Turkey Noodle Soup

Like many others we cooked a turkey for Christmas this year.  Well, we didn't actually cook it until the Tuesday after Christmas.  That was when it was finally thawed.  And when I finally felt like doing it.  :)  It is hard to get up and get a turkey in the oven when the kids are chomping at the bit to open their gifts.  (We had ham on Christmas day, in case you were wondering).

Since we didn't have a bunch of people over to eat the almost 15-pound turkey, we had A LOT of leftovers.  After several days of turkey sandwiches and turkey dinner leftovers, I still had a bunch of meat left.  So I decided to make turkey noodle soup.

Lately when I cook, I don't follow any particular recipe unless it is necessary for the finished product to turn out.  So I'll tell you what I put in it, but please know that I didn't really measure anything.

Olive oil - a couple tablespoons maybe?

about 1/2 chopped onion

chopped celery - I think I used 2 stalks

2 shredded carrots - I shred the carrots so my kids can't pick them out  :)

2 garlic cloves, minced

Saute the above in a large pot until the onion is translucent.  Or whatever.

Toss in the bite-sized turkey pieces.  Stir them into the above vegetable mixture.  Add some thyme, salt, and pepper as desired.  Mix thoroughly and let cook for a few minutes.

Add chicken broth.  I used 3 cartons of Swanson broth (32 oz. I think) because I wanted a lot of soup.  But 2 cartons would probably work fine.  Heat to nearly boiling.

Add noodles.  You can use packaged ones or make your own.  I made some.  And I did follow a recipe for them.  :)

Homemade noodles

2 eggs

4 Tblsp milk or cream

1/2 tsp salt

2 c flour

In medium bowl, beat eggs.  Stir in milk and salt.  (I used half-n-half because, well, because I had some).  Add flour and mix until dough can be worked with your fingers.  Roll out dough on floured surface to desired thickness.  Slice into strips.  Remember that they will expand once you put them into the soup, so don't make them too wide or long or you'll end up with dumplins.  :)  Place on waxed paper and allow to dry for 20-30 minutes.  Add to hot broth and cook for 10 minutes.

Obviously if you are going to make your own noodles, you need to do them before you start the soup so they can sit and dry.

I also made corn bread muffins in the new muffin pan that Nicholas got for me for Christmas.  How nice to have a new pan that stuff doesn't stick to.  The old one would stick no matter how much PAM I sprayed in it.  It is now in the recycle bin.

Anyway, I've been enjoying the soup for a couple days now for lunch.  I snapped a photo today to show how yummy it looks.

I added some chopped spinach after the soup was heated up so I can get some more greens in my diet.  :)  The spinach really has no flavor so even if you're not a spinach fan, it won't affect the taste of the soup.  Or you could use Kale or some other green leafy vegetable.

That's it!  Not difficult, just takes a little time.  And the soup was ready to eat in about an hour.  Everyone but Alex ate it up quickly.  But Alex is my picky eater, so I wasn't surprised.  Or offended.  :)

Enjoy!

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