Leftover Turkey Soup With Pasta

Here’s a healthy way to use up all your turkey leftovers during that long Thanksgiving holiday weekend. Pair this soup with some crusty whole-wheat bread and a simple green salad for a total meal that takes only a few minutes.

1 tablespoon olive oil

¹/2 cup chopped carrot

¹/4 cup chopped celery

¹/4 cup minced onion

1 garlic clove, minced

2 cups water

¹/2 cup chopped 33%-less-sodium ham (about 2 ounces)

¹/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

4 (14-ounce) cans fat-free, reduced-sodium chicken broth

1 cup uncooked ditali pasta (about 4 ounces short, tube-shaped macaroni)

3 cups chopped cooked turkey

3 cups thinly sliced napa (Chinese) cabbage

Heat oil in large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add carrot, celery, onion and garlic, and sauté 3 minutes or until tender. Add water, ham, pepper and broth and bring to a boil.

Add pasta and cook 8 minutes, or until pasta is done. (Make sure the soup is boiling when you add the pasta and that it comes back to a boil for the rest of the cooking time.)

Stir in turkey and cabbage, and cook another 2 minutes, or until cabbage wilts. Makes eight 1¹/2-cup servings.

Per Serving: 194 calories (23% from fat); 4.9 grams (g) fat; 21.8 g protein; 14.2 g carbohydrates; 1.2 g fiber; 44 milligrams (mg) cholesterol; 483 mg sodium.

Source: October 2004 Cooking Light.