How to Make Paleo Turkey Soup and be a Responsible CSA Member at the Same Time.

Let's talk "Turkey" for a minute....

(Isn't he a gorgeous Tom? I took this photo in my backyard. It's a bit eerie to wake-up in the morning, look out your windows and see these beautiful prehistoric-looking creatures, intently watching you.)

(Here's Tom with two hens. The bright red on the head and throat denotes a male and is called a snood.)

(More of the flock. There was actually 3 Toms in this group. The one with the reddest Snood called the shots and was the respected leader.)

I'm located in Canada. We have just celebrated our Thanksgiving on Oct. 9th and as such, a large turkey was cooked in our house. 

This meant we had an abundance of turkey which was the driving force behind the creation of this soup...that and a valiant "fridge management and salvage" effort on my part. 

About 2 years ago I became involved in a community supported agricultural program. These are known in " sustainable food circles" as CSAs. The idea behind a CSA program is that a farmer sells shares in his crops for a set price per week, for a set number of weeks. People buy the shares, pay their money up front and then once a week during the agreed upon date range, pick up their food.

There is some risk involved because you split the bounty each week of the harvest. You have to be "ok" with that and understand that you might not receive as many tomatoes, if the season wasn't great for tomatoes or the plants got hit with tomato worm, for example.

Our CSA program runs for 20 weeks from June until the end of October and costs approximately $35 Canadian dollars per week. 

(This is Michael Knight from Strattons Farm. He's in the orange shirt and I'm in the blue shirt. This was my weekly share of vegetables that Michael and his wife Sally produced on their farm with their own hands.)

Now, you can understand why fridge management is so important at my house. I know the people who grow some of the food I eat.

That makes it personal.

My commitment in this relationship other than paying for the produce in advance, is to respect the food by not letting their efforts go to waste. The basket is generally full and it contributed to most of the dry ingredients that I used to make the soup.

Wet Ingredients:  

5 litres of chicken or turkey stock 

(This is the liquid that is produced when you roast a turkey or chicken in an oven or crock pot. I save mine and freeze it. You can also boil the bones, once a carcass has been cleaned of its meat. You add the bones to 3 litres of water and make what's called a bone broth. Bring the bones to a gentle boil, then reducing the heat to a simmer and simmer on a low heat for 6 hours.)

Dry Ingredients:  

1 tbsp of ground black pepper

1 bulb of garlic, (about 8 cloves minced)

1 cup of parsley (roughly chopped)

5 white radishes (chopped in cubes)

5 small white onions (chopped in cubes)

5 small red onions (chopped in cubes)

6 stalks of celery (chopped in cubes)

8 medium sized carrots (chopped in cubes)

12 small sweet potatoes (chopped in cubes)

1  medium size cauliflower (chopped in cubes)

1 medium size butternut squash (chopped in cubes)

1 medium size acorn squash (chopped in cubes)

4 cups of cooked turkey (chopped in cubes)

Special Tools:  

1 large stock pot (Your pot needs to be able to hold at least 10 litres of liquid.)

1 large spoon (Your spoon needs to be big enough to stir the soup with.)

( 1 large stainless steel stock pot. I bought this one at a restaurant supply store. I think every kitchen needs one "really large" pot.)

(Some of the CSA produce that went into the soup.)

( A beautiful cauliflower.)

The cauliflower is generally what is keeping this soup Paleo. It replaces the need for white potato, rice or noodles which are traditionally used in turkey soup recipes. Also, the squash provides additional fibre, which naturally makes this soup heartier without having to thicken it with white flour or potato starch.)

Directions: 

1. Add the stock to the pot and turn on the stove to a medium heat.

2. Add the ground pepper and minced garlic and stir in well.

3. Add all the other dry ingredients and stir in well.

4. Bring the contents of the pot to gentle boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 5 hours. (Check the soup every hour and give it a good stir.)

Enjoy!

This recipe produces 7 litres of turkey soup. It's enough for a few family meals and to freeze or can for future meals.

I am a big proponent of cooking once and eating multiple times so I always cook more than I'll need for a single meal. This strategy saves me a lot of time and lets me eat nutritious food conveniently.

I welcome any comments or questions and I invite you to follow-me on my journey.

~RebeccaRyan