Leftovers: turkey and rice soup and tart

 Thanksgiving is over but turkey is not, actually that's wrong too, we just put an end to the bird today, that was fairly quick I have to admit. In order to insert some variety in the leftover menu as well as some healthiness I put together a quick and simple turkey and rice (or alphabet noodle....) soup. It is not really a recipe, rather a very flexible, healthy and tasty soup. You could substitute wild rice for any kind of rice, pasta or noodle you prefer, you could also substitute the turkey for some left over roast chicken or even probably go vegetarian. For the last option I would probably suggest adding some bell pepper or other veggies.

The other recipe is probably one of my favorite and most common left over recipe. For some reason whenever I make a pie I end up with some leftover dough, I guess I must roll it a little too thin... I have tried making tarts but that leaves me with some more left over dough. This rustic, basic recipe allows us to go around that issue.

And even better neither of those recipes should require any extra ingredients!!! (except for rice or pasta but who does not have those in their pantry).

Before jumping in those recipes there is an extra step I skipped when discussing my turkey. After carving my turkey and once the feast is over, I take the time to debone it completely before putting the meat away. The next day I break it apart and throw it in a large stock pot with some turnip, carrots, celery, herbs, salt and pepper, similar to the way I make chicken stock. I cover it with water I let it simmer for 4h and then discard the solids.

Turkey pasta soup

Ingredients

- 2 stalks of celery, diced

- 2 carrots, diced

- 1 onion, diced

- 4 c turkey (or chicken stock)

- 1/2 c wild rice (or other rice or pasta)

- 1 c cubed turkey (or chicken)

In a medium pot, heat some oil over medium heat. Saute veggies until they are softened and slightly browned.

 Add the stock and bring to a boil.

 Rinse and drain the rice, add to the stock and cook until tender, 45 minutes for wild rice, much less if you choose to use noodles.

 10-15 minutes before the end add the cubes meat to allow the flavors to come together and warm the meat through. Serves two as main dish. Enjoy hot on a cold day.

Rustic apple tart

Ingredients

- Pie dough

- 1 apple (or whatever fruit you want, I used half apple and pears) thinly sliced

- 1/2 tbs sugar

- 1 egg, beaten for egg wash

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350F
Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface then transfer on a baking sheet

Place the fruit slices on the dough in a pretty pattern, leaving about an inch on the sides. Fold the dough over on the fruit, brush the dough with egg wash. Sprinkle sugar over the entire tart.

 Cook for about 1h, or until the fruits are cooked through and the dough is golden brown. Slice and serve slightly cooled, you could serve it with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.

I hope you enjoy those recipes and their simplicity as much as I do!