I love Thanksgiving. The turkey, family gatherings, laughter, turkey, seeing in-laws and new generations, and I really love the turkey. In fact, I’m not a huge fan of all the stuffing, gravies, cranberries, or green bean casseroles. It’s mostly the turkey I go for.
Now I have to admit that for decades I have avoided breast meat because it always seems to be dry, so I usually go for the dark meat. However, once I got my mitts on a good pressure cooker, dry turkey is totally history! In fact, one of our favourite midweek suppers has become turkey breast – just about 30 minutes in the pressure cooker and it’s ready to eat.
Of course, the best part of making turkey is cooking down the bones for a comforting, delicious, lowfat soup. Whether using a pressure cooker (about 40 minutes) or stockpot on the stove (about 2 hours), making incredible turkey broth is simple: just add a few carrots, celery, an onion, and herbs like sage and thyme, to about 8 cups of water. Once the bones are cool enough to handle, pick off the meat and strain the broth.
At this point, I like to chill the broth so I can skim off any fat that rises. Or throw it in the freezer for another day. Whatever you choose to do, here’s a tasty and quick soup recipe for using up turkey and that yummy broth:
Creamy Turkey & Fennel Soup
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Creamy Turkey & Fennel Soup
- Yield: 6-8 1x
Ingredients
- 1 Tbsp fennel seeds
- 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
- 1 tsp dried cilantro
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp turmeric
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- 2–3 carrots, peeled and chopped
- 2 stalks celery, chopped
- 1 white onion, chopped
- 1 fennel bulb, chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 jalapeño, minced
- 4 c turkey stock
- 2 c milk
- 6 Tbsp corn starch
- 3 c cooked turkey
- 2 c frozen corn
- 1 c frozen peas
- 1 package (2 cups) shredded cheese
Instructions
- Toast fennel and pepper flakes together in a dry frying pan, making certain they don’t scorch. Crush together with the next 6 ingredients in spice mill, or with a mortar and pestle.
- Sauté vegetables, garlic and jalapeño in olive oil together with spices until tender in a stock pot.
- Add turkey stock, cover and allow to simmer for 10 minutes.
- Whisk corn starch into cold milk, and add to broth, simmering until thickened – approximately 5 minutes.
- Add turkey, corn and peas. Simmer for 2-3 minutes.
- Add cheese, and heat thru, but do not allow to boil
- Category: Soup
