The perfect family meal to cozy up to!   Quickly brining the chicken breasts brings allows you to bring the soup together quickly, with juicy pieces of chicken.  For a spectacular presentation we've added a cheesy crumble! 

2 lb chicken breast, cut into 1 inch pieces
1 ½ Tbsp kosher salt
1 ½ cups cold water.

¼ cup butter
1 large cooking onion, small dice
1 large carrot, small dice
2 ribs celery, small dice
¼ cup flour 
2-3  bay leaves
5-6 sprig thyme (optional)
4 cup good quality chicken stock
1 cup panko
3 green onion
½ cup old cheddar
2 Tbsp melted butter

1-450g broad egg noodles, cooked

1. To make crumble: Melt butter in a small pan or microwave, stir in panko until well combined. Once cool, stir in grated cheese and chopped green onion. Set aside until ready to use. 
2. Whisk salt into cold water until dissolved. Add chicken pieces and place in the refrigerator. Allow to brine for 45 minutes up to 1 hour. Remove from brine to a paper towel-lined tray/plate. Heat a heavy-bottomed frying pan over medium-high heat. Cook the brined chicken in batches until golden brown (the chicken does not need to be cooked all the way through, it will finish cooking in the soup during the final simmer. Set cooked chicken aside. *For extra flavour: add 1 cup of water/stock to the pan to deglaze and pick up all the flavourful browned bits on the bottom of the pan. You can add this flavour stock/water when you add the chicken. 
3. In a heavy-bottomed pot, melt butter. Add onions along with a pinch of salt and sweat until soft but not browned.
4. Stir in carrots and celery along with a pinch of salt and sweat, stirring often, until soft but not browned.
5. Shake the ¼ cup of flour over softened vegetables and stir to combine. Stir continuously for about 1-2 minutes.
6. Slowly pour in stock ½- ¾ cup at a time, whisking to combine and ensure there are no lumps. 
7. Once all stock is combined, simmer for 1-2 minutes, add cooked chicken and simmer 1-2 minutes longer. Season to taste with salt and fresh cracked pepper. 
8. In an oven-safe bowl (maybe you have some french onion soup bowls lying around:) add soup, and cooked noodles, and top with crumble. Broil until bubbling and golden brown.