The Soup That Will Rock Your World

OK, here's the thing - as I was making this soup, I came to the realization that this particular recipe is high maintenance. There are many steps and in reality, it took me two days. But that's because I wasn't in a hurry. Seriously, how can you be in a hurry when your refrigerator is still full of leftovers?

I am a bit tired of turkey sandwiches, if you must know the truth. That comes from getting a ginormous bowl of leftover turkey from your dear friends with whom you celebrated the holiday, then cooking your own entire turkey the next day. God forbid we'd run out of turkey in the Karenpie house.

So let's get started - unless I've scared you away with ominous talk of two-day, high maintenance food. I promise it will be worth it. You should trust me - have I ever led you astray?

To begin, we're going to make turkey stock! Here's whatcha need to start -

2 carrots, peeled

2 stalks of celery

1 onion

All cut in big chunks. No need to be fancy.

You also need a turkey carcass. We - and I use that word very, very loosely here - clean our turkey the night we eat it. It's easier to do when the meat is still a bit warm. Here is my helper -

He does really good work. I think I'll keep him around and see if his work ethic is just as high with dirty dishes.

Hi sweetie! Hey - over here. How come you're not looking at me, the love of your life? Why aren't you . . . .

Oh. Never mind. Carry on sweet kitchen helper - you're doing a fabulous job!

Turkey cleaning - my least favorite part of Thanksgiving. This year, because I'm an important food blogger, I got out of that particular job. Gotta take pictures you know. Can't get greasy turkey parts on my beloved Canon, right?

I'm assuming you cleaned your turkey before you stuck it in the freezer like I told you to. You guys are so obedient! Just one of the many reasons I love you so much!

Don't go crazy with cleaning your bird. The small bits of meat still clinging to the bones will NOT go to waste.

Here's another tip - as you can see, Duane broke the turkey and separated the breast from the back. It will fit in your pot more easily and you won't be using the back. Toss it. We like our turkey carcasses spineless. Reason? See those little ridges, or vertebrae, on the back, the darker part up there? As you cook them, the meat and anything holding the vertebrae together will fall apart. You are then left with a ton of little bones that will make your life HELL I mean make your job harder. I'll show you what I mean in a minute.

Here's something else you can toss - all those skinny, bonelike tendons on the drumsticks. Pull or cut them off. Trust me, you'll thank me when you're done cooking this baby and you have to dig all the bones out of the stock.

Put all the bones in a big - at least an 8 qt - stock pot.

Add the carrots, celery and onion and add enough water to cover it all. At this point I throw in other stuff that may be leftover from cooking Thanksgiving dinner, too. Canned broth, turkey drippings, fresh herbs like sage, rosemary or thyme - if any of these are hanging out in your fridge use them up!

Bring it to a boil then reduce the heat so it's simmering. Put a lid on it and let it go for several hours. Your house will smell like you're cooking a ginormous Thanksgiving dinner again! Beautiful. While it's cooking, you have time to make another pumpkin pie. It's the right thing to do. I'm pretty sure it's what Barefoot Contessa (my heroine!) would do.

The stock is done when you dig around in your stockpot and come up with absolutely clean bones - the meat has completely fallen off of them. I usually start cooking my stock at night and let it go all night. If it's at a low simmer with the lid on it will be fine. You'll occasionally wake up and wonder, groggily, why the house smells so strongly of cooking turkey. Then you'll go back to sleep and dream of turkey.

In the morning, take the pot off the heat and let it cool enough so you can handle it. Ready to play with your food?

See how much it's cooked down? Now you get to dig all the bones out.

Remove them and discard.

Remember when I told you to throw the back away? Well, the same goes for the neck. Unfortunately, I didn't take my own advice. There is always so much meat on the neck, I hate to waste it - and I paid for it, man. It took FOR. EV. ER. to dig all the tiny little vertebrae out.

And to dig little, tiny, sharp tendons out too.

It helps to have a big, slotted spoon like this one.

That way you can dig out the solids, and, with your freakishly weird mutant hand, feel for bones.

When you're absolutely sure you've removed all the bones, get up close and personal with the stock. You'll find more. Unless you've used your brain and thrown away the offending turkey parts that could cause you to LOSE YOUR MIND.

No, I'm not bitter. Why do you ask?

Now for the fun part. We're going to puree this stock! You'll need a blender, food processor or my personal favorite - a stick blender. I got this one for under $15. The beauty of using this is you don't have to take anything out of the stockpot to process, it works right in the pot you have! But no worries, if you don't have one of these babies, start taking all the solids out of the stock and putting them in a blender or food processor. You'll need a bit of the liquid too.

Once everything is smooth, return it to the pot and refrigerate. I do this so I can skim off any fat. It's much easier to do that when the fat has chilled and solidified.

You ready to finish this baby? Let's go.

You'll need:

3 T. Worcestershire sauce

3 T. vinegar

3 T. soy sauce

2 t. prepared mustard

2 t. sugar

salt and pepper to taste

16 oz. package of frozen veggies, your choice

Leftovers: turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, green bean casserole, yes I'm serious.

