Leftover Turkey Dinner “Poutine”

What a concept. Same ingredients you served for Christmas except now you get the goodies with the french fries.

 

  • 1/4 cup unsalted butter
  • 6 tbsp. flour
  • 2 x 10 oz. undiluted beef consomme cans
  • enough homemade french fries to serve 4 (be generous)
  • 2 cups leftover turkey, diced and warmed up
  • 1 cup frozen peas, warmed  up * optional
  • 1 pkg (300 g) cheese curds
  • 2 cups cranberry sauce

In a saucepan, melt the butter and, with a wooden spoon, stir in the flour to make a roue.

Whisk in the consomme and increase the heat until it has boiled and become thickened. Reduce to low heat and cook for 5 minutes.

In 4 large bowls, divide the fries first, then add the turkey, peas and cranberry sauce. Over the top cover with cheese curds and now add the gravy.

Whoops! I did say to use large bowls. YUM!

Turkey Pot Pie

Don made turkey soup from scratch and we have almost finished that and then, after we ate turkey for about a week, he made 10 turkey pot pies. 4 large ones (feeds 2) and individual ones. They are so darn yummy. The dishes are our own and the two little turkeys were made by my (at the time) very young granddaughter, Sydney.

  • 2 carrots, peeled and diced
  • 2 celery sticks, peeled  and diced
  • 1 small onion, peeled and diced
  • 1 garlic clove, mashed
  • 3 tbsp. flour
  • 1 litre chicken stock
  • 1 cup half and half cream
  • 1/2 tsp. majoram
  • 1/2 tsp. thyme
  • 1/2 tsp. crushed rosemary
  • 1/2 tsp. sage
  • 1/2 tsp. tarragon
  • pinch of salt
  • 1/2 tsp. pepper
  • 1 cup corn
  • 1 cup peas
  • 4 cups cooked turkey, chopped in 1 inch cubes

In a large pot, saute the first 4 ingrediednts until soft, and add 3 tbsp. flour and cook for approximately 2-3 minutes.

One cup at a time, add the chicken stock to deglaze and thicken the sauce and then add 1 cup half and half cream. Now add all the dry ingredients and bring to a boil, then lower the temperature and simmer for 20 minutes.

Add the corn, peas and turkey and simmer for about 8-10 minues until all is tender. If it is too thick, add a little more stock.

Fill baking dishes or a couple of  9 inch  pie plates with the filling and top with your favourite pastry recipe.

Place on a parchment lined cookie sheet and bake at 375 degree oven for 35 minutes. Remove and let cool on a rack.

If not eating right away, wrap with saran and then tin foil and place in the freezer until the next time you get a turkey craving.

Yummy!

Strata-style French Toast

Easter is around the corner and that usually means company’s coming…I know it is at our house.  Here is a really different stuffed french toast and is really yummy. This can either be Breakfast or Lunch…in our case, Brunch!

  • 24  3/4″ thick slices of Italian bread about 3 inches in diameter
  • 12 slices of very thin cooked ham
  • 12 very thin slices of cooked turkey
  • 2 pears, peeled, cored and thinly sliced
  • 12 slices (again thin) provolone cheese
  • 4 beaten eggs
  • 1/2 cup whole milk
  • 1/2 cup light cream
  • pinch of nutmeg
  • shredded orange peel
  • 3 tbsp. Grand Marnier

Arrange one half of the bread slices in the bottom of a greased 3 quart rectangular baking dish.  Top each slice in the dish with a slice of ham, turkey, the pears and cheese (cut to fit).  Top with the remaining bread slices.

Combine the rest of the ingredients and beat well until thoroughly blended.  Pour evenly over all the bread and lightly press the bread down so it is covered with the liquid.  Cover and store in the refrigerator overnight.

Remove from the refrigerator 30 minutes before baking.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees and bake for about 30-35 minutes until the top is lightly browned.

Let stand for 10 minutes before trying to serve. Serve with warm Cranberry-pear sauce.

Cranberry/Pear Sauce

  • 1  1/2 cups Cranberry juice
  • 2 level tbsp. cornstarch
  • 1 tbsp. brown sugar
  • 1 tsp. finely grated orange peel
  • pinch of cinnamon
  • 1 pear, peeled, cored and chopped

In a small saucepan mix together 1  1/2 cups of cranberry juice cocktail (I prefer the White Cranberry Juice) with 2 level tbsp. cornstarch.

When blended, add 1 tbsp. brown sugar, 1 tsp. finely grated orange peel, pinch of cinnamon.  Cook until it thickens and is bubbly.  Cook for another 2 minutes.  Stir in pear. Serve warm.

This makes 12 servings, so you can cut and plate and either pour sauce on each one or let the guests add their own sauce.  In this case, serve in individual gravy boats. This is so cool to do.

Can you say “damn I can do this”?

 

 

Turkey Pot Pie (Don’s Way)

For leftover turkey, a great dish to make is turkey pot pie. It goes like this:

  • 3 large carrots, chopped 1/2″ cubes
  • 3 celery sticks  (ribs removed) and cut into 1/2 ” cubes
  • 1 whole onion, chopped into 1/2″ cubes
  • 1/3 cup butter,
  • pinch of salt
  • 1/3 cup flour
  • 1/2 tsp. pepper
  • 6 oz. frozen green peas
  • 1 tsp poultry seasoning

In saucepan, sweat onions, carrots and celery (about 8 minutes), add flour, salt, pepper, seasoning. Stir to coat all vegetables. (important)

Now add: 2 cups chicken broth (1/2 cup at a time),

  • 3/4 cup milk,
  • 2 instant chicken bouillion cubes.

Cook  and stir until thickened and bubbly, then cook 2 minutes more. Now stir in the frozen peas.

Stir in 3-4 cups cubed turkey and cook a further 2 minutes. Turn mixture into 6 individual casserole dishes, top with a square of pastry. Cut slit in middle and bake at 375 degrees for about 30-35 minutes. You can wait until they are completely cool and wrap with tin foil to freeze. Great quick supper when needed.

* For a different approach, use puff pastry for the topping. OMG! Yummy.

Taste Rating: 9.7