It's a good day for chicken soup...

...to warm you up inside and cure what ails you. We have some for now and some to freeze for later.

We're on the cusp of winter, so we have 65 degrees days followed by 45 degree days, in cases like this it's tough to know whether to make a hot soup or a cold one. Today I made both. This is a piping hot bowl of Chicken Noodle Soup. I used Ina Garten's recipe, and trust me when I tell you that woman knows her chicken soup!

These will go into the freezer.  I try to freeze half of every batch of soup I make.

Here is the recipe (though I must confess I add a bit of chopped onion and some Rotisserie Chicken Seasoning). It's from Barefoot Contessa Family Style, a wonderful cookbook (as are all of her books). Buy them! Every one of them, you won't be sorry.

CHICKEN NOODLE SOUP

(Printable Recipe)

"Forget canned soup-this is the real thing. And wouldn't we all feel better after eating a bowl? I love having homemade chicken stock in the freezer so I can make this soup in a hurry."

1 whole (2 split) chicken breast, bone in, skin on

Olive oil

Kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper

2 quarts homemade Chicken Stock

1 cup medium-diced celery (2 stalks)

1 cup medium-diced carrots (3 carrots)

2 cups wide egg noodles*

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Place the chicken breast on a sheet pan and rub the skin with olive oil. Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper.

Roast for 35 to 40 minutes, until cooked through. When cool enough to handle, remove the meat from the bones, discard the skin, and shred or dice the chicken meat.

Bring the chicken stock to a simmer in a large pot and add the celery, carrots, and noodles. Simmer uncovered for about 10 minutes, until the noodles are cooked.

Add the cooked chicken meat and parsley and heat through. Season to taste and serve.

*I use Goodman's wide egg noodles.

Serves 6