Healthy

December 22, 2020 Healthy

Smoked Turkey and White Bean Soup

This recipe for smoked turkey soup with white beans and veggies is a hearty, nutritious, and delicious way to use leftover smoked turkey.

White soup bowl with smoked turkey soup, carrots, celery, and Great Northern beans

What Makes This Recipe So Good

It’s so easy to make! Most of the cooking time is actually just the soup simmering to really bring out the flavors.
This is a great recipe for leftover smoked turkey from Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner. It’s warm and hearty, and way better than another boring turkey sandwich.
It’s a perfect freezer meal. Prepare the soup as instructed, and let it cool completely. Store it in an airtight container (or in a zippered freezer bag laid flat on a shelf) and freeze for up to six months.

Smoked Turkey Soup Ingredients

Smoked Turkey Meat – Specifically the meat from smoked turkey legs. It’s tender, juicy, and tastes a little like ham. Smoked turkey has a deeper, richer flavor than roasted turkey thanks to the use of smoke and the long cooking time. Turkey legs are generally available at most grocery stores, or you can check with a local butcher.

Great Northern Beans – A white bean similar to cannellini, Great Northern beans are high fiber, low fat, and have no cholesterol. They taste a little nutty and they’re super versatile. If you can’t find Great Northern beans, you can use Navy beans or cannellini beans for this recipe, though the flavor will be slightly different.

How to Make Smoked Turkey Soup

The full recipe & ingredients list are below, but here you’ll find a quick overview for making this recipe perfectly, along with useful tips and info!

Whipping up this incredible smoked turkey soup could not be easier! Basically you just sauté all the ingredients in a large pot over medium heat, then bring it all to a boil with the chicken broth. Let everything simmer for at least 45 minutes and serve hot over a cup of cooked rice!

Chef’s Tips

Before cooking, separate the turkey meat from the bones and skin, and cut or shred the meat into bite sized pieces. Sometimes meat that was exposed during the smoking process will be tough and leathery – cut that away, too.
This recipe uses canned beans to keep things easy, but you can absolutely use fresh beans instead. You’ll need to soak dry beans in water for at least 8 hours to ensure they cook properly.
Smoked turkey meat adds a beautiful flavor to this soup, but whatever turkey meat you have on hand will work!
For more fiber and protein, use wild rice in your smoked turkey soup. It’s also a great source of vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants.
45 minutes is the minimum amount of time needed for this recipe to simmer on the stove. The longer it simmers, the more flavorful it will be!

What Do We Mean By “Healthy?”

Our recipes focus on real ingredients and homemade elements. We try to avoid processed flour and sugar, like white flour or white sugar. Our recipes often swap less healthy options (like a commercial, deep-fried tostada) for an easy homemade version.

Our recipes are not necessarily low fat or low calorie, and we aren’t afraid of fat or carbs! Some of our recipes will be “skinny,” low carb, keto, paleo, dairy free, grain free, gluten free, Whole30, or vegan, and they will be labeled when they qualify for any of these diets. All our recipes are easy and family friendly!

Bowl of smoked turkey soup with carrots, celery, and beans on a white table

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Print Recipe

Smoked Turkey Soup

Our recipe for smoked turkey soup with white beans, veggies, and plenty of seasoning is a hearty and nutritious way to use leftover smoked turkey.

Prep Time5 mins

Cook Time20 mins

Simmer Time45 mins

Total Time1 hr 10 mins

Course: Main Course, Soup

Cuisine: American

Keyword: freezer meal, leftovers, winter meals

Servings: servings

Calories: 564kcal

Author: Megan | Easy Healthy Recipes

Ingredients

1 tablespoon oil
2 cloves garlic minced
1 onion roughly chopped
1 teaspoon thyme
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
salt to taste
¼ teaspoon pepper
2 celery stalks
1 cup carrots thinly sliced
2 smoked turkey legs
1 can Great Northern beans drained
4 ½ cups chicken broth
1 cup cooked rice see Note

Instructions

Sauté garlic and onion in oil over medium heat until translucent.
Add thyme, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, pepper, carrots, and celery. Cook 2 minutes or until fragrant.
Add meat from smoked turkey legs and cook 3-5 minutes.
Mix in beans. Add chicken broth and bring to boil.
Boil 10 minutes. Cover with lid and simmer 45 minutes or longer. Serve with one cup of cooked rice.

Notes

If you don’t eat rice, you can use sweet potato rice or cauliflower rice, or just omit this entirely. Skipping the rice makes this recipe very low carb!
Nutritional information shown below does not include rice.

Nutrition

November 30, 2020 Fall

Keto Meat Pie

Savory meat pie is a classic crowd pleaser, but traditional versions can be hard to fit into a keto or low-carb lifestyle. This Keto Meat Pie recipe has all the flavor and texture of classic meat pie with a fraction of the macros.

What Makes This Keto Meat Pie Recipe So Good

The dough can be made in advance and refrigerated for up to 3 days before you bake the full pie, which is super convenient for holiday dinners and regular meal prepping.
The ground beef in this recipe is a great low-carb source of protein and fat. If you don’t eat beef, you can also use ground turkey or ground pork, though your flavor profiles will be slightly different at the end.

Xanthan Gum – This gluten-free thickener is perfect for keto recipes because it has 0g net carbs and won’t spike your blood sugar. It’s becoming easier to find xanthan gum in most local grocery stores, too!

Apple Cider Vinegar – There are a lot of myths surrounding apple cider vinegar, but there is really no negative nutritional impact from consuming it on a ketogenic diet. It won’t knock you out of ketosis – in fact, the acetic acid in ACV is thought to help accelerate fat loss and to lower blood sugar levels.

Mushrooms – These veggies are extremely low-carb, and low in calories, too! They’re a great addition to a keto-friendly recipe.

How to Make Keto Meat Pie

Start with the crust! This recipe uses the exact same keto pie crust that is used in the Easy Keto Pumpkin Pie Recipe from 40 Aprons, and it is amazing.

Pulse your powders in a food processor bowl until they’re combined evenly. Add in the butter and cream cheese and pulse until crumbly, then add the egg and vinegar. After all of that is pulsed into crumbs, form it into a flattened ball and wrap it in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 1 hour up to 3 days.

Here’s the fun part – roll the dough out into a 12″ circle on wax or parchment paper. Use whichever you prefer and have handy, but I prefer wax paper. The dough might crack a little, but that’s fine. Just press it all back together and keep on rolling!

Carefully lift the paper with the 12″ dough circle above your pie pan and flip it over so the dough lays in the pan. Gently peel away the paper and press the dough into the pan, then trim away the excess dough around the edges. Use a fork to poke holes all over the dough and then freeze everything for at least 10 minutes.

Step-by-step instructional photo for making keto meat pie crust

For the filling, sauté garlic and onion in butter and add in everything but the tomato paste, mushrooms, and cheese. Cook it all together until the meat is brown, then add in the remaining ingredients and cook until the mushrooms are soft. Pour the filling into the pie crust, top with mozzarella, and bake it all for 25-30 minutes!

Uncooked whole keto meat pie in a keto pie crust