10 Terrific Meals Using Thanksgiving Turkey

Delicious Chef/Cobb Salad

    Once we have cleared the table, there's no need to go cold turkey!  There are lots of ways to re-invent the bird to make it a whole new meal.  You can make your own Thanksgiving t.v. dinner to have the next day. You may want to tuck some of that delicious dark meat in the freezer to keep for one of these great recipes.  

    My new favorite is the Turkey Chef/Cobb salad.  I made a combination between a chef salad and a Cobb salad using turkey and ham with avocado.  It was delicious and a very different presentation for lunch than the usual leftover turkey.

   Another suggestion made to me was turkey pot pie.  Using refrigerator dough, through those bits of meat and leftover veggies together with the leftover gravy to make a hearty meal.  Skip the the gravy and you can fold up individual calzones or homemade hot pockets to store in the freezer for a later lunch.

   One night I whipped up a turkey stroganoff using Laughing Cow cheese and mushrooms served over egg noodles.  Turkey casserole is a yummy combination of rice, broccoli, and bits of turkey.  I skip the cream of mushroom soup and opt for plain yogurt.

   Making new meals out of the holiday leftovers will make you thankful for less trips to the grocery store!   The only thing left to do now with the turkey is make a wish!  

1. Hot turkey and gravy over bread

2. Turkey Club

3. Turkey Cobb Salad

4. Turkey Soup

5. Turkey Stroganoff

6. Turkey Salad Sandwich

7. Thanksgiving Plate

8. Turkey Casserole 

9. Turkey Quiche

10. Turkey Pot Pie

 

Sensational Sequels

    I have lost count of how many times I have heard people say, "I just don't like leftovers."  Poor, poor leftovers, nobody wants them.  They pack them up in Tupperware just to throw them out when the fuzz starts to creep up the lid.  I say, "No more!"  We must take our leftover food and use it for good and not science experimentation.

    Leftovers need an image makeover.  I am going to start marketing them as sequels.  Is that leftover chicken? No honey, that is Chicken the Sequel: Night of the Nuggets.

   One of my favorite ways to use up leftovers is soup.  Just about any meat and vegetable can be thrown in the pot for a fantastic meal. All month long I will be bringing you more ideas to help you transform those unwanted bits into a new meal.

   Using leftovers is a great way to stretch the budget.  You can dish up leftovers for lunch instead of eating out. You can make a whole new meal by adding a few inexpensive ingredients.  This is great for when you find a sale and stock up.  Leftovers also help lessen your time in the meal prep department.  The trick is variety.  We can't eat the same meal days in a row.  Sometimes you have to take what is left and freeze it for another day when it will be appreciated again.

   What are your favorite uses for leftovers?  Stay tuned for my reruns, I mean sequels coming soon in my kitchen!

Fiesta Pie: leftovers madeover

Taco Pie and please don't call it quiche

   At the end of the week we had a medley of leftovers: a barbecued chicken breast, a bit of steak, and half a serving of taco meat and re fried beans.  I could give everyone an ounce of meat with a vegetable on the side, but that seemed too much like reruns.  It was time for this food to write an alternate ending.  What I had plenty of in the fridge was eggs.  They had just arrived fresh from my neighbor's chickens.  

   I spied this new recipe in the gluten free cookbook. I sliced up the meat and layered in the pan like lasagna.  Then I put in the re fried beans, chopped peppers and poured the  whisked eggs over everything. Into the oven it went, skipping the skillet step to cook until firm.  With a dollop of plain yogurt and a splash of salsa the fiesta taco pie was served. 

Frittata from: Deliciously G-Free by Elisabeth Hasselbeck

10 eggs

1/4 cup half-and-half

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 yellow onion, diced

1/2 green bell pepper, seeded and diced

1 cup of canned black beans, drained and well rinsed

1 cup grated mozzarella or cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place the eggs, half-and-half, salt, and pepper in a large bowl. Whisk to combine and set aside. Heat an 8-inch ovenproof skillet with high sides over medium-high heat. Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil, onion, and pepper, Cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer to small bowl. In the skillet add the egg mixture and cook 1 minute until the edges bubble. Pull cooked egg to center of the pan.  Scatter the cooked vegetables, beans and cheese over the egg. Transfer the skillet to the oven and and bake for 10 to 12 minutes until firm. Let cool for 5 minutes. 

