OK, seriously, I surprised even myself with this one, folks. Number one, because I'm not crazy about home-made Chicken Noodle Soup (how can you improve on Campbell's?), and number two, I'm not Amish....I know, some of you are freaking out right now!! No, really, I got this postcard several years ago with an Amish recipe for Chicken Corn Soup on the front. I held on to it, not thinking that I would ever really make it (see number one, above), but it just goes to show ya, ya never know.
This past Thanksgiving, I made the turkey breast. DQ ate turkey for several days afterward, and I commented on how he almost never ate leftovers. He said, "Well, we never have turkey except at Thanksgiving, so I can't let any of it go to waste. I have to get my fill." Who knew he liked turkey that much? But, I digress a little. After the holidays, I went back to the store and picked up another turkey breast and put it in the freezer, thinking I'd pull it out and surprise him with it later on. Which I did this week. He hasn't touched that stupid turkey!! So, not wanting to let my $15.00 bird go to waste, I started thinking about what I could do with the turkey meat that DQ wasn't eating. I pulled out my recipes, and lo-and-behold, my eyes fell across the Amish recipe.
Now, it is a little bit of work, but it's NOT HARD work. And the end result was so delicious, I may never eat Campbell's again. There's a little prep work involved, but not so different from how the Amish do it. I may have a little Amish in me after all.
First of all, I pulled all the cooked meat off the bones of the turkey and put it in the fridge. Then I put the bones and skin of the turkey in a stock pot and covered it with 4 quarts of water. I boiled it for - oh - I don't know....say 2 hours. I don't know if it actually had to boil for this long, but I put it on the stove and then ran some errands, so, whatever. Pull the bones and skin from the broth, and discard. You are now ready to make the soup. Oh yeah, don't have a turkey? A Traditional Rotisserie Chicken from the grocery store would work great!
Souper Good Soup
Oh and I started with 4 quarts of liquid, but after boiling it for two hours, I now have about 3 - 1/2 quarts of broth:
Add the first 5 ingredients
2 - 12 oz bags of frozen corn
2 ribs celery, chopped
1 yellow onion
2 Cups chopped turkey
3 chicken bullion cubes (optional) I felt like the broth needed a small boost
Rivels - This is what makes the soup Amish...keep reading
2 hard boiled eggs, chopped
salt and pepper to taste
After adding the first 5, bring to a gentle boil for 20 minutes or so (long enough for the onion and celery to cook). Add your rivels, then the boiled eggs. Simmer for 10 - 15 more minutes.
OK, what the heck are rivels? Rivels are the "noodle" part of the soup. The word "rivel" actually means "lump", which is exactly what they are, little lumps of dough. Think about the "Stars" in Campbell's Chicken and Stars soup (but better, much better!!) They are apparently quite common in Pennsylvania Dutch cooking, and I can see some old Amish Mam standing at the stove laughing at my first attempt to make them. But that's OK, they turned out just fine.
To make the rivels, lightly beat one egg. Place one cup of flour in a small mixing bowl, and make a well in the top. Add a pinch of salt. Pour the beaten egg in and mix with a fork until it starts to come together. Now, crumble the dough through your fingers until about the size of peas. Drop the crumbles slowly into the simmering soup. I had to add a little more flour to get my rivels "dry" enough to crumble. And that's it. If you have kids, let them make the rivels!!
