Lemon-Garlic Chicken Noodle Soup

I wasn’t even considering posting this soup because it’s not very visually appealing. I didn’t give it much thought, to me it was just soup. But Mr. Surly raved so much about it, I thought I’d better hurry and post it before I forgot what I did. I had to hurry and get a picture of it, so I apologize for the unappetizing photo.

I love the depth of flavor the roasted garlic adds, while the addition of lemon brightens the flavor. I’ve seen tri colored egg noodles, which would be pretty in this, but I didn’t have any. All I had were boring whole wheat noodles.

I add leeks and cabbage since they are natural diuretics, thereby decreasing any abdominal bloating. No matter what I eat or drink, my abdomen still swells up after just a couple bites or sips of food. It’s painful and frustrating, so I’m trying to consume natural diuretics to help reduce the bloat. If you don’t like cabbage, it’s not a necessary ingredient to the soup, though red cabbage would look nice in it. I try to use leeks instead of onion, because onions just add to my tummy distention. But if you want, onion could be used instead of leeks.



Lemon Garlic Chicken Noodle Soup
Printer-friendly recipe
serves ~6-8

1 head garlic
olive oil
2 chicken breasts
2 c chicken broth
4 c water
2-3 bay leaves
2 leeks
1 lemon, juiced and zested
1 (10 oz) bag shredded cabbage
~2 c egg noodles

First you need to roast the garlic.
Preheat oven to 400F.

Cut the top off a head of garlic to expose the cloves. Drizzle with about 1 Tbl olive oil, wrap in foil, and bake until brown and tender, about 30-45min. Allow to cool.

Meanwhile, add the chicken, leeks, and bay leaves to a large pot or dutch oven. Pour 4 c water and 2 c chicken broth. Simmer, covered until chicken is cooked through, ~45 minutes.

Remove chicken, cut into bite-sized pieces; return to pot. Add ~2 c egg noodles (more or less based on how many noodles you like in your soup. I didn’t measure out an exact amount, I just tossed in a couple handfuls).

Add the lemon juice and zest to small bowl. Squeeze the roasted garlic into the bowl and stir into the lemon juice. Then add it to the pot along with the cabbage. Cook until noodles are softened, about 10 minutes.



Source: adapted from Rachel Ray