Afterglow ..or..Challenge?
Thanksgiving without a certain food excess just would not be
Thanksgiving. Days of planning and preparation invariably leave our tables
groaning under the perfectly brined and glazed turkey, mountains of savory
stuffing and mashed potatoes, string beans glistening in the candle light next
to balsamic roasted onions, the latest gourmet version of an unusual salad,
sweet potatoes competing with corn pudding as a side and the predictable
mystery side dish from aunt Florence.
If you have celebrated Thanksgiving with a large or extended family, that table
is bound to look several hours later like the remains of a demolition derby. It
amazingly gets tidied up for the grand finale of pies and other sweet and
tempting morsels, which despite pleas for ‘not one more bite” disappear
regardless of our good intentions for moderation. The conversation starts to
lag and someone finds the TV schedule for THE GAME. The house settles to a
pleasant afterglow.
Unless you have made the miraculous discovery of benevolent gnomes in your
kitchen, the hostess is faced with the monumental task of dealing with a
colossal leftover problem. A couple of teenage sons with their bottomless
appetites come in handy at times like this. However, they do grow up eventually
and it is time to view this leftover bonanza as a challenge. The turkey bones
and scraps will make a sturdy turkey soup, some of the turkey will find it’s
way in sandwiches with tangy onion dip, arugula and a dab of cranberries. While
turkey pieces heated up in leftover gravy is the easiest day after Thanksgiving
dinner, most of the time the gravy seems to be one item that has been consumed
in its entirety. Here is a decidedly different take on that concept.
Turkey with sun-dried tomato cream sauce
Thinly slice ½ medium onion and sauté with 1 cup sliced mushrooms in 1 Tblsp.
olive oil for 5 minutes, stir in 2 minced garlic cloves and 1/8 tsp. red pepper
flakes. After 1 minute stir in ¼ cup sun-dried tomatoes (drained from oil and
patted dry) and ½ cup white wine. Cook until volume is reduced by ½. Stir
in ¼ cup chicken broth and add turkey (3-4 cups) cut up in large pieces. Stir
in ¼ cup grated Pecorino or Romano cheese and ¼ cup heavy cream. Heat through
and serve on mashed potatoes browned on a pan in a bit of butter or toast.
Leftover stuffing is easily incorporated in a variety of breakfast bakes that
use bread crumbs, eggs and cheese. A novel way of presenting such is in muffin
form. Leftover bread stuffing of any kind can be used in this recipe as long it
is relatively dry. Cornbread or rice stuffing would work equally well, with
some adjustments in the amount of liquid used.
Sausage and apple stuffing muffins
Coat two 12 place mini-muffin pans with cooking spray. Preheat oven to 350
degrees. Brown ½ lb beakfast or Italian sausage, casings removed and stir in 3
minced garlic cloves during the last minute of cooking. Drain the sausage and
break up in small pieces. In a bowl mix the sausage with 1 small apple peeled
and finely chopped and 2-3 cups cooked dressing broken up in small pieces Fork
beat 4 eggs with 2 Tblsp. chicken broth and mix in the sausage-stuffing mix.
Let stand 10 minutes and spoon the mix in prepared muffin tins, packing the mix
down only lightly. Sprinkle with a bit of grated cheddar cheese. Bake for
20-25 minutes until golden. Cool muffins in the pan and loosen with a sharp
knife to remove from pan. Serve hot.
It may have started as a challenge Thanksgiving evening, but the ready source
of partially cooked meals from that mountain of leftovers is bound to make your
kitchen schedule lighter as you ease in the Holiday Season.
(I. Winicov Harrington lives in Waldoboro and is the
author of “How to Eat Healthy and Well for Less than $5.00 a Day: the
Smart-Frugal Food Plan”; website: www.winicov-harrington.com)
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