By Jodee Weiland

Turkey Vegetable Soup with Wild Rice is a great way to use leftover turkey! During the holidays, leftover turkey is always a topic of conversation for people. Before the turkey is served, people either talk about whether or not they’ll have enough leftovers for those great turkey sandwiches the next day, or they talk about having too much turkey leftover and what recipes they can come up with to use it all.

At our house, we always have plenty of leftover turkey. The main reason for this is simple.  I’m Italian, and growing up in an Italian family, there was always tons of food on the table during holiday meals.  In an Italian household, it’s always better to have too much rather than not enough. Consequently, I have come up with quite few recipes to use leftover turkey.  One of my favorite recipes is Turkey Vegetable Soup with Wild Rice…A Great Way to Use Leftover Turkey!

This soup recipe is truly delicious, and the house always smells so wonderful while it is cooking.  It is a tasty soup filled with lots of vegetables and leftover turkey.  Add in the wild rice, and this recipe is a great meal for either lunch or dinner. It’s hearty and filled with great flavor.  Turkey Vegetable Soup with Wild Rice will warm you up on those cold winter days. The best part is, it not only tastes great, it’s healthy as well.

Turkey Vegetable Soup with Wild Rice…A Great Way to Use Leftover Turkey!

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 medium onion chopped
4 to 5 carrots peeled and sliced
4 to 5 celery stalks washed and sliced
3 garlic cloves chopped
2 (4 ounce) cans sliced mushrooms or 1/2 pound fresh mushrooms sliced
64 ounces vegetable broth
1 cup water
2 cups cooked turkey breast cut up in pieces
1 tablespoon dried basil or 1/2 cup fresh basil cut up
1 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup uncooked regular rice
1/2 cup uncooked wild rice, rinsed

In a large pot, sauté the onion, carrots, celery, garlic, and mushrooms in the olive oil. When slightly tender, add the broth and water.  Then add in the turkey pieces, basil, black pepper, lemon juice, and rice.  Bring the pot to a boil.  Then reduce the heat, cover the pot, and simmer for 35 to 40 minutes.

Turkey Vegetable Soup with Wild Rice is a great way to use leftover turkey and create a delicious and healthy meal for your family! Once done, serve this soup with a crusty loaf of bread and a salad for wonderful meal that won’t taste like leftovers.  Add a slice of lemon and grated Parmesan cheese, if you want.  With or without these garnishes, this recipe tastes so good, you’ll want more. You can even make this recipe using your leftover turkey and freeze it for later. By the way, you don’t have to cook a whole turkey to make this soup.  You could cook a turkey breast and use it for this recipe.  You will love this recipe when you try it. So try it soon, and enjoy!