Thanksgiving Door and Leftovers

Paige made this at school and listed all the people and things she is thankful for! 

The kids both participated in a  turkey trot run during recess and earned these certificates. Paige ran 6 laps and Owen ran 10 which was high enough to win him a box of stuffing to bring home! You can see a turkey Paige drew in the corner too!

Our thankful turkey

We finished most of the leftovers within a couple days and the kids were very pleased they wouldn't have to endure any more turkey. We ate most of it "as is," including my sandwich that had a little bit of everything (as Pat looks on disapprovingly...) but we were able to make a double batch of Cheesy Vegetable Chowder with the leftover broccoli! And just so that recipe doesn't get lost I'm going to put it at the bottom of this post.

2 Tablespoons butter

1/2 cup chopped onion

1 cup finely chopped carrot

1 celery stick, finely chopped (feel free to add more celery if you like celery; I don’t, so I don’t add much)

1 Tablespoon minced garlic

4 cups chicken broth (I usually use a mixture of low-sodium chicken broth and broth made with chicken soup base because it gives it such nice flavor) (I usually do half broth/half water

2 large baking potatoes, peeled and chopped

1 Tablespoon flour

1/2 cup water

2/3 cup milk

2 cups chopped broccoli

*2 heaping cups shredded cheddar cheese (I never use that much...)

Melt the butter in a large soup pot.  Add onions, carrots, and celery and saute over medium heat until tender.  Add garlic and cook 1 or 2 additional minutes.  Add chicken broth and potatoes, bring to a boil, and cook until potatoes are tender.  Mix flour with water, add, and simmer until soup is slightly thickened.  Add milk and broccoli and cook until broccoli is just tender and soup is heated through.  Stir in cheese, allow to melt, and serve