Last week, I got an email from a friend asking me to make good on an idle promise I made in my confession in this post.  This soup is delicious so I’m glad she prompted me to remember to post the recipe.  Here you go, my friend! (I also promise that this is not becoming a cooking blog!)

Turkey Broccoli Cheese Soup
adapted from my Aunt Zona’s recipe
serves 4-6 people (??, it makes a good amount of soup.  I’m pretty vague on amounts because I eat so much these days. I probably count for at least two servings!)

If you want to adapt this soup to be vegetarian, replace the turkey broth with vegetable broth and omit the cooked turkey.

2 T olive oil
1 C finely chopped carrots
1 diced onion
4 cloves of garlic, minced

In a soup pan on medium-low heat, sauté the carrots and onion in the hot oil about 10 minutes or until tender but not browned.  At the end of this time, stir in the minced garlic and cook for about a minute.

3 T butter
¼ C flour
2 C milk (we prefer whole)
2 C turkey broth*
½ – 1 tsp salt (to taste, depending on if your broth is salted or not)

Add the butter and let it melt.  Stir in flour and cook for a couple minutes until it smells nicely browned and cooked. Slowly add milk, chicken broth.  Bring to a simmer over medium heat and cook, stirring occasionally until slightly thickened and bubbly.  At this point, taste to make sure it has enough salt.

1 ½ C cooked bite-sized pieces of turkey*
1 C shredded cheddar cheese
broccoli, however much you want (I usually throw in several large handfuls.  I also add the small bits that fall off and accumulate at the bottom of the bag.)
black pepper, cayenne pepper**, salt (to taste)

Stir in cheese, broccoli and chicken.  Add freshly ground black pepper, cayenne pepper, and salt until it tastes delicious.  Continue to simmer over low heat and stir occasionally until the cheese melts and everything is warmed through.  Serve with bread, biscuits, or rolls.

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 *We always buy a gigantic turkey at Thanksgiving so that we will have lots of cooked turkey and turkey broth in the freezer to use through the winter.  You can also use cooked chicken and chicken broth.

**I like to add cayenne pepper to lots of dishes.  A little bit adds a nice depth of flavor without adding any heat or indication that the cayenne pepper is even in the dish.  However, it’s also pretty easy to add too much and then find yourself with a slightly (or more than slightly) spicy soup.  This is what Nik prefers so I don’t worry about it.  But you should proceed at your own risk! 🙂