Recipe: This soup is the best way to use leftover Thanksgiving turkey

If you are looking for a quick and easy way to use leftover turkey this may well be the ticket The original recipe was nabbed from cookbook author Mark Bittman s book Eat Vegan Before A couple of years ago I started adding leftover Thanksgiving turkey to the mix Of lesson that changes the vegan status but it is a darn tasty soup When I first saw the recipe I questioned the addition of a quarter-cup tomato paste It seemed like it was too much But guess what I made it and loved it The soup is as delicious as it is simple to prepare Related Articles Tips for decorating a holiday table for a gathering Bread and butter arrangement at these Denver restaurants will melt your heart Mexican breakfast spot closes in former Breakfast King building Naples-founded pizza chain shutters all Denver-area locations Sweet potato or pumpkin The Thanksgiving pie debate Leftover Turkey and Vegetable Soup Yield servings INGREDIENTS tablespoons olive oil large yellow onion chopped tablespoon minced garlic cup tomato paste Salt and ground black pepper to taste cups vegetable broth or water plus more if needed in step cups chopped firm vegetables such as carrots winter squash cauliflower broccoli or root vegetables cups chopped soft vegetables such as zucchini bell peppers green beans or any greens cups cooked or canned beans or fresh or frozen corn kernels or peas cups cooked turkey boned skinned cut into medium dice Garnish cup chopped fresh basil DIRECTIONS Put oil in large pot or Dutch oven on medium-high heat Add onion and garlic Cook stirring occasionally until they begin to soften to minutes Stir in tomato paste and cook until it dries out a bit a minute or two Sprinkle with salt and pepper Add broth or water and scrape up any bits on the bottom of the pan Add firm vegetables and bring to a boil Adjust heat so the mixture gently bubbles Cook stirring occasionally until vegetables are soft to minutes depending on the kinds you re using Add zucchini or other soft vegetables along with beans or corn or peas Return to boil then lower the heat so the mixture bubbles gently Cook stirring once in a while until everything is quite soft another to minutes adding the diced turkey after minutes If soup is too thick stir in additional broth Stir in basil taste and adjust seasoning as needed Source Eat Vegan Before by Mark Bittman Clarkson Potter Award-winning food writer Cathy Thomas has written three cookbooks including Best Plants on the Planet Follow her at CathyThomas Cooks com