In this 8 qt. stock pot, I have around 6 qt. of the pureed stock. It is now soup! Sometimes I have less, depending on how much the stock cooks down and evaporates. Because of that, you may have to adjust the seasonings a bit, if you have a smaller quantity. Does that make sense? Are you still with me? Don't quit now! This is the easy part! Easy being relative. Quite frankly, Subway is easier. So is Taco Bell. But I digress.

Heat up the thick, yummy soup.

Start adding everything. I had around 5 c. of small turkey pieces I threw in.

And around 4 c. of leftover mashed potatoes. These will thicken the soup up nicely. They also have the added advantage of evening out the seasonings if you've made it too salty.

So, whip up some biscuits to go alongside and be a hero! And can I tell you a secret? I made up the recipe. It's the only recipe I've ever invented in my life. And now you have it - a Karenpie original.

I expect Barefoot Contessa to call me any day. We're going to be best friends - she just doesn't know it yet.

(Click here for printable)

Heads Up!

Hi Guys!

OK, just a teeny, tiny little post today. Because I forgot to say something yesterday when I did the Cranberry Butter.

Sometime next week I'm going to show you how to make After-Thanksgiving Turkey Soup. It's fantastic. It makes good use of leftovers and here's the clincher . . . it will change your life. However, to make this life-changing soup, you need a turkey carcass. That's right. The greasy, ugly, pile of bones that used to be your Thanksgiving turkey is actually a treasure in disguise.

So don't throw it away tomorrow, OK? Stick it in a ziplock or wrap it in plastic and put it in your freezer. Also, don't clean it perfectly. Those tiny little pieces of meat that are still clinging to the bone are gold. Gold, I tell you!

You'll thank me. I promise.

Cranberry Butter

OK, it's not Fat Friday and all I have to say about THAT is . . . whatever.

My life has been crazy lately. I have no margin. No down time. No free time to play Bejeweled on Facebook. No Bejeweled on Facebook? The world has gone mad!

Whenever I can't get to posting on this here blog thingie, I feel guilty. I feel bad when I think of you guys checking in and seeing that same old picture of the pumpkin ginger cranberry braid. By the way, did you try it? What did you think? Did you erect a statue in my honor on your front lawns? Anyway, back to me . . .

About the guilt thing - I'm done with it. There's nothing more tiresome and annoying that people who apologize all the time about the minutiae in their lives. The minutiae that happens to BE their lives. So, I'm going on record here - no more apologizing for my erratic blogging. I have a life and sometimes it doesn't include the computer. I only wish it would include a full time laundress and cook and dishwasher.

Any takers?

All that being said, it's enormously humbling to me, that you think my life is interesting. Interesting enough to read about here on Karenpie. Are we still friends? Because real friends will listen to the whining and then bring you dinner. That's what I'm going for. Someone to feed me and my family. Because it sure as heck isn't ME. Can anyone say "Subway"?

So, before we're all sucked into the black hole that is my over-scheduled life, I want to show you how to make this fantastic butter! Is it OK, since it's not Friday? Will you accept it anyway? Because this would be a wonderful part of your Thanksgiving table! You probably already have all the ingredients, too.

Ready?

You only need four ingredients:

3/4 c. frozen cranberries - buy them fresh & freeze for a day or two before using

2 t. grated lemon peel

6 T. powdered sugar

2 sticks butter, softened

Sometimes I only use three ingredients and leave the lemon peel out. Depends on whether

a) I feel like grating lemon peel and

b) if I have a lemon laying around that isn't crusty and moldy and hard. Just sayin'.

Grate the lemon peel using your Microplane grater. What? You don't have a Microplane? HAVE I TAUGHT YOU NOTHING? Go to Bed, Bath and Beyond right now and purchase one. Yes, NOW. I'll wait. We'll all wait for you. Don't feel guilty or anything. That you're holding up the whole operation because of your refusal to buy an inexpensive and indispensable kitchen utensil.

Are you back? Don't ever let that happen again, do you hear me? I am in NO MOOD, Missy, to put up with your fits. Just learn to obey me immediately and we'll all be happy. On with the show.

So, you've grated a couple teaspoons of lemon peel, right? Put that, the frozen cranberries and powdered sugar in the bowl of your food processor. What? You don't have a food processor? Unfortunately, you need one for this recipe. I suppose I could be flexible and show you how to chop up the cranberries in teeny, tiny little pieces but, um . . . . I'm me. Go buy a food processor.

Start pulsing the mixture until the pieces of frozen cranberry are very small.

Then add the butter. Your life will be easier if you cut up the butter in small cubes first. Then, once again, pulse the food processor to mix everything up. You will have to occasionally scrape down the sides of the bowl.

It will turn a lovely shade of bright pink! It will also be a bit crumbly. When everything's at room temperature, it will be smooth and spreadable. Right now the frozen cranberries have caused the butter to firm up again.

