Whenever someone in my family catches a cold or flu, this soup works wonders to warm them up and soothe their achy little bodies. There’s something magical about homemade chicken soup—it might be the love you pour into making it, or maybe it’s the secret healing powers of the ingredients. Either way, the next time a loved one gets hit by the sniffles, whip up a pot and see if they feel better. Then you can decide if it’s the love or the ingredients (but let’s be honest, it’s definitely the love).

Ingredients

3-4 large boneless chicken breast, cut into bite size pieces

1 stick real butter, not margarine

1 to 2 cans chicken or vegetable broth

2 chicken bouillon cubes

1 teaspoon onion powder

2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed

2 large carrots, peeled and sliced into bite size pieces

1 teaspoon parsley flakes

1 teaspoon celery seed

2 cups dried egg noodles

Directions

In a large stock pot combine chicken breast, butter, broth, bouillon cubes, onion powder and garlic.  Cover with water and bring to a boil over high heat.  Reduce heat to medium low and cook until chicken is tender and juices run clear, about 20 to 30 minutes for bite size pieces.

You may need to add another can of broth to have enough “soup” for the egg noodles.  Add carrots, parsley flakes and celery seed and bring to a full rolling boil over high heat.  Add noodles and continue to cook over high heat until noodles are al dente.  Don’t get the noodles too done as they will soak up the broth as they sit.