Real Deal Chicken and Stars Soup

I loved how this soup tasted when it was made from homemade chicken stock. And I really loved the little stars that filled my spoon! Making your own chicken stock isn't hard, it's just time consuming. Browning the chicken is the most burdensome part, the rest is letting it all cook together to make a wonderful broth. I did this part earlier in the day, then chopped my veggies during nap time, and combined it all right when Russ got home. Alongside some Grands biscuits, it was a stellar meal. I found this recipe on Macheesmo.

Chicken and Stars Soup

Serves 8-10

Ingredients:

Stock:

1 whole chicken, cut into pieces (you can buy them pre-cut in the supermarket)

1 large onion, quartered

2 carrots, quartered

2 celery ribs, quartered

1 head garlic, halved

2 Tablespoons olive oil

6-8 sprigs fresh thyme

2 bay leaves

Handful of fresh parsley

20ish black peppercorns

10-12 cups water

Finished Soup:

Stock from above, strained

Shredded chicken from above, fat and skin removed

1/2 onion, diced

2 carrots, peeled and diced

2 celery ribs, diced

1 glove garlic, diced

1 Tablespoon olive oil

1 Teaspoon fresh thyme

6-8 ounces star pasta

Salt and pepper

Crackers and/or crusty bread

Directions:

Making The Stock -- put some olive oil (about 2 tablespoons) in dutch oven over medium-high heat. Once hot, brown pieces of chicken (I discarded the giblet, etc. just keeping the "main" chicken pieces), going in shifts. Each side will take about 4-5 minutes (watch for hot splatter!). Remove to extra plate once cooked.

In same dutch oven, put the veggies and herbs, then chicken back in. Add water to cover about 1 inch over the chicken pieces. Bring this all to a boil, then turn your heat down to medium. Let the stock simmer, partially covered, for about 75 minutes.

Making the Soup - you're already half way there because you've cooked the chicken! Once your stock is cooked, just pull out your chicken pieces, let them cool for 5-10 minutes, and then shred them up. Try to remove as much fat and stuff as possible and just shred the chicken into bite-sized bits.

While the chicken cools, strain the stock, keeping only the liquid. This is the broth for your soup.

Back to the dutch oven -- add some olive oil on medium-high heat, then add in your diced up veggies. Cook the veggies for a few minutes until they start to soften and then add the thyme and all the stock. Add broth and bring that all to a simmer. Then add your stars and cook for about 9-10 minutes.

Stir in your shredded chicken and season the soup with salt and pepper. Enjoy!