Chicken and Stars Soup is good for the soul–so they say. I say it’s good for the body, too, especially when you’re under the weather. I saw this lovely soup online a couple of weeks ago and determined to make it. This delightful soup includes chicken, star-shaped pasta, carrots and homemade chicken broth. It’s lightly seasoned so as not to overwhelm the soup. And, yes, it’s the perfect comfort food for fall and winter.

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We had just gotten back from Pennsylvania after a few whirlwind days visiting our grandchildren. As usual, John came down with a bad cough/bronchitis from the kids slobbering all over him.  (Not such a bad thing, really. It’s a good trade off when your grandkids live several thousand miles away). I saw the pictures for this soup and knew I wanted to make it for him right away.

I found a whole chicken in the freezer and cooked it off, which yielded a lot of chicken and about 12 cups of broth. I ended up using all the broth, and after shredding the chicken, I used about half of it. I actually found the stelline pasta (= star-shaped pasta) at Wal-Mart! They carry Barilla pasta, and lo, and behold, it was on the top rack. I snatched up a box quickly  and proceeded home to make the soup for my dear hubby, pronto!

Chicken and Stars Soup delivers all that “Chicken Soup for the Soul” goodness that you expect from chicken soup recipes. Any of you who follow my blog know how much I enjoy soups and Chicken Soup in particular. I have a wonderful Chicken and Vegetable Soup, Homemade Chicken and Dumplings, a Slow Cooker Gluten Free Chicken Noodle Soup, Herb-Roasted Chicken and Vegetable Soup (which has gone ballistic on Pinterest), Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup, Cheesy Chicken Soup, Chicken-Chickpea-Potato Soup, Southwest Chicken Chowder and Corn-Chicken-Chile Chowder just to start you off. Yes, I love soups and Chicken Soup is good for what ails ‘ya!

This soup is flavored very nicely. The veggies and meat are diced up small, and those little tiny star-shaped pasta pieces are really cute. A word to the wise is in order, however. The stelline pasta (just like orzo) gobbles up the liquid in the soup so quickly that it expands and changes the texture to a really thick soup. You will probably have to add additional broth or water to thin it down a little bit.

You will definitely have to thin the soup down after you refrigerate it and heat it again for leftovers. It becomes almost like condensed soup at that point. So add a little more broth or water, and shake a little more salt, pepper, rosemary and thyme into the soup and you should be good to go.

While I shredded the chicken according to the original recipe, I actually think it would be better in larger chunks, but that is a personal preference. If you prefer your meat chunky, then don’t shred or dice it.

If you’re looking for a lovely Chicken Soup recipe to warm your soul, then Chicken and Stars Soup will do it for you. I made some scrumptious Cheddar Cheese Biscuits to go with the soup and I was in seventh heaven. This is a wonderfully hearty and appetizing soup whether you have a cold and you’re under the weather, or not. Chicken and Stars Soup will warm your body as well as your soul–and you’ll be feeling better in no time!

Chicken and Stars Soup is “Chicken Soup for the Soul!”

Here is Chicken and Stars Soup the next day after I reheated it. I had to add additional water to get the right consistency because the pasta had absorbed a lot of the broth. It’s marvelous served with Cheddar Cheese Biscuits.

Chicken and Stars Soup is good for what ails ya!

Here’s what I did.

I used these ingredients. I used all the broth, and I shredded about half of the chicken.

Place a couple of tablespoons of olive oil in a large Dutch oven. Add diced onions and saute a couple of minutes.

Add celery, carrots and garlic, and saute over low to medium heat about 5 minutes.

Add shredded chicken, bay leaves, parsley, salt, pepper, thyme and rosemary.

Add chicken broth. I used about 6 cups of broth here and then added the remaining after adding the pasta as it had thickened the soup a lot.

Cover with lid and bring soup to a boil over medium heat. Boil 5-10 minutes or until carrots are fork tender.

Add stelline (star-shaped) pasta. Boil about 7 more minutes. Look how thick the soup is even before adding the pasta. This is where I added the additional 6 cups of chicken broth to thin down the soup a little bit.

