have made enough times that I know exactly what I need from the store without having to consult the recipe (which was also good enough for me to actually write down the recipe!!!). The recipe comes from a post shared on the yummymummyclub website. There's very little prep work and it cooks in the crockpot! Throw it together, go to work, and come home to a great dinner!

Crockpot Chicken Noodle Soup

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup chopped carrots
• 2 ribs of celery, chopped
• 1 medium onion, peeled and sliced (I slice mine in large pieces so that my picky onion eater Woodman can pick them out)
• 2-3 sprigs of fresh rosemary (I love that I can just go pick a few off of my plant on the back porch!)
• 2 slices of ginger (about 1/4" thick each), peeled
• 8 boneless, skinless chicken thighs (I only used 6 this time because that's the package I bought...when I do 8, it tends to make it more stew-y than soup-y)
• 1 container low sodium chicken broth (usually about 4 cups...add an extra cup of broth if you choose not to use the wine)
• 1 cup white wine (Optional, but HIGHLY recommended)
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2 cups egg noodles

Spray your crockpot with nonstick spray. Add your carrots, celery, onion, ginger, and rosemary.

While I chop the veggies, I always throw the scraps into a bowl to put into the freezer to save to make my own chicken stock.

Arrange your chicken pieces on top of the veggies.

Ignore my chunk of frozen chicken broth. I feel like using homemade broth makes this soup that much more healing! It's SOUPer easy to make!

Add broth, wine (if you are using it), salt, and pepper. Cook on low for 8 hours.

Remove the chicken, shred with two forks, and put back into the pot. Let it continue to cook about 20 more minutes.

Here's where my recipe changes from the original. They say to throw the egg noodles in the crockpot when you shred the chicken and let them cook for 20-30 minutes. Every time I've done this, they turn into a big, mushy mess! After you shred your chicken, cook the egg noodles in a separate pot. You can even cook them in chicken broth to enhance their nutritional value. When they are finished cooking, rinse them with cold water and store in a separate container (especially since you'll probably have leftovers). A little extra work, but it's worth it.

Put some noodles in your bowl, add some soup, and enjoy! I really like how the wine and rosemary really flavor the soup.

If you give this recipe a try, let me know what you think!!!