Cold Day--Warm Fire!

Perfect Day for Turkey Soup!

The freeze is on...and wouldn't you know that along with the sub 32 degree weather, the rhinovirus would strike. I was lucky to avoid it during the holidays. Now I have time to sit quietly with a cup of tea, my knitting and a box of kleenex. They say a week to ten days, and no matter what the treatment, I'll be back to my old self.

So my treatment of choice is rest in front of the fire, Turkey Soup and a glass of wine now and again!

After the official Christmas dinner I had a turkey breast with plenty of meat and flavor left clinging to the bones. I did what any soup loving person does and threw the leftovers, including the drippings I didn't use for gravy, into a zip lock bag and froze everything for another day. Maybe the smartest move I made during the entire holiday season, because today everything came out of the zip lock and went into a stock pot. I covered it all with water, and now it's smelling like dinner. I added a quartered onion, three smashed garlic cloves, a sprig of fresh sage, and a couple of thyme pieces with some salt and pepper. The stock pot will simmer for about an hour, partially covered.

Meanwhile, in pot number two, I added one tablespoon butter, one tablespoon extra virgin olive oil, one medium sweet onion, chopped, three celery stalks, chopped, about a cup of chopped carrots, and two more garlic cloves minced. This only needs to cook until the vegetables are tender.

After the turkey breast leftovers have simmered for about an hour, I'll pull the bones out and set them aside to cool. The quartered onion, smashed garlic and herb sprigs should be discarded.

When it's cool, I'll remove the meat from the bones and add it back to the stock pot, finally discarding bones.

Sauteed vegetables will go in the stock pot with salt and pepper added to taste.

Voila! Turkey Soup! Add cooked rice or pasta before serving, and a healthy dash of Mongolian Fire Oil for a kick. Grated cheese and chopped parsley make a nice garnish.

This soup may not cure the rhinovirus immediately, but I think I feel better already!