Turkey Soup with Tortellini and Kale
By the third or fourth day after Thanksgiving I am about ready to look at turkey again. I buy a good-sized turkey for our crowd and we usually serve another protein like roast beef, so when I carve the bird for Thanksgiving dinner I don’t have to worry about slicing every bit of meat off the bones. The carcass usually has a good amount of meat left on it – ideal for a rich flavorful turkey stock and the eventual annual soup.
Craving pasta and greens after the holiday, cheese tortellini and lots of curly kale were the perfect ingredients for this year’s turkey soup.
Turkey Soup with Tortellini and Kale Recipe
Turkey Stock
Ingredients:
- turkey carcass
- onion
- carrot
- celery
- bay leaves
- black peppercorns
Method:
After Thanksgiving dinner, refrigerate the carcass (with all its meat, skin, and fat) until ready to make stock, usually within 4 days.
Depending on the size, put it in one big pot or chop the carcass in pieces. Cover the carcass with filtered water. Then add rough chopped onion, carrot, and celery, a couple bay leaves, and about 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon of peppercorns.
Bring it to a boil, skim the scum, then simmer for 2 1/2 to 3 hours. Once cooled slightly, remove the carcass with a tongs then strain the stock into a clean pot. Discard all the solids, reserving the stock for soup.
Turkey Soup
Ingredients:
- olive oil
- carrot, thinly sliced
- celery, thinly sliced
- garlic, minced
- turkey stock
- shredded turkey meat
- curly kale, de-stemmed and torn
- cheese tortellini, store-bought, cooked al dente
- salt and pepper to taste
- chives, finely chopped
- dill, finely chopped
- parmesan, grated
Method:
Sauté carrot and celery in olive oil in a soup pot until softened. Add garlic and cook a few more minutes. Add turkey stock and leftover shredded turkey meat then bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low. Add kale and cook until the kale is wilted and softened. Add tortellini to just heat through. Add salt and pepper to taste. Ladle soup into bowls. Sprinkle with chives and dill. Dust with parmesan.
Note: The amount of ingredients is flexible. Cook according to your taste or how much you have on hand. Strive for a balance as in the photographs.
More Turkey
Turkey with Sweet Potato Noodles here.
My “Do Nothing” Turkey Recipe also here.
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