Making something out of seemingly nothing is one of the best kitchen tricks imaginable. It’s a skill that can save you time, money and ingredients, helping you take care of yourself and the environment. Not all dishes lend themselves especially well to improvisation. Soup, however, does.

On a recent weekend afternoon, I found myself with a few hours to cook while my family was away at a baseball tournament. The weekly trip to the supermarket hadn’t happened yet, and I had no car and no interest in walking to the store and hauling groceries home. I knew it was time to pull out the turkey carcass I had stashed in the freezer from last Thanksgiving (no judgment, please) and make the broth I’d been intending to for, oh, 11 months. Into the Dutch oven it went with water and my bag of frozen ve

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