Favorite Chicken Soup with Homemade Noodles

• 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken (we like thighs)~either cut into chunks or boiled whole and then shredded; your choice
• bay leaf
• 1 cup diced carrots
• 1 diced onion
• 1/2 cup diced celery
• 3 cloves garlic, diced
• bay leaf
• 1 Tbs poultry seasoning
• salt and pepper to taste (we also like a sprinkling of crushed red pepper)
• 1 cup chopped mushrooms, sauted if desired
• 1 cup peas (frozen is fine)
• juice from 1 lemon or chopped parsley as garnish if desired
• homemade egg noodles  (click for recipe)

Saute carrots, onions, celery in a large stock pot for 5 minutes.  Add garlic and seasoning and saute for 1 minute.  Add chicken, bay leaf, and enough water to make a large pot of soup.

Simmer for until chicken is done (at least 20 minutes) but a few hours is even better.

Remove bay leaf and shred chicken at this point if it isn't cut into bite sized pieces.  Return chicken to pot.

30 minutes before serving, prep noodles.  Add noodles, mushrooms, and peas for last 10 minutes of cooking time.

Serve with a squeeze of lemon juice or some chopped parsley if desired.