How NOT to cook a turkey!

Oh my! Since Christmas was in the middle of the week this year, and I only get one day off for the holiday, Brad and I decided not to go home for Christmas until the weekend after Christmas this year. We didn't decide this until the day or two before Christmas Eve. I scrambled to the store, and I bought a turkey as soon as we decided this so that I could cook a traditional Christmas dinner. According to the turkey packaging, this should have been enough time to thaw the small turkey that I purchased for Christmas lunch. However, when Christmas Eve rolled around, I still had a pretty frozen turkey. I was scared that we were going to have to have day after Christmas turkey, but it thawed out just in the nick of time! Christmas morning I got up to prepare the turkey. I found the turkey neck . . . no problem! I had already located the gravy packet as I accidentally cut it open when trying to remove the wrapper from the turkey. I searched and searched and searched the inside of that turkey to find the giblets . . .no luck! After rinsing, and seasoning, and buttering the bird I still found no sign of the giblet packet. I even called my mom to see if it was possible to get a turkey sans giblets. She said yes, they could have left the packet out, or it could have been in the gravy packet. I went with that thought, and proceeded to put the turkey in the oven. Turkey was done at just the right time, and Christmas lunch went smoothly. We enjoyed the turkey, and we had some leftovers for later.

On my way home from work today, I decided that turkey noodle soup would be the perfect easy meal for this chilly evening. We had just enough turkey left, and I had the broth that I saved when I pulled the turkey out of the oven. I got home, pulled the turkey out of the fridge, and I uncovered it. I went to pull the first chunk of meat off the bird to add to my simmering broth and SURPRISE! I found the giblet packet! It was not in the turkey, but instead, it was opposite the open side of the open turkey cavity. It was lodged in an indention in the back of the bird. I have no idea how I didn't see this earlier! It was completely in tact! Oh my goodness! Well, my general manager cooked the giblet packet in her Thanksgiving turkey so I immediately sent her a text, and we had quite a laugh! Oh geez! I served a turkey at Christmas with a giblet packet stuck in its butt! How embarrassing! We did have a family from church over, and I really hope no one noticed.

Once I got it together and quit laughing enough, I continued making my turkey noodle soup. I figured if the turkey hadn't killed us yet, it wasn't going to. The soup was quite easy and very good, so I will share the recipe with you. However, just make sure you remove the giblet packet next time you cook a turkey! If you can't find it inside the turkey . . . keep looking until you do find it!

Turkey Noodle Soup

Sautee veggies of your choice in a little butter or olive oil. I used 2 rainbow carrots, 2 stalks celery, 1/4 onion and 1/2 zucchini finely diced because that is what I had on hand. Add in diced turkey meat to your liking . . . some people like it meatier than others. Then add 1 package of egg noodles. Cover with turkey broth/drippings if you have it. I used about 1/3 turkey broth, 1/3 water, and 1/3 chicken broth until noodles were covered well. If you don't have homemade turkey broth you can use whatever you have such as chicken broth and/or water. After adding my broth, I added a handful of chopped parsley leaves. I did not have to season my soup at all as the broth was very flavorful. However, if you use water or bought broth you may have to season the soup to taste. I brought the soup to a rolling boil. Once boiling, I lowered the temperature and simmered for about 15 minutes. Ummm, Ummm, GOOD! Enjoy!

New Year Brings New Routines . . . (I HOPE!)

Hi there! It has been awhile since my last post! I apologize. I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas! I have been pretty bad over the past month or so. I have been eating whatever I want, and it has not been good! Well, it's tasted good, but my body is not loving it! Since neglecting my healthier eating habits, I am tired, and it is tough to stay focused and on task. In addition, I am puffy, and I just don't feel as good as I know I could. So, like the much of the rest of the world, my husband and I are on mission to be much healthier in 2014.

However, food and exercise are not the only areas of our lives where we want to make improvements. We spend a lot of money on eating out, especially on the weekends. We have decided that at least for a while we will rarely if ever eat out on the weekends. This will hopefully encourage me to be more creative in the kitchen, and we hope to save quite a bit of money this way, not to mention this will be healthier! I got some cool kitchen stuff for Christmas, and this will give me an opportunity to use my new toys! My sweet, hubby has decided to give up his Starbucks habit, and he wants to be more creative. (Hope it's okay that I am divulging his goals for 2014 and not just mine . . .LOL). I guess I want to be more creative, too. In 2014 I want to devote a minimum of 30 minutes per week to spending some time using my sewing or embroidery machine. I want to be more organized, more clutter free, and most importantly, I want to wake up early enough in the mornings for time with God and breakfast!

I can't wait to share how I am accomplishing my 2014 goals. I hope you will help keep me on track :-)! What are your New Year's Resolutions?