Turkey (Carcass) Sausage Gumbo

Yum! What a delicious sounding name for a soup, right?!  Every year for Thanksgiving, my dad Cajun deep frys a turkey.  It literally PAINS me to throw away the turkey carcass after getting every single last bit of turkey off of it because of all the delicious seasonings that are being thrown out. Pains me.

Enter Turkey (Carcass) Sausage Gumbo.  This is a time consuming recipe, I'll be honest.  Probably best suited for a lazy Sunday at home.  It makes quite a bit, but luckily it can be frozen. I'm going out on a limb and assuming any turkey carcass you'll be using WON'T be a cajun seasoned turkey, so I've adjusted this recipe accordingly by adding Cajun seasoning. Just for you! :)

Turkey (Carcass) Sausage Gumbo
Stock
1 turkey carcass
12 cups of water
1 large celery rib with leaves
3 large carrots
1 large onion
1 bay leaf

Soup
1/2 cup of canola oil
1 cup flour
1 large onion, chopped
2 celery stalks, chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped
3 large garlic cloves, minced
1 lb andouille sausage, sliced
4 cups leftover turkey,  in bitesized pieces
Okra (I used a bag of frozen okra)
Salt, to taste
Cajun Seasoning, to taste
Hot Sauce

Put turkey carcass in a large stockpot, add water, cover and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and allow to simmer.  Skim off any foam after 20 minutes. Meanwhile cut celery and carrots into large chunks. Cut onion into large wedges.  Add vegetables, a few pinches of salt and the bay leaf.  Simmer for 2-3 hours.  Strain stock into another pot. Discard veggies and bones.

At this point, you can stop and freeze the stock if you like.  If you'd like to continue on with the gumbo...

Make a roux with the oil and flour. (Heat oil over medium heat, gradually add flour, stirring constantly, until it turns a deep brown, about 30 minutes).  Add the celery, onion, and bell pepper.  This will turn into a gloppy (technical term) mess.  It will all clump together.  Keep stirring for another 5 minutes. Add garlic and stir for another couple minutes.

Add about 3 soup ladles of the hot stock to the roux.  Stir until blended.  Add one ladle at a time until it's well blended.  Add remaining stock. Increase heat until it reaches a boil.  Meanwhile, brown sausage in a pan.  When stock begins to boil, reduce heat, add sausage, okra, Cajun seasoning, and salt, and simmer for 2-3 hours.  Add turkey at the end.  Serve over rice and with hot sauce!

Ham & Beans

I've made ham and beans a number of times, but I'm pretty sure this time I perfected the recipe.  It's a great Sunday afternoon recipe.  It requires a lot of time to simmer but, trust me, it's worth it!

2 Tbsp vegetable oil
3 ham hocks (I had the best luck finding these at Walmart. They came in a package of 3 and were pre-smoked. Pre-smoked is highly recommended for this recipe!)
2 large cloves garlic, minced
1/2 large onion, chopped
1 bag (mine was 1 lb 4 oz) of Great Northern Beans
Pepper
8 cups water
Chicken bullion
Hot sauce
Salt

Sort beans.  Throw away any shriveled ones or any small rocks that made it into the bag.  Soak in water over night in a large bowl.

The next day, heat oil in dutch oven or soup pot.  Add ham hocks.  The point here is to draw some of the fat and grease out of the ham hocks.  Sounds delish, right?  After about 5 minutes, remove ham hocks and set to the side.  Add onion and fresh ground pepper to the same pot.  Be generous with the pepper! Saute for 3-4 minutes.  Add garlic. Saute another minute.  Add beans (be sure to rinse after soaking them!) Saute for 3 minutes.

Add water and hot sauce.  I added just a little bit of chicken bullion powder for taste.  This is completely optional, it would still be great without it.  Another option is to do half water, half chicken broth.

Bring this to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low and allow to simmer.  After 2-3 hours, remove ham hocks, cut through the outer layer of skin and fat and keep the ham.  Return ham to pot.

To thicken, remove a few ladles of beans and mash.  Return to pot. Salt to taste.  Remember ham is very salty, so it may not need any additional salt.  Be sure to taste it first!

From this point you can go ahead and eat, or continue to simmer until you're ready!

Serve with corn bread and other desired toppings.  It doesn't need it, but I add ketchup to mine.  That's how I ate it growing up.  David adds hot sauce.  Let me know if you grew up with different add-ons to a a bowl of ham and beans.  I might be willing to give it a try!

Jessica's Chili

It's soup season.  I love making a pot of soup.  Some of my favorites are chicken tortilla soup, black bean taco soup and, of course, chili.  This recipe is my own.  Bits and pieces taken from here and there until I was satisfied.  Here it is!

2 lbs ground meat (turkey/bison/beef)

1 medium onion, chopped

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 (15 oz) can pinto beans

1 (15 oz) can dark red kidney beans

1 (15 oz) can black beans

1 (12) bottle of beer (are you really surprised?)

1 (14.5 oz) can beef broth

1 (6 oz can) tomato paste

1 (4.5) can chopped green chilies (I only use half of the can)

1 can diced tomatoes

2 Tbsp chili powder

1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce

2 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp ground red pepper

1 tsp salt

1 tsp paprika

1 tsp hot sauce

Optional garnish: Shredded cheese, chopped onion, sour cream, parsley

Start cooking chopped onions over medium heat, after 4 minutes add garlic, after another minute, add ground meat.  Cook until meat is cooked and onion is tender.  Drain and return to soup pot.  Drain and rinse canned beans.  Seriously.  Have you ever touched canned beans? They're slimy and gross and should never be added to anything before being rinsed off. Add beans to pot. Add remaining ingredients except option garnishes.  Bring all to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer 2-3 hours or until thickened.

Add desired garnishes.  Serve with cornbread/crackers and enjoy!

Chicken Enchilada Soup

I haven't posted lately.  Mainly because most of my recipes haven't been very "photo-worthy".   However, this one is too good not to share.  As usual, this isn't my own personal recipe, just one I'm passing along, this time from a co-worker.  Oddly enough, I didn't change this recipe at all.  Just the toppings.  This makes quite a few servings and would be great for a group. This is on my menu next time everyone gathers at my boyfriends house to watch a game.  Keep in mind that some of these ingredients can be purchased "low sodium" or "Healthy Request" if you're trying to make this a little better for you.

2 cans cream of mushroom soup
2 cans cream of chicken soup
2 cans cream of celery soup
2 cans cheddar cheese soup
2 (15 oz) cans of chicken broth
1 (15 oz) can of diced tomatoes with green chilis
1 jar Pace Medium Picante
1 medium onion, finely chopped
4 gloves fresh garlic, minced
1 tsp. red chili powder (or to taste..it wasn't overly spicy with 1 tsp.)
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup cilantro, fresh chopped
4 cups chicken breast, cooked and cut to bit size
1 pkg flour tortillas

In large stockpot, combine and whisk together until smooth, all 8 cans of soup.  Add chicken broth, tomatoes, salsa, onion, garlic, chili powder, salt and pepper.  Bring all ingredients to a full boil.  Reduce heat and simmer for 1 hour.  Add cilantro and chicken.  Simmer another hour.

While soup is simmering, make your toppings.  Cut flour tortillas into small thin strips and deep fry in hot oil in skillet until lightly brown.  Drain on paper towel.  Sprinkle with salt.

Now, my only "variation" is that I didn't make the tortillas and instead put shredded cheese and soup cream on top.  I'd guess the tortillas add a nice crunch though.  This makes great leftovers.  In fact, like most soups, the leftovers are even better.