Taco Soup

This soup is perfect for a cold and so easy to make! I threw this together one night while cooking another meal! It was so easy and perfect to come home too! This was my first time cooking with turkey as well. I used ground turkey instead of ground beef in the recipe. We couldn't even tell the difference!

Taco Soup
Source: A Year of Slow Cooking


2 cans kidney beans
2 cans pinto beans
2 cans of corns
1 large can of diced tomatoes
1 can tomatoes and chilies
1 packet taco seasoning
1 packet ranch seasoning
1 lb. browned ground turkey or ground beef


Brown meat. Drain fat. Add to crock pot. Sprinkle seasoning packets on top of meat. Drain and rinse the beans and add to the crock pot. Add the entire contents of the cans of corn and tomato with chili. Stir. Cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours or low for 4-5.


Serve with tortilla chips, shredded cheese, and sour cream.

Brined Turkey

We stayed home for Thanksgiving, just the two of us! Which meant I was cooking the whole meal myself! Boy, that was much more work than I anticipated! But it was delicious and worth it! I bought a small turkey breast to cook and it was perfect!

Turkey Brine
Source: My mom


Water
1 onion
2 oranges, cut into quartes
1/2 C Kosher salt
Peppercorns
1 garlic clove (of course, I used 2)


Fill a large pot half way with water. Add 1/2 C kosher salt, a handful of peppercorns, chopped onion, chopped garlic and orange slices. Bring to boil on stove. Let cool completely. Pour into roasting pan and let turkey soak for about a day. Cook turkey as directed.

Turkey (or Chicken) Pot Pie

We had so much leftover turkey from Thanksgiving! I cooked a small turkey breast for the two of us, gave some to my sister, ate off of it for a day or two, and still had turkey leftover! So I made a pot pie with it! Believe it or not, there was still enough turkey left for a sandwich, but I don't care if I see any turkey for quite some time!

This recipe was for chicken pot pie, but I used the turkey. If you remember I made a healthy version of pot pie some time back. Charlie was NOT a fan! He loved this one. My pie plate is at my mom's so I made it in a square casserole dish. I also didn't make my own crust and only had one crust in the freezer. I wish I had used a double crust, next time!

I don't know if you can tell, but I tried to get creative with the crust when piercing it to vent. It has our monogram :)

Turkey Pot Pie

Source: Pillsbury

1/3 C butter

1/3 C onion, chopped

1/3 C all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

Poultry seasoning (my addition)

1 can (14 oz) chicken broth

1/2 C milk

2 1/2 C shredded cooked turkey or chicken

2 C veggies (I used peas and carrots), if frozen, thawed

Heat oven to 425. Line a pie plate with crust.

In a saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Add onion, cook 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Stir in flour, salt, pepper, and poultry seasoning. Stir in broth and milk. Cook and stir until bubbly and thickened. Add in turkey (chicken) and vegetables. Remove from heat. Spoon into crust. Top with second crust and seal edges. Cut slits in crust to vent.

Bake 30-40 minutes. During last 15 minutes cover edges with foil to keep from burning. Let sit for 5 minutes to cool before serving.