Garnish soup with fresh parsley, salt and pepper, and serve.

The flavors in Chicken and Stars Soup are wonderful to the palate. Thyme, rosemary, bay leaves and parsley do the trick! This soup is wonderful served with Cheddar Cheese Biscuits.

Chicken and Stars Soup is great for cold, fall or winter nights. It’s such delicious comfort food.

Here’s the recipe.

CHICKEN AND STARS SOUP

(Recipe adapted from Gimme Some Oven)

Chicken and Stars Soup

Teresa Ambra

Chicken and Stars Soup is "Chicken Soup for the Soul" and the body! It's great for what ails ya! This soup uses stelline pasta (star-shaped), celery, carrots, onions in a wonderfully rich and tasty broth. It's hearty and satisfying comfort food for fall and winter nights.

No ratings yet

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Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 25 minutes mins

Total Time 45 minutes mins

Course Main Dish, Soups, Stews & Chowders

Cuisine American

Servings 8

Calories 228 kcal

Equipment

• 1 crockpot to cook a whole chicken and yield broth (unless using rotisserie chicken and canned chicken broth)
• 1 sharp knife to cut meat and vegetables
• 1 vegetable peeler
• 1 large Dutch oven with lid or stock pot with lid
• 1 wooden spoon
• measuring cups
• measuring spoons
• 1 soup ladle

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 medium white onion finely diced, (about 1 ½ cups)
• 3 medium carrots peeled and sliced thinly, (about 1 cup)
• 2-3 ribs celery finely diced, (about 1 cup)
• 1/2 tsp. minced garlic from a jar or 1 to 2 cloves fresh garlic, finely minced
• 3-4 bay leaves
• 1 tsp. sea salt
• 1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
• 1/2 tsp. dried thyme
• 1/2 tsp. dried rosemary
• 1/4 cup fresh parsley if desired
• 3-4 cups shredded chicken from cooking off a whole chicken about half
• 12-14 cups homemade chicken broth
• 1 cup stelline pasta star-shaped
• 1 tsp. parsley for garnish

Instructions

 

• Cook chicken in heavily salted and peppered water-filled crockpot overnight.
• Debone and reserve all the chicken stock.
• Finely shred about half of the chicken.
• Reserve remaining chicken for another use.
• Place olive oil in a large Dutch oven or stock pot.
• Add onions and sauté about 5 minutes.
• Add carrots, celery and garlic and sauté again an additional 3-5 minutes.
• Add chicken, bay leaves, salt, pepper, thyme, rosemary, parsley and chicken broth and bring to a boil over medium heat.
• Boil about 5 minutes or until carrots are fork tender.
• Add stelline(star-shaped) pasta and boil about 7 minutes.
• Serve soup garnished with fresh parsley, salt and pepper, if desired.

Notes

NOTE: This pasta will absorb a lot of the liquid. Add additional chicken stock or water if needed to get the right consistency.

 

 

NOTE: Preparation time does not include time required to cook off and debone a chicken for this recipe.

 

 

NOTE: You may need to add water to thin the soup--especially if it's refrigerated over night. The pasta absorbs a lot of liquid and the texture becomes more like condensed soup after refrigeration.

 

 

NOTE: A large 7-8 quart crockpot-filled almost to the brim with water is recommended to render enough stock for this recipe.

 

 

NOTE: If you prefer your meat chunkier, it is not necessary to dice or shred the chicken.

 

 

NOTE: You can also substitute rotisserie chicken and canned chicken broth for the recipe.

 

Recipe adapted from Gimme Some Oven.

 

^© Can’t Stay Out of the Kitchen

 

Nutrition

Calories: 228kcalCarbohydrates: 21gProtein: 18gFat: 8gSaturated Fat: 2gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 4gCholesterol: 46mgSodium: 1615mgPotassium: 370mgFiber: 2gSugar: 4gVitamin A: 4130IUVitamin C: 6mgCalcium: 55mgIron: 2mg

Keyword carrots, chicken, noodles, pasta, soup

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

Doesn’t the stelline (star-shaped) pasta look cute? 

