Slow Cooked Chicken Noodle Soup (aka The Only Soup My Daughter Will Eat)

I used to buy a whole chicken, roast it, pick it, then boil the bones with herbs and veggies, to make my own stock. It was a 24 hour + job. Then, I got smart and cut out a couple of steps and several hours. I start with a very small (1-1 1/2 pounds) free-range, local chicken. I remove the skin and yucky fatty bits (this makes me feel better about being to lazy to skim the fat after the fact). Of course, it changes a bit every time but here's the basic story. 1 small free range, local chicken 2-3 T olive oil Salt, pepper, herbs de provence to taste 1 large onion chopped 2-3 cloves garlic, minced, 3-4 medium carrots, diced 1 bay leaf 1/2 lemon 1 can petite diced tomatoes 6 cups water 1/2 Cup frozen corn Minced fresh parsley 6-8 ounces alphabet (or other small) noodles, cooked separately Rinse chicken and pat dry. Remove as much of the skin and fat as possible. Preheat large cast-iron our enamel oven-safe soup/casserole pot with olive oil. Season chicken liberally and sear in very hot pot, turning once until chicken has a nice crust on it. Add all other ingredients except corn and parsley. Cover and cook on medium low on stove top or at 250 in oven for 2-3 hours, until chicken is falling off the bone. Remove chicken, bay leaf and lemon. Pick meat off of chicken and return to pot with corn. Cook a few more minutes until soup is heated through. Stir in noodles individually into bowls and top with parsley. Yummy yum, homemade soup with fresh stock in a fraction of the time!