How to: make chicken noodle soup

Spring has officially sprung (although it hasn't really shown itself yet), but the nights are still dark enough to enjoy some comfort food.

This is such an easy recipe that, at first, I actually felt a bit guilty about blogging it. Then I remembered how rubbish I used to be at cooking (and the shamefully basic recipes I would google), so I no longer feel bad. Ha! This is for you, rubbish cooks. You can do this. Learn how to make tasty chicken soup from scratch, and enjoy wholesome food that is super cheap, super easy, and uses up all of your leftovers!

To make this you'll need:

• leftover chicken carcass
• vegetables (I used leeks, carrots, swede, onion, celery, spring onions & parsnip)
• garlic
• chilli
• udon noodles
• nice herbs (rosemary, thyme, parsley)

This is a perfect just-had-roast-dinner-and-have loads-of-leftovers soup. To make the stock, take your half-eaten chicken and pick off the meat into a bowl (and stick this in the fridge). Put the bones and skin and leftover bits that look a bit weird into a saucepan, chop up some vegetables, add enough water to cover it and simmer. Add salt and pepper and herbs, stir occasionally, but leave alone for as long as you can.

If I'm making soup on a week on a weeknight I'll have it all going by 6pm, and leave until I'm going to bed. That gives it enough time for a really rich flavour. Mmmm.

Once you're happy it's simmered for long enough, drain the stock and set aside for later. Bin the vegetable/bone leftovers... they have fulfilled their flavour mission.

Now you're ready to make your actual soup! Stick a big chunk of butter in a saucepan, add some onion, garlic, celery and carrot, and sauté for a few minutes. Then add the stock, chop up whatever vegetables you want to add (plus chilli if you want it to be a wee bit spicy), and simmer.

Once the vegetables have cooked for a bit (10 minutes maybe) add in your chicken, then add noodles. Taste your soup to see how it's getting on, and add salt, pepper and herbs to taste.

Once the noodles are cooked, it's ready! Enjoy with bread and butter, and enjoy your super wholesome tea.