We served Chicken and Stars Soup with Cheddar Cheese Biscuits. Oh my!

Chicken and Stars Soup is hearty, filling and so satisfying. Cheddar Cheese Biscuits make it a comfort food meal you’ll want regularly.

You may also enjoy these delicious recipes!

Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup

Homemade Chicken and Dumplings

Gluten Free Condensed Cream of Chicken Soup

Chicken and Stars Soup

Teresa Ambra

Chicken and Stars Soup is “Chicken Soup for the Soul” and the body! It’s great for what ails ya! This soup uses stelline pasta (star-shaped), celery, carrots, onions in a wonderfully rich and tasty broth. It’s hearty and satisfying comfort food for fall and winter nights.

No ratings yet

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 25 minutes mins

Total Time 45 minutes mins

Course Main Dish, Soups, Stews & Chowders

Cuisine American

Servings 8

Calories 228 kcal

Equipment

• 1 crockpot to cook a whole chicken and yield broth (unless using rotisserie chicken and canned chicken broth)
• 1 sharp knife to cut meat and vegetables
• 1 vegetable peeler
• 1 large Dutch oven with lid or stock pot with lid
• 1 wooden spoon
• measuring cups
• measuring spoons
• 1 soup ladle

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 medium white onion finely diced, (about 1 ½ cups)
• 3 medium carrots peeled and sliced thinly, (about 1 cup)
• 2-3 ribs celery finely diced, (about 1 cup)
• 1/2 tsp. minced garlic from a jar or 1 to 2 cloves fresh garlic, finely minced
• 3-4 bay leaves
• 1 tsp. sea salt
• 1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
• 1/2 tsp. dried thyme
• 1/2 tsp. dried rosemary
• 1/4 cup fresh parsley if desired
• 3-4 cups shredded chicken from cooking off a whole chicken about half
• 12-14 cups homemade chicken broth
• 1 cup stelline pasta star-shaped
• 1 tsp. parsley for garnish

Instructions

 

• Cook chicken in heavily salted and peppered water-filled crockpot overnight.
• Debone and reserve all the chicken stock.
• Finely shred about half of the chicken.
• Reserve remaining chicken for another use.
• Place olive oil in a large Dutch oven or stock pot.
• Add onions and sauté about 5 minutes.
• Add carrots, celery and garlic and sauté again an additional 3-5 minutes.
• Add chicken, bay leaves, salt, pepper, thyme, rosemary, parsley and chicken broth and bring to a boil over medium heat.
• Boil about 5 minutes or until carrots are fork tender.
• Add stelline(star-shaped) pasta and boil about 7 minutes.
• Serve soup garnished with fresh parsley, salt and pepper, if desired.

Notes

NOTE: This pasta will absorb a lot of the liquid. Add additional chicken stock or water if needed to get the right consistency.

 

 

NOTE: Preparation time does not include time required to cook off and debone a chicken for this recipe.

 

 

NOTE: You may need to add water to thin the soup–especially if it’s refrigerated over night. The pasta absorbs a lot of liquid and the texture becomes more like condensed soup after refrigeration.

 

 

NOTE: A large 7-8 quart crockpot-filled almost to the brim with water is recommended to render enough stock for this recipe.

 

 

NOTE: If you prefer your meat chunkier, it is not necessary to dice or shred the chicken.

 

 

NOTE: You can also substitute rotisserie chicken and canned chicken broth for the recipe.

 

Recipe adapted from Gimme Some Oven.

 

^© Can’t Stay Out of the Kitchen

 

Nutrition

Calories: 228kcalCarbohydrates: 21gProtein: 18gFat: 8gSaturated Fat: 2gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 4gCholesterol: 46mgSodium: 1615mgPotassium: 370mgFiber: 2gSugar: 4gVitamin A: 4130IUVitamin C: 6mgCalcium: 55mgIron: 2mg

Keyword carrots, chicken, noodles, pasta, soup

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!