Too Many Cooks in the Kitchen...and Other Spicy Stories

So...I don't really like to cook. Please don't confuse that with me not liking to eat...that, I love. So I cook only because I like to eat. I'm not really good at cooking, but I haven't made anyone sick by it (yet)...so I guess that says something.

I am notorious for under-seasoning my cooking. And turkey soup is the worst. I love turkey soup, and it always taste comfy, but usually mine tastes very flat.

So this weekend, I defrosted a turkey frame left-over from Thanksgiving, and made another stab at it. When I set the frame in the pot, with some veggies from the fridge (carrots, onion, celery and some on-the-verge-of-throwing-out spinach) I decided to be bold and add quite a bit more seasoning than I usually do. I added loads of salt, garlic powder, turkey seasoning, basil, bay leaf and oregano. I set the stock to simmer for a few hours and told my sweetie that when the stock was done and the soup coming together he should taste the stock and we would decide if it needed anything more. And then...off to the studio I went to get some projects finished....

A few hours later, I strained the frame and mushy veggies from the stock....and was left with something that looked a whole lot like beef stock. Very dark, almost red, in color. Well, I thought, maybe that was because of the spinach...

I had my sweetie come in and look and he came in (with a very sheepish look on his face) just as I was tasting the stock....

Oh my stars! The stock was like a three-alarm fire! I couldn't imagine what I had done!

And then the confession came out...sweetie (darling dear) had added a bit of seasoning to the pot...a lot of paprika (hence the red color) and a ton of red pepper flakes!

Well, in the end, the soup was still pretty good...definitely not lacking in seasoning...and we have found the perfect cure for a stuffed nose!