Monday, November 28, 2011

Leftovers

With certain leftovers, it's all about transformation. Got mashed potatoes? Leave those puppies alone. They are already perfect. Turkey? Change it up.

The last thing I wanted to do with our Thanksgiving leftovers was make soup or Turkey pot pie. And I love leftover turkey sandwiches like nobody's business, but given the amount of leftover turkey and the fact that I didn't want to be sandwiches for the next two weeks straight, the Goodlaffs had to come up with some new ways to talk turkey.

Here are two ways we mixed it up, turning our leftovers into exiting new meals.

This first one comes from Food Network. Normally Sandra Lee drives me batty, but she demoed this recipe on one of Food Network's T-day specials last year, and I knew I had to try it. This is the second year in a row that we've done these Scallion Pancakes with Crispy Turkey and Cranberry Hoisin Sauce, and they just might be my favorite leftover remodel, ever.

Here's the recipe, courtesy of Food Network:

Scallion Pancakes with Crispy Turkey and Cranberry Hoisin Sauce

  • 1 (8-count) package refrigerator biscuits (recommended: Pillsbury Grands)
  • 8 scallions, sliced, some reserved for garnish
  • 3 teaspoons sesame oil, divided
  • Flour, for dusting
  • 1 cup canola oil plus 2 tablespoons
  • 4 cups leftover cooked turkey, shredded
  • 2 tablespoons soy sauce
  • 1/2 cup cranberry sauce
  • 1 cup hoisin sauce, divided
  • 1 cup julienned cucumber

 

Directions

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees F.

Remove the biscuits from the tube. Flatten out each one slightly. Place 1 teaspoon of sliced scallion into the center of the biscuit and drizzle with 1/4 teaspoon of sesame oil. Wrap the edges of the biscuit around the scallions and roll into a ball. Repeat with remaining biscuits. On a clean, floured work surface, roll out each biscuit ball into a round about 1/8-inch thick.

Heat 2 tablespoons of canola oil in a large, nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add a rolled out pancake and fry until crispy, about 3 minutes per side. Once cooked, place in the oven to keep warm. Repeat with the remaining pancakes and canola oil.

Meanwhile, in a separate skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of canola oil over medium heat. Add the turkey and soy sauce and cook until heated through. Turn off the heat and add the remaining teaspoon of sesame oil.

In a mini-food processor, combine the cranberry sauce and 1/2 cup hoisin sauce and blend until smooth.

To assemble: Drizzle 1 tablespoon of the remaining hoisin sauce onto a scallion pancake. Top with some cucumber, scallions, and some of the cooked turkey. Drizzle with 1 tablespoon of the cranberry-hoisin sauce. Repeat with remaining ingredients.

Eat those and then tell me they're not the best things ever. I would recommend extra scallions on top, and because I tend to like the sauce a bit more fruity, I would add a bit more cranberry sauce to the hoisin mixture too.

The second leftover remodel? Buffalo Turkey Sloppy Joes.

Rachael Ray has this insanely good recipe for wingless buffalo chicken pizza.  I could eat a whole one by myself if my husband wouldn't look on in disapproval.  How about that pizza on a bun? Okay!

We didn't follow any recipe for this, we just decided to wing it (heh).  Here's my best guess at what we did:

Buffalo Turkey Sloppy Joes
  • About 1 1/2-2 cups of chopped turkey (most of ours was dark meat, and we both agreed white meat would have been a little better. Then again, neither of us are big fans of dark meat.)
  • 3 tablespoons of butter
  • 2-ish tablespoons of Worcestershire sauce
  • 3/4 cup tomato sauce
  • Hot sauce to preferred level of spiciness, 2 or more tablespoons (it's buffalo sauce, after all)
  • 1/4-1/2 cup of crumbled blue cheese
  • 4 green onions, sliced
  • Hamburger buns
Directions
Take the turkey, tomato sauce, butter, Worcestershire sauce and hot sauce and add to skillet.  Mix it up. Heat turkey through and add blue cheese crumbles (how much depends on how much cheese you like).  Stir to combine.  Add about two thirds of your green onions to the mixture.  Remove from heat.

Crumble some blue cheese on the inside of your hamburger bun and broil until the cheese is melty and bun is crisp.  Add more green onions on top of cheese.  Pile mixture on bun and devour. Wear your napkin as a bib.

You could probably chop up some celery and add it to the mixture.  It might add a nice bit of crunch and fit in with the whole hot wings theme. 

Do you have any leftover turkey recipes to share with me? I'm taking suggestions...

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