Theresa’s Fabulous Day-After-Thanksgiving Turkey Soup Recipe

Ever since my daughter was tiny, we have spent the Thanksgiving holiday in Puerto Penasco aka Rocky Point, Mexico, usually camped on the beach with my friend Theresa and her family. We have Thanksgiving dinner with them and it is good (really good, since the only thing that is expected of me is a salad!) But what all of us look forward to at least as much as the big dinner, is the next day when Theresa will make her famous turkey soup with the leftovers. I had to beg (a little), but here’s the recipe…

Ingredients:

Turkey carcass +ingredients for broth from step # 2 (below), or 6 cups of broth

2 lbs. shredded/diced turkey (from above carcass)

2-4 oz. cans diced green chiles, or 4 to 6 green chiles, roasted, peeled, seeded and chopped (add more if you like!)

1 jalapeno pepper, diced (optional)

6 cups cooked Northern beans (canned is fine, but drain them)

1 T. olive oil

2 med. onions, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 tsp. ground cumin

1 ½ tsp. cayenne pepper

1 tsp. salt (probably can omit or reduce if you use canned beans)

Black pepper to taste

Toppings:

Sour cream

Shredded Monterey Jack cheese

Cilantro

Instructions

Remove meat from turkey carcass. Reserve 2 pounds for this soup. (Use any remaining for sandwiches, another recipe, or freeze for later use)
Make turkey stock by breaking up the carcass and simmering with 8 quarts of water, one medium onion, chopped, 4 ounces of chopped celery, including tops, and several cloves of garlic, cut diagonally. Simmer for two hours and then add a sachet d’epices by putting the following ingredients in a metal tea ball or tying them up in cheesecloth: 1 tsp. cracked black peppercorns, 1 bay leaf, ¼ teaspoon each of: dried thyme, dried tarragon, dried oregano, and dried basil. Simmer for another hour. Do not stir while simmering, but you may want to skim off any scum that forms. Remove from heat and strain. Also remove as much fat as possible (this is easier once it’s been refrigerated). You will wind up with about 6 quarts of stock. Reserve 6 cups for use in this recipe and freeze the rest. Or, if you have another way that you prefer to make stock, you can certainly do that.
Heat the oil in a large pot and sauté onions. Add garlic, chiles, jalapeno pepper (if using) and all spices.
Add beans and stock and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for one hour, stirring occasionally.
Add turkey and continue cooking until heated through. Add additional salt and pepper to taste.
Serve in big bowls, topped with cheese, chopped cilantro and a dollop of sour cream.

And since it is Thanksgiving, let me just say that I am very grateful for my friend Theresa, and not just because she is a great cook. Theresa has been with me through thick and thin (literally, in my case!) She was my labor coach when Mariah was born, and more recently we have encouraged each other to participate in three half marathons together this year. I say “together,” because we go to the starting line together, but then she always beats me! And now we’re training for the full marathon in Sedona in February (where she will undoubtedly beat me once again, but that’s okay…)

And I am grateful for: …

…the taste of her delicious soup

…the smell of the ocean

…the feel of the warm sun on my duly sun-screened arms and legs

…the sound of my daughter’s excited screams when a pod of dolphins swims close to shore

…the beautiful sight of the sun setting over the ocean

If you’re wondering what the heck I’m talking about here, take a look at yesterday’s post about a Sense of Gratitude!

I’ll leave you today with the beautiful voice of Josh Groban, reminding us that despite the very real challenges we all face, there’s still “so much to be thankful for…”