Homemade Turkey (or chicken) Noodle Soup

So far we've had a really fun Advent season.  The days are flying by and I can't believe Christmas is in 6 days!  We took our annual family trip to the desert last week and in our hotel was this giant Christmas tree.  There is a circular staircase around it and the girls had fun walking up and down and around the tree.  We also had a couple chilly trips to the park and a fun day at the Children's Discovery Museum in Rancho Mirage (highly recommended!).  

I told my husband the other night that I've felt cold for 3 days . . . this warm soup was just the remedy.   I've never made homemade chicken noodle before and I know it's sort of cheater because I didn't make it with a whole chicken or even homemade broth, but it was so yummy (so so much better than a can).  I thawed some frozen (cooked) turkey from Thanksgiving but cooked chicken (even rotisserie) would work fine as the meat in this soup. I bet wild rice would be a nice substitute for the noodles for our GF friends out there.  Since I sort of threw it together, the amounts are approximate - use your own judgment :)

Homemade Turkey (or Chicken) Noodle Soup (serves 4)

About 1 cup each:  chopped carrot, chopped celery, chopped onion (Trader Joe's sells their Mirepoix in the vegetable section which I used).

2 minced garlic cloves

1/4 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

1 tsp. fresh thyme (or 1/2 tsp. dried or you can skip it)

6 c. chicken broth

1-2 c. uncooked egg noodles (I used pappardelle pasta noodles from TJs and broke them into small pieces)

1 T. white wine (or 1/2 T white wine vinegar or lemon juice for a little acid)

1 bay leaf

2 c. shredded cooked chicken (or turkey) - about 8oz

Heat a large saucepan over medium high heat and add a litle olive oil.  Add carrot, onion, celery and garlic, and saute about 5 minutes or until onion is soft and lightly browned.  Add salt, pepper, thyme, bay leaf, and chicken broth.  Bring to a boil.  Add the noodles, reduce heat, and simmer for 5 minutes.  Add the turkey or chicken and cook for a few more minutes (until noodles are soft and chicken is hot).  Discard bay leaf and serve immediately.