It’s almost Thanksgiving and if you haven’t done it yet, run right
now and haul the turkey out of the freezer and get it to thawing
right away in some cold water in the kitchen sink. I was going to
give you detailed instructions for roasting a bird and stuffing it
and everything else you’re "supposed" to do on Thanksgiving, but I
seem to have written about that several times in the last sixteen
years and I didn’t want to bore you. Besides, the things you’re
"supposed" to do are the things that you WANT to do, the things
that work best for your family, your lifestyle and your checkbook,
despite what those glossy magazines say.
Having said that, you and I both know what we really want on
Thanksgiving. First it’s the delicious roast turkey and trimmings
on T- Day, then it’s leftovers from the microwave on Friday. A
turkey sandwich or two usually appears over the weekend during the
football frenzies, and finally, by Sunday, just when you think
you’ve had your fill of the bird, out comes the big soup pot and
the slow simmer toward perfect soup begins.
I’m always secretly delighted when there’s roasted turkey on hand,
no matter what time of year. Getting so much great tasting product
from one big baking effort is my idea of efficiency in the
kitchen. Turkey seems to inspire even reluctant eaters to
greatness. I don’t know how anyone can resist a slice succulent
white meat or a piece of heartier dark meat, but I suppose there
are folks who don’t care for turkey and enjoy a good slice of ham
instead. I suppose we should feel sympathy for those poor souls,
but I think most folks rejoice that it leaves more good pickings
on the turkey platter for the rest of us.
Today’s recipes revolve around leftover turkey and some
interesting ways to use it. There’s a lot of press out there in
cooking land on this topic, and a lot of hysteria about what to do
with leftover poultry. In my humble opinion, people should just
calm down and have a turkey sandwich and quit worrying about it.
The Home Ec-sperts I’ve been reading make it sound like you end up
with forty pounds of turkey, nary a freezer bag to store it in,
and a peptic ulcer for gosh sakes. If you’re making that much good
and do have nightmares about it, then for heaven’s sake, maybe
it’s time to downsize your bird, or swap leftovers with your
neighbor who is having that ham we just passed. Sometimes I think
the foodies of the world spend entirely too much time dreaming up
ways to solve problems that really don’t exist. However, I’m not
an expert, so don’t quote me!
Turkey does freeze nicely by the way, and it’s even better if you
slice it thinly, cube it or shred it into recipe size portions
first. Make sure you squeeze as much air out of the bag or
container as you can, and in a couple weeks when you get a craving
or you need a quick supper, you’ll be glad you tucked it in there
back behind the frozen peas.
If you’re really worried about cooking your holiday bird, or if
you sense disaster on the horizon, the following hotlines are a
good source of information and might help you through the crisis.
I’ve heard from two reliable sources that the USDA folks listed
first are really good about calming people down, even if there’s
smoke coming out of the oven and a room full of relatives
desperate to dine. The Reynolds hot line and the Butterball
hotline both get lots of national attention, and each of those
companies has product reputation at stake. Something I read
recently said each of these companies has their phone operators
take extended training sessions, with lots of practice questions
from previous callers, and I thought that was a swell idea. The
press release also said that many of their phone operators had
previously had turkey disasters of their very own and were hired
for their high "empathetic quality" – which couldn’t hurt,
especially when you think you might have just ruined everyone’s
dinner plans!
! USDA's Meat and Poultry Hotline
(888) 674-6854. Open Thanksgiving 8:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., Eastern
Time. .
! Reynolds Turkey Tips Line
(800) 745-4000 Open through December 31, 24 hours a day, 7 days a
week.
! Butterball Turkey Talk Line
(800) BUTTERBALL (800-288-8373)Thanksgiving Day, 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Before we jump into the recipes, let me give a profound THANK YOU
to Robin Moritz, who did a guest spot here last time. I thought
her writing was wonderful and her recipes delightful, and I hope
you agree. The only bad thing is that now she is on my list of
people who will get pestered to do an occasional column. Maybe
that’s why she ran the other way when she saw me coming the other
day! (Just kidding, Robin!)
