Grandma Ruth's Italian Chicken Soup

I've never been a big chicken noodle soup fan. Mostly because what I ate as a child was out of a can. You know...the one with a red and white label. Bleh. More like overcooked noodles in chicken broth.

When I joined Girl Scouts, my troop met once a month and did pretty cool stuff. One day we made chicken noodle soup over a campfire. From then on, I knew that I'd only eat chicken soup if it was homemade. Real pieces of chicken and vegetables and EGG NOODLES! That's just perfection in a bowl.

I've spent a good majority of my recipe-obsessed "adult" life looking for the perfect recipe. It seems like all the ones up til now have been lacking; mostly in flavor that sends me reeling back to my cold winter MN childhood days trying to stomach down the from-the-can soup.

This one is the first recipe for chicken noodle soup that I have ever instantly loved. I like that there were meatballs in it too. I think that they definitely helped contribute to the flavor.


(Print)
What you need:

• 4 cooked, boneless, skinless chicken breasts, shredded or cut into cubes
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 green bell pepper, chopped
• 3 stalks celery, chopped
• 3 carrots, chopped
• 1 large potato, peeled and diced into 1-inch cubes
• Parsley, finely chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 2 tsp. dried Italian seasoning
• 1 tbsp. lemon juice
• 10 cups chicken broth
• 2 cups cooked pasta (we used egg noodles)
• 24 mini beef meatballs, cooked (we used the precooked, frozen Schwann's Italian meatballs and just stuck them in there a little early)

Directions:

1. Combine ingredients, except pasta and meatballs in a large pot. Bring to a boil.
2. Reduce heat and cover. Simmer over low heat for an hour.
3. Add in pasta and meatballs and cook until pasta is done and meatballs are warm.

Recipe from Cafemom member Mom2LiamnMolly