Aubrey's Best Chicken Soup

(Makes about 4 1/2 quarts)
2 tbsp butter
1 tbsp olive oil
3 carrots, chopped
3 celery stalks, chopped
1 shallot, chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
4 quarts chicken stock (homemade is best)
About 2 cups cooked chicken, shredded
1 bay leaf
1/2 box pasta (any shape: macaroni, orzo, ditalini, linguine, whatever!)
Salt & Pepper to taste
1 small bunch fresh parsley, chopped fine

In a large stockpot, melt the butter with the olive oil over medium heat. Toss in the carrots, celery and shallot and season with salt. Sweat the vegetables until they just start to get soft, and shallot is translucent. Toss in the garlic and cook for another minute.
Slowly pour in the chicken stock. Cover, and heat until stock comes to a boil, stirring occasionally. Once it is boiling, add in the pasta and boil until pasta is soft - about 10 minutes.
Add in chicken, salt and pepper to taste, and cook for another minute or two. Turn off the heat and toss in the fresh parsley. Add more salt if needed.
(Don't forget to take out the bay leaf - or leave it in, and whoever gets it in their bowl has to do the dishes!)

*If there was one thing I could cook for the rest of my life, it would be soup. I love to make soup. The great part is that you can pretty much do anything you want with soup - from savory to sweet. Plus, making soup is so easy, you will never want to buy soup from a can anymore. That's why I like to make a huge pot like this and then freeze the leftovers to have soup anytime! Get the kids involved too by letting them help you put in all the different ingredients. Or, let them stir the soup once in a while. Making soup is a great way to get kids helping out in the kitchen!

Every word of God is flawless; he is a shield to those who take refuge in him. Proverbs 30:5