• Leftover turkey carcass
• 1 onion, peeled and quartered
• 3 cloves whole garlic
• 2 stalks fresh rosemary
• Several thyme sprigs

• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 onion, diced small
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 2 leaves fresh sage , minced
• Grated zest of 1 lemon
• 2 sticks celery
• 2 carrots
• 1 sweet potato
• 1 cup red lentils
• 2 cups cooked turkey , chopped
• Sea salt to taste
• Freshly ground black pepper
• Big handful fresh flat-leaf parsley

To make the stock: Remove any meat you can from the turkey carcass and set aside. Break up the turkey bones and put into a large soup pot with 6 to 8 cups water, rosemary and thyme sprigs, onion and whole cloves of garlic. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer covered for about an hour. Strain off the broth into a bowl.

Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil and sauté the onion and garlic with a pinch of sea salt. Add the sage leaves, lemon zest, celery, carrot and sweet potato and continue to sauté for a minute or so. Add the red lentils, chopped turkey and the turkey stock and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for about 15 minutes. Add sea salt to taste and continue to simmer for about 10 minutes. Serve in big bowls sprinkled with fresh parsley and a twist of black pepper.

Variations:

• Since we're using up leftovers here, this soup is as versatile as your imagination or whatever you have left over from your dinner. You can add cooked rice or even stir in the remainder of your gravy for added flavor.
  
• Create your own colorful assortment of vegetables. Zucchini, leek and squash would be lovely, or whatever you have to be used up in your fridge.
  
• For a vegan version, simply omit the first step with the turkey and add 1 more cup of red lentils in place of the turkey meat. You can make a vegetable stock with the onion, garlic, rosemary and thyme and any other veggies in your fridge, or you can simply use water or a store-bought vegetable stock and add the fresh or dried herbs to the soup.
• You can spice it up with the addition of some dried chili flakes and some dried cumin for a flavor variation.
  
• You could make it more like a turkey chili by using less liquid and adding some beans like pinto or kidney beans—you can use cans of organic beans if you don't feel like cooking them from scratch.