Turkey Avgolemono

Today: Jen Pelka gives us the perfect antidote to the post-Thanksgiving blues -- a simple, bright Greek soup from Souvla restaurant in San Francisco.

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite days of the year, but the day after Thanksgiving? That’s when the real creativity comes out. This year, I’ve been thinking about a new spin on turkey soup. My boyfriend, Charles Bililies, just added avgolemono -- the classic Greek egg-lemon soup with chicken and rice -- to the menu at his San Francisco restaurant Souvla, and I was struck that it would be such a comforting, homey dish for post-Thanksgiving. The bright zip of lemon and silky texture are just the right antidotes to chilly winter weather.
 
Making turkey stock the morning after Thanksgiving is a great way to get the most out of leftover bits from the day before: First, caramelize vegetable scraps in a deep pot, and then let them simmer alongside the turkey carcass, a big bundle of fresh herbs, and a few quarts of water for a couple of hours.

The key to making avgolemono is the slow tempering of the eggs, one ladleful of hot broth at a time, so that you don’t scramble the eggs or break the emulsion. Once the eggs and stock are combined, you’re ready to go. You’ll get a beautifully thick and heart-warming soup that is certain to be one of your new go-to comfort recipes. There's good reason why it's known to many as "Greek penicillin".
 
This is a big recipe for a rich soup: It will make at least a dozen full meals, or twice as many as an appetizer when paired with a simple salad. Charles likes to serve it with triangles of toasted pita or a big crusty piece of bread to soak up all the delicious broth at the bottom of the bowl.

Turkey Avgolemono

Adapted slightly from Souvla restaurant

Makes 12 (or more) servings

6 quarts chicken or turkey stock
12 eggs
2 cups lemon juice
2 cups cooked white rice
4 cups cooked chicken or turkey, pulled from the bone in nice, big pieces
Salt and freshly ground white pepper
Olive oil for serving
Parsley for serving

See the full recipe (and save and print it) here.

Photos: Souvla's rotisserie-roasted Thanksgiving Turkey by Edwin Cho from TryCaviar; avgolemono by @souvlasf