Wild Rice Turkey Soup

This recipe was shared on the Simple Saturdays Blog Hop!

 

This is the kind of soup that I would describe as "soul food." Thick, hearty, smooth...and it warms you up from the inside out with each bite. It is one of my absolute favorite ways to use leftover Thanksgiving turkey. It's sort of a tradition around here; a couple days after each Thanksgiving this soup winds up on the table for  light yet completely satisfying meal.

If you have turkey broth left from cooking the turkey, great, I've always used either chicken or veggie broth because I've never actually been in charge of cooking the Thanksgiving turkey. I always end up taking leftover turkey home from my mom's house.

While cream or half-and-half would add another level of richness to the soup, I never have those in my fridge, so I've always used whole milk. Try not to omit the almonds, please! They are the secret ingredient that sends the recipe through the roof!


Wild Rice Turkey Soup                              Print Recipe
adapted from allrecipes.com

Ingredients:
2/3 c. uncooked wild rice
2 c. water

6 T. butter
1 small onion, finely chopped
2 stalks celery, finely chopped
1/3 c. flour (I recommend organic flour)
4 c. broth (turkey, chicken, or veggie)
2 carrots, grated
2 c. cooked turkey, chopped
1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. pepper
1/4 c. chopped slivered almonds

3/4 c. milk, cream, or half-and-half
1 t. lemon juice (optional)

Cook the rice in the water by bringing to a boil, then reducing to a simmer for 40-45 minutes, covered. When the rice is cooked (tender but not mushy), drain any remaining water and fluff with a fork, then cook for 5 more minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.

In a soup pot , melt the butter over medium heat. Add onion and celery and cook for 5 minutes, or until the onions are starting to become translucent. Stir in the flour and continue to cook and stir until the flour is yellow-brown, about 5 more minutes. Slowly whisk in the broth until there are no lumps of flour left. Add the grated carrot and bring the soup to a boil, whisking constantly, until the broth is thick and smooth, about 2 minutes.

Turn heat down to simmer and add the cooked rice, turkey, salt, pepper, and almonds. Let the soup cook until all ingredients are hot, then stir in milk (or cream or half-and-half) and the optional lemon juice. Serve hot with freshly baked bread. Yum!