TURKEY SOUP

THANKSGIVING 2020

Are you trying to serve meals that are nutritious during this pandemic hoping that your family will stay safe? I have been trying to add as many veggies as possible to the recipes I make as I realize they are packed with beneficial nutrients that can help to keep us healthy. So far we are staying well, distancing and trying to protect ourselves. Even now at Thanksgiving time, I was working at changing and adding (even hiding) small amounts of very nutrient rich ingredients without hurting the taste. 

Even though we are living in a covid & distancing time, we have much to be thankful for. A song that often comes to my mind at Thanksgiving & did this year as well is, “All is safely gathered in, er the winter storms begin” When I think of last year and the wind & snow storm that halted our fall work, I am very thankful that we had a very pleasant Thanksgiving.

Covid didn’t allow our family to get together so we met with our children at different times. . . . of course distancing. This year our families came to eat at different times, but they also did acts of service for us. As we age, some things get harder and harder to do, so this was a huge blessing.

TURKEY – I roasted a very large turkey, carved it and divided it into two roasters that I heated 1 hour before meal time. I also mashed a huge pot of potatoes; adding plain yogurt & butter and divided that into 2 casseroles. I baked 4 pumpkin pies on 2 weekends so we had enough for each meal I prepared. I just added vegetables and salads each meal & we had delicious Thanksgiving dinners.

On Tuesday I made a big pot of turkey soup focusing on the need to build up our immune system and help us prevent a cold, virus or covid. (The broth, garlic, onions & other vegetables are great fighters.)

TURKEY SOUP – 24 cups of soup

14 cups turkey broth

2 medium onions, chopped

10 cloves garlic, minced

1 tablespoon coconut oil

1 cup chopped celery

2 cups shredded carrot

5 star anise

5 bay leaves

chopped up cooked turkey meat (I had 5 cups and added all of it)

salt & pepper to taste

noodles

After taking off all of the meat, I divided the turkey carcass into 3 parts and cooked each part in 5 cups of water in the insta-pot. I cooked it twice; each time for 1 hour. That way I was sure to get all of the nutrition out of the bones and cartilage. I drained out the liquid & mixed all of the broths together using most in this soup recipe and froze 2 quarts broth for another time when we want soup.

Saute the onion and garlic in a tablespoon coconut oil. Into a large pot put this plus all ingredients except the salt & pepper. Bring to a boil and then simmer for at least an hour. Add salt & pepper to taste. Remove the star anise and bay leaves.

Cook your choice of noodles, drain them, rinse and add the amount you like to each bowl of hot soup.

After enjoying this soup for lunch, I froze 2 quarts soup for another time and put a quart into the fridge for the next day.

TOMATO TURKEY SOUP

Seeing we were 4 at lunch the next day, I added 1/2 cup cooked squash and 1 cup tomato juice plus a bit more salt. This soup was also very delicious and didn’t seem like left overs at all!                                                                                                                                               Winnie