Next week, much of America will be eating turkey. And many of us will have leftovers to enjoy for days to come. If you’re like me, you may not be fond of reheated, dried out turkey. In fact when I do reheat my turkey, I simmer it in the gravy so that it stays nice and moist. Sometimes, I throw in a few frozen peas and turn it into a sort of creamed turkey served over toast. That’s pretty yummy! But if you want to venture out a little further with your leftover bird, I have two great ideas for how you can create two new meals with it! Turkey Salad Lettuce Wraps and Turkey Pot Pie!
The turkey salad is a recipe that can be altered based on your personal preference and what you have in your kitchen. One of the basic guidelines to making it a success are serving it in nice fresh lettuce leaves such as baby romaine or butter lettuce. That’s where my Talley Farms Fresh Harvest CSA box comes in handy with all of the wonderful baby lettuces I receive. They are always perfectly fresh and sized just right for wraps. Another key to making a great turkey salad wrap is to create some crunch in your salad. That can be achieved through a choice of raw vegetables and toasted nuts such as celery, radishes, slivered almonds, etc. The turkey also benefits from a little sweet contrast such as grapes, raisins or cranberries. And to pop some extra flavor, fresh herbs fill that bill by using Italian parsley, cilantro or dill as an example. Use your creativity and shop through your fridge and pantry to find items easily available for your dish.
The same is true for Turkey Pot Pie. You can use almost anything you have on hand. This time I roasted a variety of these vegetables for my pie; Leeks, Fennel, Sweet Potato and Carrots. Then I made a creamy sauce, added the leftover turkey and my roasted vegetables and poured it all into a casserole. I prefer to use a pastry to top my pot pie’s in lieu of both a bottom and top crust, cutting out some of the carbs and calories. Believe me, this dish is decadent enough on it’s own! I topped mine with a homemade pastry crust, but you can also use a store bought crust or puff pastry if you’re looking for a shortcut. For a fun finish, I cut out a decoration with the extra pastry to go on top!
Serves 4
- 16 butter lettuce leaves
- 4 cups leftover turkey, torn into bite sized pieces
- 2 celery stalks, chopped
- 2 green onions, chopped
- 4 small radishes, chopped
- 8 green grapes, halved or quartered if large
- 8 red grapes, halved or quartered if large
- 1/4 cup slivered almonds, toasted
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh Italian parsley
- Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
- 1/4 cup mayonnaise
- 1/4 cup plain Greek yogurt
- 1/4 cup half & half
- 1 teaspoon brown sugar
- 1/2 lemon, juiced
- In a small bowl, mix the mayonnaise, yogurt, cream, brown sugar and lemon juice. Season to taste with salt & pepper.
- Combine the turkey, celery, green onion, radish, grapes and parsley in a medium bowl. Add 1/2 of the sauce mix and toss to coat. Add more as needed to moisten to your preference. Cover and refrigerate for at least one hour.
- To serve, mix the almonds into the turkey salad. Dish onto lettuce leaves, two leaves per wrap, two wraps per serving.
- Use substitutions as you like regarding herbs, nuts, etc. This recipe is very flexible.
(click here) for printable recipe
Turkey Pot Pie
Serves 4
Basic Pie Crust (dough for three 9″ crusts)
- 4 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 1 cup chilled butter, cut into pieces
- 1/2 cup chilled shortening
- 1/2-3/4 cup ice cold water
- 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 leek, washed, halved lengthwise & sliced 1/4″ thick
- 6 small carrots, sliced 1/2″ thick
- 2 small sweet potatoes (or 1 large), peeled and cut into bite sized chunks
- 1 fennel bulb, cut core & tops and slice into vertical slices 1/2″ thick
- several sprigs fresh thyme
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 1/4 cup flour
- 1 1/4 cups chicken stock, low salt
- 1 1/4 cups milk
- 1/3 cup dry sherry
- 4 teaspoons tablespoon soy sauce
- 3 cups leftover turkey, torn into bite sized pieces
- 1/2 cup frozen peas
- 1 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped
- Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
- 1/4 cup cream, optional
- Prepare 3 large pieces of plastic wrap or wax paper by misting lightly with baking spray.
- Mix the flour and salt and add the butter pieces. Drop the shortening in by teaspoons. Using the tips of your fingers, quickly work the fat into the flour, pinching and squeezing and rolling each piece of butter lightly.
- When most of the butter and shortening is no larger than a large pea, stop. All fat should be coated with flour.
- Pour the water in one teaspoon at a time, stopping after the first half cup. Quickly with your hands try to draw the dough together into a ball. If big clumps still fall off or crumble, add water just until it comes together and you can pick the whole lump up in your hands. Do not mix it any more than this – just draw it together gently.
- Separate into three pieces and gently press into thick disks. Wrap each in the prepared paper and put in the fridge for at least an hour, or in the freezer until chilled through.
- Preheat oven to 400°.
- Separate vegetables in groups on 3 quarter or 2 half baking sheets. Drizzle olive oil over them and season with salt & pepper. Top with thyme sprigs. Toss to coat keeping each type of vegetable separate. Roast in oven for 20-30 minutes or until tender. Remove vegetable groups as they are done, based on necessary cooking time. Set aside together in a bowl.
- Melt the butter in a large frying pan, add the flour and stir gently for a few minutes to cook the flour. Add the stock & milk and bring to a gentle simmer. When it just begins to thicken, add the sherry and soy sauce. Add the turkey and stir to mix. Add the roasted vegetables and thyme leaves removed from the stems. Maintain a simmer until it thickens further. If it thickens too much, add a little more broth. If it is too thin, add a little cream. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
- Turn off the heat, and add the peas and the parsley. Pour into a 2 quart casserole (8″ square).
- Remove the plastic wrap from the pastry dough and roll it out on a well floured surface in a rough shape slightly larger than your casserole dish. Drape over the casserole and trim to fit. With a sharp knife, cut a few slits in the dough to vent the steam.
- With the tines of a fork, press down on the edges of the pastry dough to seal. If there is any extra dough, cut out shapes for decoration. Brush the top with an egg wash consisting of one egg beaten with 1 tablespoon of water.
- Place casserole on a baking sheet and slide into the oven. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, or until the crust is golden. Remove and let stand for 5 minutes before serving.
- You can alter the vegetables as you see fit.
- Wrap and freeze the extra dough for future use.
(click here) for printable recipe