This butter is festive and tasty. It's tart with just a bit of sweetness and it's fantastic on your grandmother's homemade rolls. WHAT? You don't make homemade rolls for Thanksgiving? I feel an intervention coming on.

For several years I have made this butter and packed it into half-pint jars at Christmas. I pair it with loaves of homemade bread and give it to the guys in Duane's office. It's a hit! It will also keep for a long time in the fridge.

At least long enough for you to learn how to make homemade rolls.

Happy Thanksgiving, dear ones!

Fat Friday: Pumpkin Ginger Cranberry Braid

Well . . . hello there! How on earth have you been? Anything new with you? I just put my sick baby girl to bed with her vaporizer and thought I'd check in with everybody.

It IS still technically Friday, so I'm going to giddy up and give you guys a FABULOUS recipe. Seriously, this bread is amazing. I got it from Sugarcrafter and if you guys haven't checked out her site, she's a wonderful food blogger and photographer. I've gotten some really good stuff from her and guess what? You can too - go give her a visit and tell her I said hi. Never mind she doesn't know who I am.

So . . . are you ready to make another yeast bread? OH COME ON. It's not that hard! You can do it - I'll babysit you all the way through.

You know, someday, I'm going to have a clinic at my house. I'll invite anyone who wants to learn how to make yeast bread to come over for some hands-on experience. It would be exactly like when the Pioneer Woman invites people to her ranch for cooking weekends. Only I don't have a ranch. Or a guest lodge. And you'd have to sleep on a sleeper sofa in the Lego room. Which I may or may not vacuum for you. Also, there are no cowboys wearing chaps at my house. I guess Duane could wear some . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

. . . . . . . huh? Whaaaa . . . what? Wait, what were we talking about? I think my brain just froze. (Note to self: get Duane chaps for Christmas.)

Um, why don't we just go ahead and make this recipe.

Here's what you need:

4-1/2 c. bread flour

1 t. cinnamon

1 t. ground ginger

1/8 t. ground cloves

1/8 t. ground nutmeg

1/3 c. sugar

1-1/2 t. salt

1 T. instant yeast

2 eggs

1/2 stick butter, melted

1 - 15 oz. can pumpkin (not pie filling)

1/3 c. dried cranberries

See the small, brown rock on top of the can of pumpkin? Well, check this out -

Whole nutmeg. Have you ever ground your own spices? I have to confess, I hadn't until my mom got me using whole nutmeg. It's much stronger and more fragrant so I don't use as much as the recipe calls for.

Here's how you use it -

Grate it with your Microplane. It's coarser than the stuff you buy already ground. And it smells so good when you're grating it! Yum.

Put all the dry ingredients - flour, spices, sugar, salt and yeast - in a big bowl. I like to use my mixer because then it can do the work of kneading the dough. Briefly whisk the ingredients together.

In a separate bowl, mix all the wet ingredients together - eggs, butter and pumpkin.

Add the wet ingredients to the dry in the mixer bowl and begin mixing.

When everything is well-combined, knead for 2 minutes, let it rest for 15 minutes then knead again for another 5 minutes. Knead in the cranberries.

Remove the dough and lightly grease the mixer bowl. Cover it and let it rise until doubled - about an hour.

After the hour of rising, turn the dough out and divide it in half.

Divide each of those halves into three pieces.

Roll each piece into a rope around 15 inches long.

Pinch the ends together,

Spread out the ropes,

And begin braiding. Make a loose braid, with spaces in between the ropes. As the loaf rises, those spaces will fill in. If you get the braid too tight, it will rise without any problem, but you'll have really dense areas of dough. Those dense areas may not bake as evenly as the rest of the loaf and you'll have places of gooey dough.

Personally, I find that rather gross. But that's just me. If you want to make tight dough braids at our bread clinic, feel free. I won't be paying attention anyway. I'll be ogling the guy in the chaps . . . . . . . . .

. . . . . . huh? What? QUIT DISTRACTING ME.

OK, you've finished braiding the dough but see how the ends look all wonky? (I love that word. Thank you, Molly, for teaching me the word "wonky". It's appropriate in so many situations.)

Fold them under and -

Voila! Beautiful braids. See how small they are? Both braids can fit on one cookie sheet. They're about 12 inches long.

Cover them and let them rise for another hour. They'll be puffy, in fact, I had to pinch the ends of my loaves back together again as they were starting to come apart.

Bake 20-25 minutes at 375F.

It will smell like Thanksgiving in your house while they're baking!

This bread is moist, light and chewy and not overly sweet with fantastic flavor! I found I didn't want anything on it, not even butter.

I'm going to make this for Thanksgiving morning, when we're all sitting around in our pajamas watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade! We'll be keeping an eye out for my niece who, along with the other members of the Blue Springs High School marching band, is in the parade.

I know you'll love this bread - it really is outstanding! Now, I've got to go shopping. At a western store. Some place that carries chaps.