Turkey Vegetable Barley Soup

I made the turkey stock yesterday and added a bag of duck bones I had in the freezer to it as well.  This simmered all day for about 8 hours. I strained it and let it cool in the fridge overnight.  

I scraped the fat off the top today.  

Turkey stock is always our favorite as it turns into a nice gelatinous bone broth when all is said and done.  Above, that whole pot was shaking like Jello as I scraped the fat off.  The soup is our annual favorite of Thanksgiving.  I had this Kabocha squash below on the counter so it became part of the soup today.  Even with my good chef's knife, it was hard to slice the ends off, much easier to cut once that was done...

• 12 cups of turkey broth
• 1 kabocha squash, peeled and cubed (seeds removed)
• 2 carrots, sliced
• 2 stalks celery, sliced
• 3 stems and fronds of fennel bulb, sliced
• 1 onion, diced
• 1/2 cup pearl barley
• 4 cups of turkey, cut into bite size pieces
• 2 fresh bay leaves
• Few sprigs of fresh thyme, tied in bundle
• 1 stalk of fresh rosemary, stripped from stalk and chopped finely
• Fresh sage leaves, rolled and sliced chiffonade
• Handful of fresh Italian parsley, coarsely chopped
• Kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper, to taste

I tend to sometimes put too many things into the pot and then we are always sad if ingredients suck up and steal the broth.  I remember kale did it one year!  So, I was trying to mindful and not overdo it today... It was a bit of chopping. The fennel is below:

All of the above ingredients went into the pool:  

I brought to a boil and then a low simmer for 45 minutes and it was done.  I removed the bay leaves and thyme bundle.  I checked for S&P and lightly garnished with it though nothing was really needed as the broth rocked!  Sooooo delectable.  

Above the steam rising made the picture cloudy.  The broth was really the star of the show but its supporting cast held up and did its job.  Nice comforting bowl of warmth.