I hear it's good for the soul, too.

M procrastinates by making some of the most beautiful pies I've ever seen (the last pie I made, while tasty, was hideous in comparison)... I procrastinate by making soups and stews. It would be bad for me to have lots of baked goods under my roof, though. So soup it is!

I don't know from where I got this recipe - at this point, I've tinkered with it so much I'm sure it doesn't bear any resemblance to the original. I do, however, believe firmly that chicken noodle soup MUST be made with homemade noodles. It really is not hard to make your own noodles, so there are no excuses for using store-bought ones. I like mine thicker and with some bite.

This soup is simple to make, and doesn't rely on "cheats" like poultry seasoning or bouillon - just the pure good flavor of your ingredients. I like to think it is relatively healthy too, since the only fat comes from the chicken itself.

Chicken noodle soup with homemade egg noodles

For the egg noodles:

• 1 egg + 1 egg yolk
• 1 cup flour
• salt, to taste

For the soup:

• 2.5 to 3 pounds chicken parts (I use a combination of legs, thighs, and bone-in breasts)
• 1 container mirepoix from Trader Joe's (I have sung the praises of this mirepoix before. Sometimes, a girl is too lazy to chop up her own veggies and just wants soup NOW, not NOW + however long it takes to chop vegetables)
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 bay leaves
• 12 cups water
• salt, to taste

Pour the flour into a bowl, and make a well in the center. Dump the egg + egg yolk into the well, then mix the flour and egg together with your hands until you form a ball. Season with a little salt. You may need some ice water to help it all bind together. Once you've formed a ball, knead it (in the bowl if it is large enough, on a floured surface if not) for several minutes until smooth. Reform into a ball and wrap in some plastic wrap, then set it aside on your counter while you start on the liquid part of the soup.

Add the half of the mirepoix and all of the chicken parts, garlic, bay leaves, and water to a large pot. Heat over low-medium heat until the soup comes to just under a boil. You don't want it to actually boil, but rather for it to just barely simmer. Partially cover and cook for 45 to 60 minutes. Your kitchen will smell positively lovely during this process.

Remove the chicken parts from the pot, drain, and remove the chicken meat from the bones in bite-size pieces. Be careful, the chicken will be hot! Strain the soup, discarding the mirepoix/garlic/bay leaves. I usually strain the soup once into a large bowl, then line my strainer with a paper towel and strain the soup back into the cooking pot. Add the other half of the mirepoix to the now beautifully clear broth, salt to taste, and heat until boiling.

While you're waiting for the soup to boil, make your egg noodles. On a floured surface, roll the dough out to your desired thickness. I usually like my noodles just under 1/8-inch thick (they will puff up when you cook them). Slice into whatever width/length you want as well - I usually cut them anywhere from 1/3 to 1/2-inch in width and 2 to 3 inches in length.

When the soup has come to a boil, add the noodles and cook for approximately 5 minutes (the exact amount of time will depend on how thick your noodles are). Add the chicken back in and cook until the chicken is warm again. And hey, that's it! You're done! See how easy that was? Now you have no excuse when it comes to making chicken noodle soup from scratch, noodles and all.