Lemon, Blueberry & Turkey Salad
A lighter twist on the usual turkey salad and low in Carbs, too.
Be sure to save a few blueberries to top each portion, and serve
it very well chilled.
2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries
1 carton low-fat lemon flavored yogurt
3 Tablespoon reduced-calorie mayonnaise
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups cubed cooked turkey breast
1/2 cup green onions, thinly sliced
3/4 cup sliced celery
1/2 cup red bell pepper, finely diced
Combine yogurt, mayonnaise and salt. Add turkey, green onions,
celery and bell pepper. Fold in blueberries last, and mix gently.
Cover and refrigerate to let flavors blend for at least 30
minutes. Serve over shredded lettuce. Makes about 5 cups.
Turkey Divan
Certain families I know around town don’t consider it a holiday
unless this dish makes at least one appearance during the season.
It’s classic, it’s simple, and best of all it’s a delicious way to
disguise broccoli – even I like it this way! (Don’t tell Janet
Boyer I said I’d eat broccoli!)
1 (10 ounce) package frozen broccoli spears, steamed
3 cups chopped cooked turkey
1 can cream of chicken, celery or broccoli soup
2/3 cup half and half
1/3 cup mayonnaise
1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
dash pepper
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 cup bread crumbs
1/2 cup ground pecans, walnuts or almonds
Place steamed broccoli in lightly buttered baking dish; cover with
turkey. Combine soup with cream, mayonnaise, Worcestershire sauce
and pepper, then pour evenly over turkey and broccoli. Mix
Parmesan cheese, crumbs and ground nutmeats and sprinkle over the
top. Bake at 350 until top is light brown.
Slow Cooked Maple Sweet Potatoes
This isn’t really a leftover, but it sounded so good I just had to
include it. It won’t hurt to mix this up in your slow cooker the
night before and leave it unplugged until morning. Just fire it up
after you’ve had your first cup of morning coffee and then rest
easy until dinner.
1/2 cup maple syrup
1/2 cup apple juice
2 tablespoons butter
6 small sweet potatoes, peeled 1/2 cup raisins
2 tablespoons grated orange rind
dash of salt and pepper
Mix the syrup and juice in slow cooker. Add the butter, potatoes,
and raisins. Sprinkle with the salt, pepper and grated rind. Cover
and cook on LOW until the potatoes are tender, 8 to 10 hours.
Serve with the syrup from the cooker and raisins spooned over the
potatoes. A few toasted pecans sprinkled on top makes a great
garnish
HOT TURKEY SALAD
This will keep four football fan size appetites happy while you
sneak away to do some Christmas shopping. If you have some
leftover rolls that got a little dried out in the breadbasket, use
them as a good base for this hearty salad, and pass the
cranberries and pickles on the side.
Preheat oven to 450
2 cups of cooked turkey, diced
1 cup chopped celery
1/2 cup slivered almonds
Half an onion, minced
1 teaspoon salt
1 can water chestnuts, diced
2 Tablespoons lemon juice
3/4 cup mayonnaise
1 cup shredded Swiss or Cheddar cheese
Combine everything and spread in a sprayed 9x13 baking dish. Top
with grated cheese & set aside.
Toss together until evenly coated:
1 cup bread crumbs
1/4 cup melted butter
Sprinkle evenly over salad mixture. Bake, uncovered at 450 for 10
to 15 minutes or until golden brown.
Cranberry Coleslaw
This is an absolutely luscious change from ordinary slaw and looks
so festive on a holiday table. This should be served icy cold
right from the fridge and be sure to tightly cover any leftovers
so it stays crisp.
1 cup coarsely chopped cranberries
3 cups finely shredded cabbage
2 stalks sliced celery
1 cup seedless grapes, halved
1/4 cup cranberry juice
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon vinegar
Combine cranberries, cabbage celery green pepper and grapes. Mix
juice, mayonnaise, honey and vinegar and mix with fruits and
veggies. Chill until serving time.
Everyone please enjoy your holiday! I’m so thankful you continue
to read these words whenever I can gather some together. Your
comments and support make it worthwhile – thank you all so much!
