When the weather turns cold, nothing is more comforting than a bowl of hot soup. If someone in the house isn’t feeling well, nothing is better than a bowl of hot chicken soup. Soup is the ultimate comfort food, and as an added bonus, it is one of the most economical meals you can make. To make it even more economical, as an option to using canned broth, you can boil your chicken breasts with seasoning and some whole celery and carrots then strain and re-season to make your own stock. This will cut down on the cost of purchasing broth – you can easily shave $8 or more off the cost of your ingredients. You can find an excellent recipe for making your own homemade stock here.

A big pot of soup can easily feed 6-8 people and you will likely have leftovers that will reheat and make a lovely lunch or dinner later. I estimate the cost to prepare a large pot of soup at $15-$20 (if you purchase broth – you can almost cut that in half if you make your own) depending on the ingredients you have on hand already. For a large number of servings, you can easily come in at $1-$2 or less per serving for a delicious and nutritious meal.

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoon butter
• 1-2  cup chopped onion
• 1 -2 cup chopped celery
• 1- 2 cup sliced carrots
• 4 large cartons chicken broth
• 1 carton vegetable broth
• 1 pound chopped or shredded cooked chicken breast
• 1 lb  egg noodles (pre-boil so they don’t soak up all the broth)
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 tsp dried rosemary (optional but adds a lovely taste!)
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. In a large pot over medium heat, melt butter.
2. Cook onion and celery in butter until just tender, 5 minute
3. Pour in chicken and vegetable broth
4. Sir in chicken,  and spices
5. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer 20 minutes before serving
6. Add noodles before serving and stir.