Thick Chicken Noodle Soup - cooking recipe

Ingredients

5 cups chicken broth, divided
5 tablespoons butter
1/3 cup flour
2/3 cup noodles (ring shaped, or small bow-ties or stars if rings not available)
2/3 cup cooked chicken, diced
salt, to taste (optional)
pepper, to taste (optional)

Preparation

In a large saucepan, heat 4 cups of the chicken broth to boiling.
In a small saucepan over low heat, melt butter, then stir in flour well to blend but do not brown.
Add this mixture to the boiling broth and cook over medium heat until it thickens.
In another pan, bring the remaining broth to a boil, add noodles and cook just until tender but not soft (package directions should give you an idea how long).
Do not drain noodles; add chicken, noodles and liquid to the thickened broth, and season to taste with salt and pepper if desired.
Serve immediately with crackers, if desired.