Chicken Noodle Soup with Homemade Noodles

This recipe came from my grandma. She taught my mom, and then my mom taught my sisters and me. I love, love, love the homemade noodles! They are irregular and homey, much more comforting than the boring, smooth noodles from the store. Since the noodles are a bit of a time investment, I feel like it's worth it to go all the way and make the whole soup from scratch. Don't you want to spend the day indoors cooking now that the weather is cooler, anyway?

I have many happy memories of coming home from school to see noodles drying on the counter. The house always smelled delicious from the broth my mom had simmering, often accompanied with fresh bread baking in the oven. When my mom stayed in all day to cook, she went all out! One day, my kids will be in school and I can't wait for them to come home to those delicious smells of home cooking.

The noodles have to be rolled out thin,

cut into strips,

cut into noodles,

and then left out to dry.
It's totally worth trying, at least once.

Homemade Noodles
from my grandma
2 eggs
3 T milk
1 t salt
3/4 t pepper
approximately 1 1/2 c flour

Beat egg with fork. Add milk, salt, and pepper. Gently stir in flour with a fork to make a dough. Roll onto a floured board until very thin (my mom said "paper thin"). Use plenty of flour to keep your dough from getting sticky. Cut into long strips about 2 1/2 inches wide. Stack strips and cut into noodles (1/2 inch by 2 1/2 inches). Separate noodles and spread out on waxed paper. Allow to dry all day. Dried noodles can be kept in an airtight container for a few days.

Chicken Noodle Soup
from my grandma and my mom

FOR BROTH:
1/2 onion
1 stalk celery
1 1/2 t chicken bouillon
3 chicken breasts

Put all ingredients in a large pot and add at least 12 cups of water. Add more water if needed to cover all ingredients. Bring to a boil. Turn heat to low and simmer, covered, for 1 1/2 hours. Allow to cool. Remove chicken and set aside to chop. Strain broth and return to pot.

FOR SOUP:
1 pot of homemade broth
1 bay leaf
2 potatoes, peeled and chopped
1/2 onion, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
1 recipe homemade noodles
1/2 c frozen corn
1/2 c frozen peas
3 chicken breasts, cooked and chopped
1 (14 oz) can chicken broth, as needed
salt and pepper

Bring your homemade broth to a boil. Add bay leaf, potatoes, onion, celery, and carrots. Allow to come back to a boil and boil for 3 minutes. Add noodles. Boil until veggies are tender and noodles are cooked through. Add corn, peas, and chicken. Heat through. Add any canned chicken broth as needed for taste or consistency. Add salt and pepper to taste. Remove bay leaf before serving.

Enjoy!