I cooked a 12-pound Thanksgiving turkey for four people simply because I wanted leftovers.
I wanted to make turkey paninis, but I also wanted to make my homemade veggie soup and add turkey meat.
Vegetable soup is one of the easiest soups to make.
Add a chicken, beef, hamburger, or turkey and you have a delicious, hearty soup for the coming cold months.
I've left the recipe till the end of this post so I can walk you through the process.
Let's get cooking!
I gather all my ingredients first.
I use fresh carrots, celery, onions, and potatoes, but frozen corn, limas, and string beans.
You can add other veggies as well, or leave out ones that you don't like, however, the fresh veggies are a must.
I use whatever bone broth (incredibly nutritious) I have one hand. This time it was chicken because poultry is poultry and I already had this bone broth on hand.
Canned diced tomatoes and tomato sauce.
I also had the pan renderings from the turkey and some dry chardonnay in the frig.
The turkey renderings had solidified in the frig overnight, which made the fat rise to the top.
I removed that to cut calories, but you can leave a bit of it in for flavor. Typically, I don't and I've never had an issue with flavor.
Once the fat was removed, I have the perfect base for my soup.
Remember, you don't have to add meat to this soup!
Next, I cut up the celery, carrots, and onions into bite-sized pieces.
I think it's important that the pieces are on the medium to small size. This is not a stew, but a soup.
I have them ready to add to my pot.
I then chop my potatoes. I had three ready to go, but they were on the extra-large size, so I only used two.
Again, bite-sized pieces are important.
Placing my largest soup pot on the stovetop, I turn the heat to medium and add a tablespoon of olive oil.
I give it just about 1 minute to heat up.
I then dump the carrots, celery, and onions right into the pot.
They will start to sizzle as the moisture in the veggies reacts with the heat.
I stir them around and let them begin to soften.
This takes about 8-10 minutes.
At this point, I add about a quarter cup of the dry chardonnay to the mixture.
The pot is hot enough that the alcohol immediately burns off, but the liquid heats up and infuses with the veggies.
I leave it for about 2 minutes.
Typically I crush and chop cloves, but I had some minced garlic in the frig already.
I add about a teaspoon to the mixture and let it work in with the veggies.
I periodically stir them so they won't burn on the bottom of the pot.
Once the veggies are slightly softened (I use the wooden spoon to check for the firmness of the carrots), I add the turkey renderings.
The heat makes it melt quickly and it becomes a nice liquid base for the soup.
I add the frozen veggies - 1 bag each of the string beans and corn, and half of the limas in the bag.
I mixed them all together so they are thoroughly incorporated.
Next, I add the bone broth. You can see how "milky" it looks, but that's exactly what it should look like.
I then add both the diced tomatoes (including the juice) and the tomato sauce and stir it all together.
At this point, it's really starting to look like soup.
The potatoes jump into the pot next.
If you feel like you need to add a bit of water, you can at this point, BUT, I caution you to add just a little bit.
Remember that as the veggies cook they will release some of their own juices, so the soup will get a bit more liquid on its own.
It's really how you prefer your soup.
Your meat will go in last as it's already cooked.
IMPORTANT: Any meat you add to your soup MUST be pre-cooked.
I stir everything together a few times. I get it really good and mixed up so the flavors have a chance to move around all the parts of the soup.
I bring the soup to a boil.
Once it's boiling, I decrease the heat to low/simmer.
You want to cook this soup slowly and you don't want it to burn. Burnt soup on the bottom ruins all the soup on the top!
I pop the lid on and LEAVE IT ALONE!
I leave it took cook for about an hour, or until the carrots and potatoes (the hardest root veggies) are soft and easily cut with a fork.
At this point, I add salt and pepper to taste.
I'm not a big salter.
Remember, it's easier to add salt then it is to take it away!
I serve the soup as the whole meal, adding a nice slice of bread or crackers with the soup.
This is a great Sunday soup to make.
Complete the process on Sunday after lunch and let the soup cook on low. You can turn it off and leave it on the stove to reheat for dinner time.
Have it for dinner that night and take it to work the next day.
You can also freeze this into baggies or freezer-safe containers.
I usually have enough to share with our neighbors.
Bon Appetit! (Recipe below signature!)
EASY VEGGIE SOUP
1 T Olive Oil
1 Med yellow onion, diced
4 stalks of celery, cleaned and sliced
4 carrots, cleaned and cut into bite-sized pieces
2 large Russet potatoes, chopped into bite-sized pieces
1 teaspoon minced garlic
10 oz frozen limas
10 oz frozen corn
10 oz frozen green beans
14.5 oz tomato sauce
15 oz diced tomatoes and liquid
4 cups broth - veggie, beef, poultry (according to meat)
(no meat - add any broth you prefer)
3-4 cups of meat choice (meat must be precooked)
Salt and pepper to taste
Optional: 1/4 C Chardonnay or Cooking Sherry
*In a large pot, heat up the olive oil over medium heat. Add celery, carrots, and onions. Cook, frequently stirring, for about 8-10 minutes. These veggies should be softening.
*Add the wine (optional) and garlic. Cook for an additional minute more.
If you have meat renderings, add them next. Stir to incorporate the flavors with the veggies.
Add the frozen vegetables, the broth of your choice, the diced tomatoes with juice, and the tomato sauce. Stir together.
Add the potatoes and the pre-cooked meat (optional).
Bring the soup to a boil.
Once it's boiling, reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for about another hour.
Check for the carrots and potatoes for doneness - they should easily cut with a fork.
Add sale and pepper as desired.
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