2 Heads Are Better Than One



Quinoa Stuffed Cabbage

   
Somehow both Dan and I ended up picking cabbage for the St. Patrick's Day boiled dinner.  After our corned beef and cabbage, I was left with an extra head of cabbage to use up. 

   My Mom used to make the most fantastic galumpkis, otherwise known as stuffed cabbage.  I didn't have any ground beef in the house so I decided to get creative and substitute the stuffing. 

   After checking out the Betty Crocker recipe for Cabbage Rolls, I modified it to a meatless meal that would be a good vehicle to use up cabbage.   It turned out fantastic.  Mom enjoyed one for lunch the next day.

First, I boiled up a batch of quinoa. Here's how:
  *Heat 1 cup quinoa with 2 cups water to boiling. 
  *Reduce heat to low.
  *Cover and simmer for 15 minutes. 
  *Makes 3 to 4 cups quinoa. 

Since I wasn't using beef I shortened the recipe.
   *Boil the cabbage leaves.
   *Stir boiled quinoa, 1/2 can crushed tomatoes, garlic, onion, salt and pepper.

   *Fill cabbage with stuffing and tuck the leaves under.
   * Pour the other half can of sauce over the whole pan
   *Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes


Stuffing the Cabbage Leaves



Cabbage Rolls
from: Betty Crocker's Cookbook

Cabbage leaves will separate easily if you first remove the core from the head of the cabbage and let the cabbage stand in cold water for 10 minutes.

12 cabbage leaves
1 pound of lean ground beef
1/2 cup uncooked instant rice
1 can (15 ounces) tomato sauce
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1 medium onion chopped (1/2 cup)
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1 can (4 ounces)  mushroom pieces and stems, undrained
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 tablespoon water

1. Cover cabbage leaves with boiling water. Cover and let stand about 10 minutes or until leaves are limp. Remove leaves; drain.
2. Heat oven to 350 degrees.
3. Mix beef, rice, 1/2 cup of tomato sauce, salt, pepper, onion, garlic and mushrooms.
4. Place about 1/3 of the beef mixture at stem end of each leaf. Roll leaf around beef mixture, tucking in sides. Place cabbage rolls, seam sides down, in ungreased square baking dish, 8 x 8 x 2 inches.
5. Mix remaining tomato sauce, sugar and lemon juice; pour over cabbage rolls.
6. Cover and bake about 45 minutes or until beef mixture is no longer pink in center.
7. Remove cabbage rolls to platter. Pour liquid in baking dish into 10-quart saucepan. Mix cornstarch and water; stir into liquid. Heat to boiling, stirring constantly. Boil and stir 1 minute. Pour sauce over cabbage rolls.

Do You Like Bean Soup With Ham?

Senate Bean Soup

   I had the ham bone left from Hamming It Up , but when I checked the pantry, there were no split peas.  I didn't feel like driving to the store to pick up the ingredients to make split-pea soup.  I found a recipe for bean soup that used ham and beans I had aplenty.

   There wasn't much ham left on the bone, but I managed to squeeze another meal out of it.  I stuck  true to the recipe except the the leftover carrots added to use up.  The meaty flavor and thick potatoes made a satisfying meal.  We rated it 4 thumbs up!

Senate Bean Soup
from: Betty Crocker Cookbook

2 cups dried navy beans (1 pound)
12 cups water
1 ham bone
2 12 cups mashed cooked potatoes
2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 large onion, chopped (1 cup)
2 medium stalks celery, chopped (1 cup)
1 clove garlic, finely chopped

1. Heat beans and water to boiling in 4-quart Dutch oven. Boil uncovered 2 minutes; remove from heat. Cover and let stand 1 hour.
2. Add ham bone. Heat to boiling; reduce heat. Cover and simmer about 2 hours or until beans are tender.
3. Stir in remaining ingredients. Cover and simmer 1 hour.
4. Remove ham bone; let stand until cool enough to handle. Remove ham from bone. Remove excess fat from ham; cut ham into 1/2 inch pieces. Stir ham into soup.