It turns out, I had a little more leftover Thanksgiving turkey than I thought, and since I wanted to make soup with it, that’s what I did. I made this savory, comforting chicken turkey “noodle” soup (I added chicken as well to make the soup go further).
I had half of a spaghetti squash leftover in the fridge and thought I’d see how it’d fare as noodles in the soup. I was hesitant because I didn’t want a bunch of soggy squash stands, but it worked great. Actually, this turned out to be the best variation of a chicken soup I have ever made. Seriously. I didn’t want to stop eating it because it tasted so satisfying, flavorful and delicious. I admit though, making soup with bone broth makes it that much richer and more flavorful, and makes a huge difference.
In fact, this soup is so delicious, I couldn’t stop thinking about it in yoga the next morning and made up my mind right then and there that I was having it for breakfast. And I did. And then I had some again at dinner. It is that good. I would’ve eaten up the rest this morning, but I told Jesse I’d save it for him.
Chicken Turkey “Noodle” Soup
- 2 cups leftover Thanksgiving turkey meat, chopped
- 1 lb cooked boneless skinless chicken breasts, chopped
- 8 cups chicken or turkey broth, preferably homemade
- 2 Tbsp grass-fed ghee or fat of choice
- 1 leek, chopped
- 3 cloves of garlic, minced
- 4 large carrots, chopped
- 3 celery stalks, chopped (I like to add the leaves too)
- 2 tsp dried thyme
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 2 bay leaves
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- Pepper to taste
- Pinch of cayenne
- 2 cups cooked spaghetti squash strands (about 1/2 of a large squash)
- Chives for garnish, optional
Directions:
- In a large soup pot over medium heat, melt the ghee. Add the chopped leek, celery and garlic, and sauté for a few minutes. Then, add the chopped carrots.
- Mix in the spices, sea salt, pepper, turkey, chicken and broth (if you need more broth than the recommended 8 cups, feel free to add a bit more). Bring to a simmer. Then reduce heat to low, cover with a lid and continue to simmer for at least 20 minutes or longer if you have the time (up to 60 minutes). This allows the flavors to meld together.
- Finally, add in the spaghetti squash strands and mix until heated through.
- Serve with chopped fresh chives, if using.
Yields: 5-6 servings
Thanks for giving the serving sizes. I’m surprised the squash strands weren’t soggy…that was one thing that would bug me about chicken noodle soup or chicken rice soup growing up.
We used to put turnip in soup growing up too.
I have so many food and digestive questions to ask you still…that’s a whole other topic for an email sometime 🙁
I’d love to know a typical day for you. From you wake to night. Do you live with your hubby? Near to family or out on your own? Country or city girl? So many questions, sorry!
You do have a lot of questions for me, don’t ya? 😉 I still intend to answer your email this weekend. It’s been such a busy school week that I didn’t even get a chance to read the whole thing! So let me tackle this first one before you move on to your other questions!
The squash wasn’t soggy to my standards, but it did soften a tad overnight, but still didn’t seem soggy to me. You just want to make sure your spaghetti squash isn’t baked too long in the first place.
I’ve thought about doing a typical day post before and will one of these days. Right now, it consists of a lot of school! I’ll spare you all the details for now and save it for a post 😉 Thanks for reminding me of the idea!
Also, yes I live with my partner (we’re not actually married, but it’s like we are & we do plan to at some point. We want to elope & do something private). All of my family is in Michigan and one sister in Austria. I’m kind of a mix of country and city girl. I grew up in a really small town and love my small town roots, but love what a bigger city (but not too big … Portland is perfect!) has to offer. Your questions are entertaining, so no worries!
Nice idea to use up the sgetti!
Thanks, I thought so too!
Really delicious and love the use of spaghetti squash! Made this yesterday and will be enjoying the leftovers for lunch this week. I made stock from the turkey parts but did add a bit of store bought chicken broth for an extra boost. I had fresh thyme on hand but not chives. Still very flavorful. I’m keeping the squash separate from the soup so it doesn’t become soggy. Thanks for sharing!
Wonderful, thanks Kate! I’m so glad you enjoyed it. Surprisingly, I didn’t have a problem with the spaghetti squash getting soggy, but an extra preventative never hurts. I guess that way you can add as much spaghetti squash as you like to your bowl. If I recall, this soup didn’t last very long in my house, so the “noodles” didn’t have too much time to get soggy or fall apart.