Wow it's been a long time since Mom and I have blogged! We keep talking about starting this thing up again, but then life gets in the way. The calling and the cooking hasn't stopped - just the writing about it. I figured there's no better time for a Mother's Sauce do-over than right after Thanksgiving, ie the day that I call Mom for cooking help more than I do the rest of the year combined.
Growing up, Thanksgiving featured a bountiful table that always showed off a marriage of tradition and experimentation. Mom works her face off to prepare enough food for nine small armies, whether we're expecting carloads of guests or it's just Mom, Dad, and me. We always get the holiday staples - potatoes, stuffing, cranberry sauce, turkey, rolls, a variety of roasted veggies - but Mom loves to try out new dishes too. Some, like her butternut squash and pesto casserole, have become new staples. We even have a running joke; every year without fail she tears her kitchen apart to hunt for a creamed onion recipe that nobody ever eats. But we have to have the onions, because Mom has to freak out about which cookbook the recipe is it. That's my favorite Thanksgiving tradition.
Since I moved to San Francisco, my husband and I have become the go-to Thanksgiving hosts for our local friends, many of whom are also East Coast transplants. We fry a turkey in the doorway of our open garage [Note: I know, I know, it's an incredibly stupid thing to do. But we have a million fire extinguishers and million rules, and so far we've done it three times without incident.] and I try my best to prepare the same side dishes with the same finesse as Mom does. Last year I pretty much had a nervous breakdown over dinner, and was pushed over the edge when some of my guest showed up half an hour early and hung out in the kitchen while I tried frantically to finish preparing dinner while keeping up an interesting conversation. I have crazy kitchen ADD so I nearly tried to off myself with a vegetable peeler.
We decided to go for more of a potluck this year, so that I wouldn't wreck any relationships. I have no idea how Mom does this every year. Each of her dishes, the turkey, the desserts, the cinnamon rolls (the cinnamon rolls!) are so delicious and so perfectly timed. I have no idea how everything is fresh and hot all at the same time. I'm even using her recipes - for my birthday a few years ago, Mom gave me an amazing homemade cookbook of all her Thanksgiving dishes, tips, and shortcuts. It's like my holiday Bible. But I'm missing a key ingredient - grace under pressure.
ANYWAY, this blog is actually about soup. Specifically, the soup I just finished making with Thanksgiving leftovers. As my husband was carving our fried turkey on Thursday, he asked if I wanted to save the carcass, and I impulsively said yes - even though I've never really made soup from scratch before. But guess who has?
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I called Mom last night and she advised me to throw the turkey bones into my slow cooker, along with chopped up onions, carrots, celery, some herbs de provence, and enough water to cover. Especially perfect because I had all kinds of leftover carrot and celery sticks from pre-dinner dip hour. (You haven't of dip hour? It's like cocktail hour, but with creamy dips and veggies. Well, and cocktails.) Just before I switched that baby on I remembered the leftover Chinese duck and pork that one of our T-day guests brought - all still on the bone - so I threw that in, too. Cooked in the crockpot on high for 2 hours, then on low for about 7.
The stock this produced is so rich-looking, a deep caramel color that smells like absolute heaven. This morning I re-strained and skimmed it, and it's now bubbling on the stove with new carrots and celery and all of the meat that I picked off the boiled bones. I'm going to add some rice, I think. Of course I don't know when to do that, so I'll probably call you in 10, Mom.
Thanksgiving Leftover Soup
Growing up, Thanksgiving featured a bountiful table that always showed off a marriage of tradition and experimentation. Mom works her face off to prepare enough food for nine small armies, whether we're expecting carloads of guests or it's just Mom, Dad, and me. We always get the holiday staples - potatoes, stuffing, cranberry sauce, turkey, rolls, a variety of roasted veggies - but Mom loves to try out new dishes too. Some, like her butternut squash and pesto casserole, have become new staples. We even have a running joke; every year without fail she tears her kitchen apart to hunt for a creamed onion recipe that nobody ever eats. But we have to have the onions, because Mom has to freak out about which cookbook the recipe is it. That's my favorite Thanksgiving tradition.
Since I moved to San Francisco, my husband and I have become the go-to Thanksgiving hosts for our local friends, many of whom are also East Coast transplants. We fry a turkey in the doorway of our open garage [Note: I know, I know, it's an incredibly stupid thing to do. But we have a million fire extinguishers and million rules, and so far we've done it three times without incident.] and I try my best to prepare the same side dishes with the same finesse as Mom does. Last year I pretty much had a nervous breakdown over dinner, and was pushed over the edge when some of my guest showed up half an hour early and hung out in the kitchen while I tried frantically to finish preparing dinner while keeping up an interesting conversation. I have crazy kitchen ADD so I nearly tried to off myself with a vegetable peeler.
We decided to go for more of a potluck this year, so that I wouldn't wreck any relationships. I have no idea how Mom does this every year. Each of her dishes, the turkey, the desserts, the cinnamon rolls (the cinnamon rolls!) are so delicious and so perfectly timed. I have no idea how everything is fresh and hot all at the same time. I'm even using her recipes - for my birthday a few years ago, Mom gave me an amazing homemade cookbook of all her Thanksgiving dishes, tips, and shortcuts. It's like my holiday Bible. But I'm missing a key ingredient - grace under pressure.
ANYWAY, this blog is actually about soup. Specifically, the soup I just finished making with Thanksgiving leftovers. As my husband was carving our fried turkey on Thursday, he asked if I wanted to save the carcass, and I impulsively said yes - even though I've never really made soup from scratch before. But guess who has?
The stock this produced is so rich-looking, a deep caramel color that smells like absolute heaven. This morning I re-strained and skimmed it, and it's now bubbling on the stove with new carrots and celery and all of the meat that I picked off the boiled bones. I'm going to add some rice, I think. Of course I don't know when to do that, so I'll probably call you in 10, Mom.
Thanksgiving Leftover Soup
- Put into a crockpot: Leftover meat and bones (I used turkey, pork, and duck), roughly chopped carrots, celery, onion, and herbs de provence. Add enough water to cover.
- Cook on high for 2 hours
- Turn heat down to low and cook for 6-8 hours
- Strain the broth (save the meat!), cool at room temperature, then refrigerate overnight
- The next morning, skim the fat from the top and strain again. The broth will seem goopy and gelatinous. This is a good thing!
- Add fresh chopped carrots and celery, bring to a boil
- Turn down to a simmer and add the meat, plus any other leftover meat you have (I added more turkey)
- Simmer for about 25 minutes. You can add rice, a little bit at a time, until it's cooked.
