Friday, December 9, 2011

Holiday Leftover Ideas

Here are some ideas for Thanksgiving leftovers. We skipped the traditional turkey sandwiches this year, which my kids really don't like anyway, and ate really well for days!


Turkey Hash
The morning after Thanksgiving, I made this easy turkey hash for a hardy breakfast before we went skiing. The hash, made from diced potatoes, red onion, grated carrots, and leftover dark meat, made a tasty side dish to scrambled eggs.



Rustic Oven-Baked Apple Pancake
Leftover apples that didn't fit into the tart on Thanksgiving were the main ingredient in this simple rustic oven-baked apple pancake for breakfast another morning. Use your favorite recipe. I found this recipe in a cookbook I have in New Hampshire.


Turkey Shepherd's Pie
For dinner one night, we had this delicious turkey shepherd's pie with some of the leftover turkey, green beans with leeks, and mashed potatoes. I added hamburg and corn to make my kids happy! There wasn't enough mashed potatoes leftover to complete the pie, so I just made another batch and blended them together. To keep the turkey from drying out, I added a little chicken broth to the bottom of the casserole dish.



 

Four-Grain Pancakes
For another breakfast, we had these four-grain pancakes (whole-wheat flour, rye flour, oat flour, and cornmeal) made with extra pumpkin puree.


Sausage, Broccoli, And Stuffing
The leftover stuffing made a nice addition to this simple sausage and broccoli dinner one night. The sausage also came from the farm where I bought our fresh turkey.


Turkey Soup
I immediately made a lovely stock on Thanksgiving eve from the bones and meat of the turkey. From that stock, I made this comforting turkey soup with bok choy, one of the fresh greens I purchased at the local farm when I picked up my turkey. I kept it simple by cooking the chopped vegetables right in the stock. The turkey was added last, once the vegetables were tender. The pasta was cooked separately and added to each individual bowl just before serving.


Roasted Brussels Sprouts With Turkey Hash
Leftover turkey hash was made with the leftover turkey. We ate it with leftover brussels sprouts from another meal. It made a very nice light lunch one day.


Cranberry Salsa
A great snack that my family really loves this time of year is this festive cranberry corn salsa. I make it every year and sometimes from the leftover cranberry sauce. When I started my blog last December, I posted the basic recipe here. I'll be posting my new fresh version of the recipe this weekend.