I haven’t had much free time to do any posts since Thanksgiving so I didn’t get a chance to post some of the things we did with the leftover turkey. I actually was able to make three different things with the leftover turkey. The first one we made was a Turkey Barley soup. I used the turkey carcass to make some turkey stock to use for the soup. The rest of it was very easy to do and took no time at all.
Turkey Barley Soup
8 cups turkey stock made from leftover turkey carcass
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 onion, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
2 carrots, diced
black pepper to taste
4 cups diced leftover turkey
4 cups water
3/4 cup pearl barley
1 cup frozen peas
In a large frying pan, heat the olive oil, add the onion and saute for 2 minutes. Add the carrots, celery, and pepper and saute about 5 minutes more.
While the vegetables are cooking, bring the turkey stock to a boil in a large soup pot. Add the vegetables and the turkey, lower the heat, and simmer for 20 minutes.
Add the water, bring the soup back to a simmer, then add the barley and simmer until the barley is soft, at least 30 minutes.
When the barley is cooked, taste the soup for seasoning, and add additional salt or pepper if needed. Simmer for 10 minutes more then serve hot.
This makes plenty of soup and the barley actually absorbs a lot of the liquid, so it is almost like a stew if you like it that way. If you prefer it to be more like soup, you can always add more water or some chicken stock to thin it out.
We also made some Turkey Paninis for dinner one night. This was a great way to not only use the turkey but some of the other leftovers from Thanksgiving as well
Thanksgiving Leftovers Panini
8 slices of ciabatta bread or 4 ciabatta rolls, sliced in half
1/2 pound (or more) of sliced turkey
1 cup leftover cranberry relish
Build the sandwich – Take one slice of bread or the bottom of the roll and layer it with the turkey. Cover the turkey with some of the sweet potato casserole, some of the cranberry relish, some of the stuffing and top with the gravy. Place another piece of bread or the top of the roll on the sandwich. Continue making the rest of the sandwiches.
Heat the panini maker to 350 degrees. When the maker is hot enough, place a sandwich in the maker and press the top down. Allow the sandwich to heat until heated through, about 3 or 4 minutes. Repeat with the remaining sandwiches.
The great thing about the paninis is that you can add whatever you want to the sandwiches. You could include some sliced ham, any type of cheese that you might like, some sliced onions, roasted red peppers, really anything that you can come up with would be suitable. We actually served the sandwiches with some potato pancakes we made with some of the leftover mashed potatoes from Thanksgiving as well.
Finally, one of the last things I made with the turkey is one of my all-time favorites – Turkey Salad. I am a big sandwich fan and I love salads like this. It’s always been one of my favorite things to have after Thanksgiving.
Turkey Salad Sandwiches
1 cup leftover cooked turkey, diced
1/2 cup celery, diced
1/4 cup mayonnaise
4 hard rolls, or 8 slices of the bread of your choice
1 tomato, sliced
4 leaves of romaine lettuce
Mix the turkey with the celery and mayonnaise until well blended. Place slices of tomato on the roll or a slice of bread, cover with the turkey mixture, place a slice of lettuce over the turkey and cover with the top of the roll or another piece of bread.
There’s nothing quite like a turkey salad sandwich to top things off with your Thanksgiving leftovers.
Well it’s back to regular meals and cooking with the next post. I have several recipes that I have made in the last few weeks that I can post and a few more that I have yet to try but sound pretty good so I am looking forward to those. Until next time, enjoy the rest of your evening!
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