I love how making food turns into making other food which then morphs into yet another dish. Let me explain.

We’ve gotten a couple rotisserie chickens in the past few days and since I discovered how easy it is to make homemade chicken stock I have been saving the carcasses for that purpose.

Last night I started the stock in the slow cooker around 7pm. This morning at 8am while straining it I felt an urge to use it right away for some chicken noodle soup. But wait, I didn’t have any chicken except the meat I has just sapped of its flavor for the broth. What to do? How about ground turkey meat? Yes!

As always, I found a recipe online that I could loosely follow to be sure I didn’t miss any essential steps or ingredients. I love cooking up what I’ve got on hand rather than having to make a special trip to the store. Especially, if I can use up leftover ingredients that would otherwise just sit there unused.

Recently, Dave made a pasta salad and accidentally dumped in an entire package of rigatoni rather than the small amount he needed. So right there in the fridge I had pre-boiled noodles that we had saved in hopes that we’d figure out what to do with them. The celery and parsley I had left over from the ingredients needed to make the broth. Cilantro I have just decided to keep on hand since I love it and use it whenever I can. Along with other things I always keep around, like onions and garlic, I was able to get quite a soup on! Here’s what I did:

• 2T Olive Oil
• 3/4 C chopped onion
• 1/2 C Sliced celery
• 1/2 container ground turkey (~3/4 pound)
• salt & pepper to taste
• 2t minced garlic
• 6 C chicken broth (preferably homemade)
• 3/4 C sliced carrots
• Rigatoni, 2C cooked
• 1t dried basil
• 1t dried oregano
• 2T fresh cilantro, chopped
• 1T fresh parsley, chopped

1) In a 3 quart stockpot (Larger would be better. Mine was ready to overflow.) heat oil on medium and add celery and onion. Stir fry for a few minutes until tender.

2) Add turkey and cook until brown. Season with salt, pepper, and garlic.

3) Add remaining ingredients and bring to a boil and then lower heat and simmer for a good 15-20 minutes or until the carrots are tender and the flavors have blended.

4) Give it a taste and adjust salt and pepper as needed.

I was amazed that it turned out so chunky and flavorful! Now, you can follow this recipe or use it as a starting point to dumping your leftovers in a pot and calling it dinner (or breakfast)!

How do you re-make leftovers?