Creamy Roast turkey & veggies stew with herbed dumplings

This sounds a lot more complicated than it is! Since it's made of precooked ingredients it only takes about 20 minutes to throw together, and looks and tastes like something that took all day! With all the carbs it's not the most diet friendly, but it's relatively low fat, low sodium , nutritious, very cheap, and it's super yummy on a cold day!

The turkey and veggies are leftovers. I thawed and cooked a turkey from the freezer a few days ago, then froze a few portions of shredded, cooked turkey to make things like this or tacos out of. At the holidays whenever the grocery stores offer a deal where I can get one for $5 or so I grab one and put it in the freezer for cheap food later. The veggies I made as a side dish.

Roasted veggies
2 zucchini, sliced (unpeeled)
1 onion, cut into chunks
4 carrots, sliced (unpeeled)
Nonstick spray or oil
herbs of your choice - I used basil, oregano and parsley

Toss veggies with a little oil or spray with nonstick spray. Spread in a single layer on a cookie sheet and bake at whatever temp anything else is cooking until tender. Time is very forgiving but figure about 40 minutes at 325 or 30 at 400. Serve hot as a side dish, or add to other dishes such as casseroles, to stretch meat for tacos, in place of meat in dishes like lasagne, as a simple topper for brown rice with some tomato sauce, like a stir-fry or add to soups.


Creamy Roast Turkey and Veggies Stew with Herbed Dumplings
2 cups cooked veggies (I used the roasted vegges above)
1 1/2 cup shredded or cubed cooked meat (I used roasted turkey)
water, boullion or broth to cover
1/4 cup flour
fat free milk, up to 1 cup
pepper and herbs to taste
2 tsp worcestershire sauce
1 clove garlic, pressed, diced or cut up
1 recipe herbed dumplings, below

Combine turkey and veggies in a medium soup pot. Add as much water, boullion or broth as you'd like. Season with garlic, worcestershire sauce, pepper and a few shakes of herbs like italian seasoning, parsley, or any fresh herbs you have leftover, to taste.

Combine flour and milk in small bowl, adding milk slowly and stirring constantly to avoid lumps. Can also combine in a small jar and shake to combine. Add to soup, stirring well. Heat over medium until bubbling in a slow boil. Soup will thicken and get a nice creamy texture. You can serve it at this stage if you want, or you can skip the flour & milk to make a thinner (and lower carb) soup. I like it creamy and with dumplings on dreary, cold rainy days, it's hearty like a chowder without the huge fat content.


Herbed Dumplings
2/3 cup flour
1 tbsp dried herbs
dash pepper
dash salt
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 cup milk
2 tbsp canola oil

Combine dry ingredients in medium bowl. Combine milk and oil in a small cup, pour all at once into dry ingredients and stir just until combined. If it's a little dry and not holding together, add a dash more milk. Drop by heaping spoonfuls into simmering soup. Cover and reduce heat to low. Cook for 10-12 minutes. Makes about 4 dumplings. Yum!