I've had a bit of a cold this week; nothing major but enough to make me feel a wee bit yucky. Luckily, before I was stricken, I had whipped up a batch of turkey soup using the frame from my Thanksgiving turkey.
Now, I understand that traditionally one turns to chicken soup for a cold, but growing up, we were roasted turkeys far more than chickens. It made sense; we were a large family and the average chicken probably wouldn't have made it through one dinner, let alone have enough left over for soup. So, turkey wasn't just a holiday meal for us. My mother always made turkey soup with the leftover frame. Since it's just my husband and I in our current household, we have chicken more often than turkey; but regardless of the bird, I always make use of as much of it as I can.
Making homemade soup and stock is a little bit of home economy that I am fairly strict about. To me, tossing a poultry frame in the garbage is essentially throwing away food, especially considering that making homemade soup couldn't be easier. I've never really followed a recipe and neither did my mom; the knowledge of how to make homemade soup just passed along from generation to generation. Essentially, I place the leftover frame into a stock pot, add enough water to cover it, throw in some aromatic vegetables like onions, carrots, and garlic, and some herbs and spices. Then, I bring the whole thing to a boil and let it simmer for a while. Once it has simmered down to stock-y perfection, I drain the stock into a soup pot and and pick the meat off the bones once they are cool enough to handle. To make the soup I simmer winter vegetable like potatoes, carrots, parsnips and turnips with onion, garlic, and herbs and spices until the veggies are tender and then stir in the turkey and simmer a bit longer. Served hot with homemade biscuits this soup is comfort food at it's finest and has cured many a common cold (in my mind, at least).
There are many, many variations of turkey soup; if you'd like to explore some of them here is a link to Better Homes and Gardens Recipes for Leftover Turkey.
I often hear people complain that turkey is expensive. However, when you consider that, with soup, you can get almost a week's worth of meals out of one bird, turkey suddenly becomes something of a money saver. Watch for sales (especially with the holidays coming up) and buy an extra turkey to have in the freezer.
Halloween is coming up and in Nesty-land that's a very big deal! I'm looking forward to sharing lots of tasty treats and crafty tricks with you over the next few weeks!
Have a great weekend! See you on Monday!
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