Recipe: Crock Pot Chicken Noodle

There's nothing like (any kind of) chicken soup made in the crockpot!  I've learned to NEVER hurry it, choosing to let it simmer away all day.  Chicken soup on the stovetop is just NOT the same thing!  There is something about the way the chicken falls apart in it's tenderness after a day in the crock pot simmering in broth.  There's nothing like it.  I would always choose crock pot soup over stovetop soup -- any day of the week!

(For those of you really paying attention, you might notice that this weekend's soup was NOT made in the crockpot.  I thought I was speeding up the process after a mid-day shopping trip to gather ingredients... but remembered the lesson that I have to be reminded of now and then... THE CROCK POT ROCKS!)

I  thought I'd share this recipe with you, as it's one of our favorites.  We like it because it's light on the broth (not too strong), and heavy on the chunky ingredients, making it almost more like a stew -- especially when I get carried away on the veggies!  This is also a great soup to make when you're ready to throw something in the crock pot first thing in the morning, but have forgotten to thaw the chicken!  Taa-Daa!  This can be your go-to recipe for those days.  (Please tell me you have them too!)

On Saturday, I doubled my recipe so that we would have dinner plus have leftovers for Sunday lunch.  I knew our Sunday would be crazy, so I needed a quick and hearty warm-up recipe for after church.  Nobody complains about eating this two days in a row!

Crock Pot Chicken Noodle

4 cups water

2 -3 chicken bouillon cubes

2 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves (can still be frozen, really!)

3 carrots sliced

2 celery stalks, chopped

1 T. dehydrated onion flakes

2 T. dried parsley

½ - 1 tsp.salt

¼ - ½ tsp. pepper

2-3 cups cooked noodles of your choice, cooked al dente

Combine all but noodles in crock pot.  Cook 6-8 hours on low.  About 15-30 minutes before you're ready to eat, prepare noodles to al dente.  While noodles are cooking, remove chicken from crock pot and shred, removing any fat.  Skim off visible grease in crock pot.  Add chicken back to the pot, as well as the cooked (drained) noodles and stir to combine ingredients.  Cover for a few minutes longer, and serve when you're ready.

I served up the Chicken Noodle with CHEESE-GARLIC BISCUITS, for a cozy and delicious dinner.

'13 Gratefulness

* grateful for headway made in the home-repair of our son's car, and for my sweet hubby's patient work in order to save our son some money

* grateful for a productive laundry day (hey, just keepin' it real)

* grateful for Sunday afternoon naps

* grateful for a small local airport that makes business trip drop-offs and pick-ups so much easier

* grateful for my hubby's safe arrival to this week's business trip destination

Feel free to chime in with a comment!  What are you grateful for today?