Step 1

Add the water, a whole chicken, salt, bay leaves, and a whole onion (peeled and halved). Bring the whole chicken to a simmer, then turn the stovetop to low heat. Simmer covered for about 2 hours until the chicken starts to fall apart.

Step 2

Separate the whole chicken from the broth using a strainer. Set the broth and chicken aside. You should have about 7 to 8 cups of homemade chicken broth.

Step 3

Peel and chop the carrots, onion, and garlic. Chop the celery. In a pan on medium-high heat, butter sautee the onions and garlic. Once they start to soften, add the chopped celery and carrots. Cover and cook for about 5 minutes until the carrots and celery soften. Add the salt, pepper, and dried Italian herbs.

Step 4

Add the butter-sauteed vegetables to the homemade chicken broth. Simmer covered for about 15 minutes until the vegetables are easy to pierce with a fork.

Step 5

Boil the pasta in water until al dente as per the instructions on the box. Shred the chicken meat from the whole chicken. Remove the skin on the chicken. Drain the pasta.

Step 6

Add the shredded chicken and cooked pasta to the chicken broth. Add more water to the soup as desired. Adjust the salt.