Chicken Noodle Soup for the Sick

Yup, it's sick days around here. My boyfriend and I hardly ever get sick but when we do it's nasty business. We all know there's nothing more soothing than chicken soup when you're sick but studies have shown that it actually increases the healing process. You can't go wrong with this delicious soup, whether your taste buds allow you their full advantage or not, this chicken noodle soup is a must for all of us poor little sickies out there. While the stock is simmering I'll be fiercely chugging echinacea and vitamin C in hopes of a speedy recovery, but I guarantee when it's ready, my chicken noodle soup is going to boost much more than my immune system.

(I like to make a different version of chicken stock for this soup but of course you can use regular homemade stock. I do encourage you to try to make your own stock for this soup, it really makes all the difference and it's so easy, especially the one I use here.)

RECIPE:

Stock:
1 chicken carcass (roasted or raw, as I've said before, always keep one in your freezer from leftover chicken bones)
1 medium onion, roughly chopped
5 cloves garlic, smashed
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
3 sprigs rosemary
8 cups water
1/4 tsp dried thyme, (I prefer dried thyme and dried sage in this but you can easily substitute a couple fresh sprigs of each)
1/4 tsp dried sage
2 bay leaves

Add all of the ingredients in a large stock pot. Bring mixture to a boil, lower to a simmer, cover and cook for an hour. Remove from heat, strain the stock through a fine strainer and set aside.

Chicken Noodle Soup:
8 cups chicken stock
2 raw chicken breasts, chopped
2 cup carrots, diced
1 medium onion, diced
2 cup celery stalks, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup parsley, finely chopped
1 cup egg noodles
salt & pepper to taste

Saute onions. carrots and celery in a large pot (preferably your stock pot, cleaned and dried) over low-medium heat for about 15 minutes or until carrots are slightly tender. Add the garlic and saute another 3-4 minutes. Add the chicken stock and raw chicken and bring mixture to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer until the carrots and celery are tender. Add the egg noodles and cook according to package directions (about 8-10 minutes.) Add the parsley, stir together and serve.