I Feel a Cold Coming On...

. . . It must be time for soup!

I know I'm fighting off something.  Special K has been sniffling and coughing all week.  Baby Wingnut began a croupy cough on Thursday and his cheeks are all pink.  My throat has been scratchy and irritated since Wednesday.  I decided it was time for steaming bowls of turkey and wild rice soup.  This recipe is a family favorite and pretty good for you too.  I paired it with the best homemade dinner rolls from The Secrets of Jesuit Breadmaking by Brother Rick Curry, S.J. (We have loved every recipe we have tried from this book.  The children also love to read about the origins of each recipe and the stories of community life and saints placed throughout the book).

Turkey and Wild Rice Soup

Stock:

Approximately 2 pounds of turkey pieces (breasts and legs are good, but I prefer thighs if I can get them)

1 tablespoon oil

8 cups chicken stock

4 cups water

2 cups dry white wine (optional)

8 whole peppercorns

2 bay leaves

1 stalk celery cut into 3 inch pieces with leaves intact

1 onion quartered and peeled

Heat oil in very large heavy pot or dutch oven.  Salt and pepper turkey pieces on all sides and brown on all sides in oil.  Add rest of ingredients to pot and bring to a boil, skimming foam off top as it rises.  Reduce to low, cover pot and simmer for two hours, until turkey pieces are cooked through.  Strain solids reserving stock/broth and turkey.  Allow turkey to cool until you can shred the meat from the bones with your fingers.  Shred into bite sized pieces and reserve.

Soup:

2 teaspoons oil

3 stalks of celery, diced small

3 peeled carrots, diced small

1 onion or two shallots, diced small

2 small cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp dried thyme

1 tsp dried basil

1 tsp dried rosemary

1/4 tsp baking soda (this aids in softening the rice especially if you used wine in the stock)

2 cups wild rice

reserved stock

reserved turkey pieces

In very large, heavy pot or dutch oven saute celery, carrots, and onions in oil until softened and beginning to brown, about 10 minutes.  Add garlic, thyme, basil, and rosemary and saute until fragrant, about 30 seconds.  Add wild rice and toss, coating with oil, vegetables and aromatics. Add reserved stock and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to low and simmer for about 45-60 minutes until rice is tender.  Add reserved turkey meat and heat through before serving.

*Wild rice can be fairly expensive at the super market, sometimes as much as $7 for a cup.  I have had better luck at the commissary and at the natural foods market(which has a large variety of wild rices to choose from).