Healthy Slow Cooker Turkey Wild Rice Soup

This healthy Slow Cooker Turkey Wild Rice Soup is as creamy as it is delicious. Packed with layers of flavor from fresh herbs and lemon to Parmesan and seared mushrooms, a bowl of this and you’ll be happily satisfied.

The delicious aftermath of Thanksgiving dinner can sometimes prove to be better than the big meal itself. But when we’ve had your fill of sandwiches, fresh ideas for leftovers are more than welcomed.

For us, our leftovers needed a soul-soothing makeover that was not only packed with flavor but also weeknight friendly. And since the holidays tend to be busy, healthy hands-off dinners are essential for getting through the season.

This creamy Slow Cooker Turkey Wild Rice Soup fits the bill exactly. It’s super simple to throw together (most of which can be prepped ahead of time), makes enough to feed a crowd or a few for the week, and is so flavorful you just might find yourself making it all winter long.

And as creamy and luscious as this soup is, it’s also a healthy choice for dinner. Made with whole milk, this stew-like soup is silky-smooth without being ladened down with cream.

A bowl of this wild rice soup accompanied by a generous glass of red wine, Christmas music, faux fire burning on the TV, and ornaments scattered about was the scene in our little house Sunday evening. With the smell of fresh pine lingering and the crack and pop of vinyl playing, all we needed was a few snowflakes for it to be the quintessential holiday evening.

With our house finally in order for the holiday season, all that’s left is to get Zestful Kitchen in order (and gift shopping). Keep an eye out for my annual Cookbook Gift Guide, a three-part recipe series featuring a ruby red, gem-like fruit, and fun homemade cocktail makings. It’s going to be a big month and I’m more than excited to share it with all of you.

Speaking of my cookbook gift guide, if you’ve been reading, cooking, and enjoying particular cookbooks this year, let me know in the comments below! I’d love to know what you’ve been cooking from. Plus, I’ll take any reason to pick up a new cookbook!

Make sure to tag me @ZESTFULKITCHEN ON INSTAGRAM or comment below if you make this healthy turkey wild rice soup.

To pin this recipe and save it for later, you can click the button on any of the photos, or the red button on the side bar or below the recipe.  Happy cooking!

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I’ve come to realize in the past few weeks that you can tell a lot about a person from the type of chicken noodle soup they make. Similar to how the kind of car or dog you choose seems to say a lot about you.

Greg loves soup, but more particularly chicken noodle soup. I’ve made it twice in the last two weeks, which means I’ve eaten it nearly every night for two weeks because if I’m going to make it, I’m going to make a lot of it. But here’s the thing. I don’t really like his kind of chicken noodle soup. We almost initiated a full-on Battle Royale about what type of noodles I was going to add. He insisted on Reames noodles, you know those thick, gummy, egg noodles? Can you tell how I feel about them? However, he did ask for mushrooms and I can definitely get on board with that addition.

I humored him and made the first round with Reames noodles. It was pretty good despite the overcooked chicken and those damn noodles. The second round I used chicken tenders instead of breast (much better) and convinced Greg that a different noodle would work just fine. But out of guilt of not using the type of noodles he likes I over compensated and added way too much Ditalini. It became noodles with a ton of carrots, a drop of broth, and a few nuggets of chicken. BUT the broth was delicious and the mushrooms were seared to golden perfection. Damn. The noodle bit just killed me.

After these last two rounds with the soup pot, I’ve made the revelation that this fall should be devoted to figuring out what my signature chicken noodle soup is going to be. The only problem is…I think I’m a no-noodle-chicken-noodle-soup kind of person. Does that make me extraterrestrial?

Greg will die. I just know it. But imagine this, a chicken soup made with a silky, flavorful broth, tender carrots and celery, seared mushrooms, perfectly cooked chicken, and chewy barley. Toss in some thyme and rosemary, a bay leaf, a Parmesan rind, an voilà! What more could you want from a chicken soup? Greg may not agree with my line of thinking on this topic.