Nothing warms my tummy like a bowl of soup on a freezing cold winter day.

This soup is a Kirksey tradition. We make it every year on Thanksgiving weekend from leftover turkey the day we get our Christmas tree. Served up with eggnog and a sappy Steven Curtis Chapman Christmas CD, it’s just one of those things we do and we love.

Christian calls this his favorite soup EVER, so sometimes, it warrants a non-Thanksgiving serving. If I didn’t have enough turkey left over to freeze, a rotisserie chicken will work in a pinch. Or sometimes, for dinner, I’ll put a turkey breast in the crock pot and serve it for dinner and then those leftovers can be used for pot pie or this wonderful yumminess.

I serve it with leftover homemade Pumpkin Crescent Rolls (also from the thankful holiday).

I begin by getting my big soup pot out and filling it with 6 cups o’ chicken stock and 5 cups of water.

Bring this to a boil. When it is boiling, lower the temp and cook for at least 25 minutes or until the rice is fully cooked.

Cook eight strips of bacon until crispy enough to crumble. Drain on paper towels and set aside.

While my bacon is frying and my rice is cooking,

I mix together 1 cup of flour,

3/4 tsp. salt,

Add in 2 cups of fully cooked, shredded turkey or chicken.

Continue to cook until hot and slightly thickened, stirring frequently so you don’t burn the creaminess onto the bottom of the pot.

Before serving, crumble bacon onto each bowl of creamy goodness.

And, of course, enjoy thoroughly.

Creamy Turkey and Wild Rice Soup

 

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Prep time

30 mins

Cook time

30 mins

Total time

1 hour

 

This creamy, soup loaded with rice and turkey or chicken and garnished with bacon is the perfect way to use up leftover Thanksgiving turkey or even a rotisserie chicken for a quick and delicious meal.

Alison: That Which Nourishes

Recipe type: Soup

Cuisine: American

Serves: 8 servings

Grocery List

• 6 cups of chicken broth or stock
• 5 cups of water
• 1 box Uncle Ben's Long Grain and Wild Rice mix (chicken flavor) -- or your favorite organic boxed long grain and wild rice mix with seasoning packet
• 8 slices of bacon
• ¾ tsp. salt
• ½ tsp. pepper
• ½ tsp. poultry seasoning
• 1 c. flour
• ½ c. butter
• 3 cups of whole milk
• 2 cups of cooked, shredded turkey or chicken.

Here's how...

1. Put chicken stock and water in a soup pot.
2. Add in the box of rice and the seasoning packet. Bring to boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 25 minutes or until the rice is fully cooked.
3. Fry the bacon until crispy, drain and set aside.
4. Mix together flour, salt, pepper, and poultry seasoning.
5. Melt the butter and add in the flour/seasoning mixture and whisk together until blended well. Cook for 2-3 minutes.
6. Add in the milk and whisk continuously until a low boil when it will thicken substantially.
7. Add about two cups of the broth into the creamy mixture and whisk until well combined. Then, pour it into the big pot and stir.
8. Add in the turkey or chicken.
9. Cook until warmed through and thickened, stirring frequently to avoid burning on the bottom of the pot.
10. Garnish with bacon to serve.

3.5.3251

**Bacon storage tip** I buy a bacon 4 lbs. at a time. Though I’d love to, I should not cook and eat all of this meat candy in one meal so I freeze it in a way that I can use 1 slice or 12 at a time easily without having to thaw too much or not enough.

This way, I almost always have bacon on hand to crumble onto soups or salads or for breakfast. Get a gallon size freezer bag ready and then begin to wrap each piece of bacon, one at a time, around two fingers until it is in a little rolled up bundle. Don’t pull tightly and wrap–loosely wrapped is perfect.

Now freeze those little bundles of meat candy until you need some. When you need it for dinner (or a bacony craving), whack the bag on the counter where you want the pieces to break apart and take as many out as you need to defrost. Hope this helps.