Turkey Vegetable Soup

My Mom is always telling me to use the turkey carcass to make soup. So, when I was done with my Thanksgiving turkey I decided to give it a try!! I found a recipe for Turkey Vegetable Soup and tweaked it a little bit. The result was a great soup. I might add more barley (and water for it) and not use beans next time around. The thing I did differently was to strain all the solids out of the broth and then add more veggies when I added the turkey. So, the result was the broth had good flavor, but not the chunks of onion, etc. I would definitely do this technique again. I didn't have enough celery, so next time I would use more. I experimented with which potato would be the best, but I added them too early and they all got mushy. I think one good-sized Russet would work (peeled).

Turkey Vegetable Soup

1 turkey carcass (approximately 2 1/2 lb.), cut in half [I forgot to cut it in half]
2 1/2 quarts water
2 ribs celery (with leaves) cut into 1-inch pieces
3 carrots, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
2 parsnips, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces [I didn't use parsnips]
1 ripe tomato, seeded and coarsely chopped [I used some sun-dried tomatoes & paste]
2 medium-sized onions, quartered
3 whole cloves of garlic, bruised [I used chopped]
6 whole black peppercorns
1 t. coarse salt
4 whole sprigs of fresh dill [I used some dried dill weed]
2 T chopped dill
1/4 c. uncooked pearl barley

1. Place the turkey carcass, water, celery, carrots, parsnips, tomato, onions, garlic, peppercorns, salt, and dill sprigs in a large, heavy soup pot. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to a gentle simmer and cook for 30 minutes.
2. Remove the carcass, celery leaves, garlic cloves, and dill sprigs from the soup. Add the barley and simmer for 40 minutes more, stirring occasionally, adding the 2 Tablespoons of chopped dill during the last 10 minutes. Serves 6.

Turkey Pot Pie

I have created my own recipe for pot pies, and used the same recipe for beef a while back. I used one of those chunks of turkey breast that come shrink-wrapped in the ready-made foods in the meat area of the grocery store. I had some russet potatoes to use up, and some half-and-half, so voilá a pot pie. I used a deeper pie dish and piled up the contents high in the middle. It worked out and didn't leak. Since I didn't use canned potatoes this time, I added the potatoes near the end of the process so they wouldn't get mushy.

Turkey Pot Pie

1 pkg. refrigerated double crust pastry
1 1/2 c. cooked turkey, cubed
1/3 c. flour
1/2 t. salt
1/8 t. pepper
1/2 c. frozen pearl onions
2 T butter
1/2 c. chopped celery, including leaves
1/2 c. chopped carrots
1 T butter
1/2 c. frozen peas
1 c. chicken broth
1 1/2 c. cooked, cubed potatoes
1 c. milk or half-and-half

1. Preheat oven to 425ºF. Place one of the pastry rounds in a 9-inch pie dish, making sure that it is touching the bottom and sides. Trim the extra pastry off, at the outside edge of the pie dish. Prick the bottom several times with a fork. Bake for 5-7 minutes, until the crust is golden brown. Do not over bake. Lower oven temperature to 400ºF after you remove the pie crust to a wire rack.
2. Mix flour, salt, and pepper together in a shallow dish. Add turkey and roll pieces around until they are coated in the flour. Melt 2 T butter in large skillet. Add the turkey (after shaking off flour) and onions, reserving the excess flour for later. Saute until the turkey and onions are browned, about 5 minutes. Remove turkey and onions and place in a heat-proof bowl for later.
3. Melt 1 T butter in skillet. Add celery and carrots. Saute for 5 minutes. Add peas and chicken broth. Bring to a boil, cover and simmer for 5 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, in a 2-cup measuring cup, stir together milk and reserved flour mixture. Whisk slowly into the skillet. Stir until thickened, about 3-5 minutes. Stir in potatoes, turkey and onions.
5. Spoon carefully into bottom crust, keeping the contents in a center mound. Top with remaining pastry, trimming the edge as you did for the bottom. Press the top edge to the bottom edge all the way around sort of sealing them together. Using a fork, prick the top crust several times for vents. Place a baking sheet on the bottom shelf of the oven to catch any overflowing filling. Bake until crust is golden and filling is bubbly, about 15-20 minutes.
6. Let the pie cool on a wire rack for about 10-15 minutes before cutting. Serves 4-6.

Thanksgiving Turkey

Here is my Thanksgiving Turkey. 10.5 pounds, 3.5 hours at 325ºF, stuffed. The bird was stuffed with Mrs. Cubbison's whole grain stuffing (too healthy, I won't use this one again) and was basted with butter and poultry seasoning. I tented it with a piece of foil for three hours and then removed it for the last half hour. I made gravy with the drippings, but used too much flour and had to thin it down with water. The turkey was moist and had good flavor.

Two things I did differently from previous years was to create the stock using a crock pot overnight and using a cheesecloth bag for the stuffing in the bird. I would do both again, the crock pot had water, onions, celery, seasoning, and the giblets for 3 hours on high and about 6 more on low. That is the stuffing bag peeking out of the bird!!