Thanksgiving - What To Do With The Leftover Turkey!

One of my favorite parts of Thanksgiving and Christmas is the leftover turkey.  While I am not a big turkey-eater to begin with, turkey leftovers are an entirely different story.  Here are a few of my favorite recipes to use with the leftover holiday trimmings.

TURKEY SOUP

Ingredients:

Directions:

1. Place the leftover turkey carcass in a soup kettle and cover with water.  Bring to a boil.  Reduce heat, simmer and cover for one hour.  Remove carcass; cool.  Set aside about 2 quarts of broth.  Remove the meat from the bones and cut into bite size pieces.  Set aside.
2. In a large soup kettle, saute the onions, carrots and celery in butter until tender.  Reduce heat; stir in the flour until blended.  Gradually add about a third of the reserved broth.  Bring to a boil; cook and stir for about 2 minutes or until thickened.
3. Add cream, rice, salt, bouillon, pepper, remaining broth and reserved turkey.  Reduce heat; cover and simmer about 30 minutes or until the rice is tender.

TURKEY POT PIE

Ingredients:

• 2 pre-made pastry crusts for a double-crusted pie
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 1 small onion, minced
• 2 stalks celery, chopped
• 2 carrots, diced
• 3 tablespoons dried parsley
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2 cubes chicken bouillon
• 2 cups water
• 3 potatoes, peeled and cubed
• 1 1/2 cups cooked turkey, cubed
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup milk

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Place one pie crust in a 10 inch pie pan and set aside.
2. Place 2 tablespoons of the butter in a large skillet.  Add the onion, celery, carrots, parsley, oregano, salt and pepper.  Stir until the vegetables are soft.  Add bouillon and water.  Bring the mixture to a boil.  Stir in the potatoes, and cook it until they are tender but still firm.
3. In a medium saucepan, melt the remaining two tablespoons of butter and add the turkey and flour.  Add the milk and heat through.  Stir the turkey mixture into the vegetable mixture and cook until thick.  Pour into the pie shell.  Place the second crust on top of the filling.  Pinch the edges together and make three slits in the top crust to let out steam.
4. Bake for 15 minutes.  Reduce oven temperature to 350 and continue baking for another 20 minutes or until golden brown.

TURKEY SALAD SANDWICHES

Ingredients:

Leftover turkey, chopped
mayonnaise
sweet pickle relish
chopped tomato
chopped celery
sliced red grapes
chopped walnuts (optional)

Directions:

This is basically a tuna or chicken salad recipe.  The amounts of the ingredients needed are relative to the taste and amount of turkey left over.  Combine all ingredients and serve on a croissant with a leaf of romaine lettuce and a tomato slice.  This is excellent for serving alongside crackers as well for all those football games over the holiday weekend!