I love making soup during the fall and winter months. I make soups of all kinds, using lots of different flavors, herbs, broths, and stocks to flavor each one a little differently. Chicken noodle soup is one of a few ‘go to’ soups that I make several times during the colder months. I’m not sure if it’s the nostalgia that I and most other people feel about the canned version during childhood but there’s definitely something about a great bowl of chicken noodle soup.

The good news about this soup is that it is pretty straightforward to make and if you happen to have chicken stock on hand, then it’s fairly quick. I make my own chicken stock and I make it by roasting a chicken, taking all the meat off the bones, and then using the bones to flavor the stock along with an assortment of herbs, vegetables, and spices. Usually I will make roasted chicken several times during the month and I freeze the bones. Once I reach two or three chickens, it’s then time for me to make more stock. If you do not have time to roast a chicken and so on, simply purchase a rotisserie chicken at your local grocery store, take the meat off the bones and go from there. If there’s not time to make stock, simply skip roasting the bones and simmering the soup for hours and make a broth using the bones, vegetables, and herbs. You can make a fairly flavorful broth in an hour to an hour in a half (whereas a stock could take upwards of six hours to really pull together). At any rate, there are options. I’m presenting this recipe as if you do not have chicken stock and will go step by step to making this soup completely from scratch. If you go this route, the soup will take the better part of the day to prepare. However, you won’t use all the stock you make for this one soup dish so you will have leftovers and stock freezes beautifully. So you can freeze it and make another meal or two from your homemade chicken stock anytime you’d like.  Recipe follows after the jump…

Ingredients:

For the stock:

Bones of two to three roasted or rotisserie chickens, meat removed

2 Onions, halved

3 Carrots, peeled and coarsely chopped

2 Celery sticks, coarsely chopped

1 Bulb of garlic, halved

4 Tablespoons vegetable oil

Kosher salt

4-5 Peppercorns, left whole

4 Fresh Bay leaves

1 Cup loosely packed parsley stems

6-8 Quarts of water (however much your stock pot will comfortably hold)

For the Soup:

4 Quarts chicken stock

2 Onions, chopped

3 Carrots, sliced thinly

2 Celery sticks, sliced thinly

3 Cloves of garlic, minced

1 Cup dried mushrooms

11/2 Cup frozen peas

Olive oil

Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

2 Fresh Bay Leaves

Roasted chicken meat from one to two chickens used in stock, chopped coarsely

½ Box of linguine

Handful of parsley leaves, coarsely chopped

Instructions:

Make the stock:

* Preheat oven to 425 degrees

* Remove the chicken meat from the bones of the roasted or rotisserie chicken.

* Drizzle the vegetable oil and a touch of kosher salt over the chicken bones and place in oven. Roast bones until they appear noticeably darker- around 45 minutes.

* Remove bones from oven and carefully place them in a very large stock pot. Place all ingredients in pot as well. Add water to the pot until there is about an inch or two of room at the top.

* Bring mixture to boil and then reduce heat to simmer. Cover stock and simmer at least 4 hours (6 hours would be best).

* Once simmering is finished, strain stock through fine mess sieve and set aside to cool. Once cooled, use stock immediately or freeze in quart containers. The stock will keep several days in the refrigerator as well.

Make the soup:

* Place a large, heavy pot on medium heat. Add some olive oil to the pan to coat the bottom. Add onions, carrots, and celery. Add a touch of kosher salt to the pan. Cook the vegetables for 8 minutes.

* Add the garlic and cook another minute.

* Add the bay leaves

* Add four quarts of chicken stock to the pan. Turn the pan up to high and bring to boil.

* Once at a boil, reduce heat to low and simmer for thirty minutes.

* In the meantime, take the dried mushrooms and submerge them in very hot water. Then cover the mushrooms and water with plastic wrap so that it is airtight and allow the mushrooms to steep in the water. Set aside.

* Place another large pan filled with water on high heat. Bring to boil. Once at a vigorous boil, add about one cup of kosher salt to the pot.

* Once the salt has dissolved completely and the water is still boiling vigorously, break the linguine pasta in half and place in the boiling water.

* Cook pasta according to package directions, except take the past out of the water about 2 to 3 minutes prior to when package says pasta will be finished.

* While pasta is cooking, remove the bay leaves from the soup.

* Drain pasta and add to soup pot.

* Add the mushrooms and the mushroom water to the soup pot.

* Allow the pasta and mushrooms to remain in the pot for around 10 minutes.

* After that, add the chicken and one minute later, add the peas. Simmer another minute and then add the coarsely chopped parsley.

* Taste soup and adjust seasonings by adding more salt, freshly ground black pepper, and even a drizzle of olive oil to suit your tastes.

Serve immediately while piping hot. Serve with crusty bread and perhaps a small salad.