One my families favorite meals growing up is my mom’s homemade chicken and noodles with fresh raised chickens – a recipe she learned to make with her mother. There truly is nothing better on a cool Fall day! It quickly became a favorite of my own family and thanks to my son Blake, we can make it with only having to purchase a few ingredients. This summer, Blake became a “chicken farmer.” We have had broilers before, but he wanted to expand to include laying hens – which means we have lots and lots of eggs and farm-raised chicken!
It does take some time to prepare this recipe – I usually make it on the weekend and then freeze the extra chicken and broth. (I also like to make extra noodles and freeze those, too, for a fast weekday meal). Truly, it is the egg noodles that make this recipe amazing and they really are not hard! I have tried to substitute store-bought “homemade” noodles and there just is no comparison. If you are short on time – use canned chicken broth and frozen chicken, but don’t skimp on the noodles :).
Chicken Stock
Whole chicken
2 large carrots
1 celery stalk
2 bay leaves
1 onion, quartered
2 cups water
All you do:
- Place all the ingredients into a large stock pot. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer for 45-60 minutes.
- Remove from the heat. Allow the chicken to cool slightly and then remove the meat from the bones and skin (discard).
- Strain the stock to remove vegetables and extra pieces of the chicken. Discard vegetables. Use strained chicken stock for desired recipes.
Homemade Egg Noodles
1 T. baking powder
3 eggs, beaten
1 T. butter, soft
2 cups flour
All you do:
1. Mix the baking powder, eggs and butter until well blended. Gradually, add flour until a stiff and non-sticky dough forms. Depending on the size of your eggs, you may need more or less flour.
2. Flour the counter top well. Coat surface of the dough with flour and roll out until 1/4″ thick. Using either a sharp knife, pastry knife or pizza cutter, cut the noodles into strips.
3. Place noodles into the boiling chicken broth (See below) and cook for 15-20 minutes.
Hearty Chicken Noodle Soup
2 cups chicken, chopped
3 cups chicken stock
4 carrots, diced
2 celery stalks, diced
1 medium onion, diced
2 T. fresh parsley (or 2 tsp dried parsley)
1/2 tsp. black pepper
Noodles, see above
All you do:
1. Place chicken, stock, carrots, celery and onions into a stock pot. Bring to a boil and simmer for about 5 minutes. Add noodles and cook for an additional 15 minutes.
2. Add black pepper and parsley. Serve.