CHICKEN & VEGETABLE DINNER SOUP   (serves 4-5)

Ingredients :

1 litre chicken stock

quarter of a tsp dried thyme

quarter of a tsp dried tarragon

half a tsp dried parsley

half a tsp ground black pepper

2 skinless & boneless chicken breasts

1 skinless chicken leg or 2 skinless chicken thighs

1 tbsp olive oil

1 onion, chopped fine

1 clove garlic, sliced

1 carrot, half sliced, half chopped fine

1 leek, halved and cut into 1 inch pieces

2 celery sticks, half of one chopped fine, the remainder cut into pieces

half a butternut squash, peeled, de-seeded and cut into bite sized chunks

2 small potatoes, one cut into small chunks, one in bite sized chunks

1 red pepper, cored and cut into bite sized chunks

1 sweetcorn cob's-worth of kernels

1 tsp fresh rosemary, chopped

2 bay leaves

2 large handfuls of dry macaroni

sea salt, if necessary

2 good handfuls of frozen peas.

Method :

Make up the litre of chicken stock (if you're using a cube, use one and a half for extra flavour) in a pan and add the thyme, tarragon, parsley and black pepper to it.   Bring to a gentle boil and add the chicken.  Simmer gently for 15-20 minutes or until the chicken is just cooked and will shred with two forks.

Remove the chicken from the stock and reserve.

Pour the stock into a separate container and reserve.  Rinse out the saucepan, to remove any scum stuck to the sides.

Add the olive oil to the pan and on a moderate heat, add the onion and garlic.  Cook, stirring regularly, until transparent.  Make sure not to colour the onion at all.

Add the carrot, leek, butternut squash, potato, sweetcorn, celery and red pepper along with the reserved stock, rosemary and bay leaf.

Bring back to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer until the vegetables are just soft.

In the meantime, shred the chicken breasts and the meat from the chicken leg or thighs.  Discard the bones.

Add the chicken and dry macaroni to the pot and simmer until the macaroni is done.

A few minutes before the macaroni is cooked, taste for seasoning and adjust if necessary, then add a handful of frozen peas and simmer until the peas are piping hot.

Serve with chunks of crusty bread and fresh butter.

From http://jennyeatwellsrhubarbginger.blogspot.co.uk