tradition {december 2, 2022}

I love soup and to start off "soup season,'" is my post-Thanksgiving tradition of making a big pot using the turkey carcass, leftovers, this, that, and other remains. The main motivators are to clear the fridge from food clutter and to waste no food. (I took out a small national debt fixing food for nine people!) 

This pot of soup is never the same from one year to the next. The broth always starts out with simmering the carcass and other bones with onions, carrots, celery, and herbs but after that what gets thrown into the pot after that depends on what's left in the fridge. It's game to use what's only there.

Simmering the meat and bones creates a flavorful broth and makes it easy to get a lot of meat off the bones.

Just a few of the ingredients going into the soup: leftover spinach, carrots and celery that were about to pass their prime, Parmesan rinds, a couple spoonfuls of corn casserole, leftover tomato paste. Not pictured: chopped up green beans from the good ole green bean casserole made with mushroom soup (hey, I wanted steamed green beans but the angry masses made their voices heard for green bean casserole), roasted sweet potatoes, a cup of barley, plus the turkey that was so easy to pick off the bones after simmering.

Soup has so many benefits. Barring the cream soups, soup helps you meet your daily veggie quota. They're inexpensive, easy to prepare (I love my Instant Pot), and if you make a big batch, it's easy to freeze. Bonus to freezing soup, you have a meal at the ready when you're busy, not feeling well, or just too tired to cook. Soups keep you hydrated and give your immune system a boost especially when you load it up with garlic, onion, celery, and carrots. This soup-er food and will make you feel souper duper!