Creative Uses For The Leftover Turkey, November 27, 2006

Okay....That Thanksgiving meal was great! Friday and Saturday, the turkey sandwiches tasted pretty good. But by Sunday afternoon, this whole turkey business was starting to get kinda old. Now it's Monday night and you're just about ready to toss all the leftovers out! Before you do though, here's a few ideas I found to keep me from wasting that perfectly good food!

1. Barbecued turkey for open face sandwiches is simple to make. Shred or cut up leftover turkey and add your favorite barbecue sauce. Presto, it's done. Yeah, I know....you're saying, "But it's a sandwich!" Yes, it's a sandwich, but by shredding it and adding the BBQ sauce and other condiments of your choosing it becomes the King of Turkey Sandwiches!" If you just can't get past the sandwich thing....try tossing the ingrediants on a tortilla and heat it in a pan to make it a nice and toasty wrap!

2. Turkey and noodles are made just the same as chicken and noodles. Cook the noodles and add turkey. You can add chicken boullion if necessary and vegetables if you like. Not exactly my favorite, but lots of people do like it...so what the hey!

3.Turkey salad: Add a cup or more of diced turkey meat to shredded lettuce, minced onion, shredded cheese and sliced black olives. Top with sour cream or ranch dressing. I did this one tonight with a couple of minor changes. I dropped the olives and lettuce. I added a light coating of BBQ sauce in place of the ranch dressing or sour cream and added some extra cheese. I then heated it a small skillet for about 7-10 minutes and served on top of salad croutons. It was really good!

4.Turkey sandwich spread can be made in a food processor or blender. Add whatever suits you - pickles, onions, cheese, etc., to a cup of turkey and a tablespoon or more of mayonnaise or creamy salad dressing, then blend until it's fairly smooth.

But what if you've used all the "good meat"? If you've picked the best and biggest chunks of meat, you still have quite a bit of turkey left. It's time to cook the carcass in a big pot. Break it in two if you need, cover with water and simmer for an hour or more, until the meat begins to fall off the bones. Cool and pick the meat off and portion it into containers for use right away or for the freezer. Strain the leftover liquid and freeze for using with the turkey later. Or you can freeze it with the turkey if you only intend to make casseroles or soups with it.

Turkey is generally frugal meat anyway, but you can make it even more so by using it all. Get the absolute most from that turkey.

Originally posted 11-27-06 on Yahoo 360