What to do with all that Turkey

One of my favorite parts of Thanksgiving is having leftover turkey. There are so many things you can make with it that I always think to myself "I should make turkey more than once a year." I never seem to find the time to do so though. I guess it makes meals like the following just more to look forward to.

Easy Turkey Tetrazzini

What you'll need:

Leftover turkey - about 2-3 cups once it's chopped

Egg noodles - 8 ounce bag

Butter - 3 tablespoons

Can of mushrooms - 6 ounces

Salt - 1 1/4 teaspoons

Pepper - 1/8 teaspoon

Can of cream of celery condensed soup - 10.75 ounces

Sour cream - 1 1/3 cups

Parmesan cheese - 2/3 cup

Preheat the oven to 375.

Start by putting a large pot of water on to boil for the noodles. Add a little salt and vegetable oil to the water and then move on to the turkey. I typically remove as much turkey as I can from the bone the night of Thanksgiving. I'm usually so full that it's the last thing I want to do....but it is a huge help later. If you know what you are going to make with your leftover turkey you can chop, shred, and bag they turkey to be either frozen or put in the fridge. If you didn't do this you'll need to chop up the turkey now....don't worry, there's time. Go ahead and get the noodles in the boiling water. And, like I've said before I live by my oven timer when cooking noodles. It takes all the guess work out of it if you just set your timer for the suggested time on the package. You are not proving anything by plucking hot noodles off the fork you just dipped in boiling water and then burning your mouth to test them....trust me, the time on the package always works.

Once that's complete you'll need to heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add the butter and saute (fancy for cook in butter) the mushrooms, which you'll want to drain the juice from first, for about a minute. Season with the salt and pepper. Add the chopped turkey, celery soup, and sour cream to the skillet. This will one need to be stirred for another minute at the most.

When the noodles are done strain them and then put them back in your large pot. Pour the turkey mixture into the pot with the noodles and mix it until it's well blended. Spray a glass baking pan (about 9 x 13) with pam and then pour your tetrazzini into it. Top with parmesan cheese and put it in the oven. Bake for 20 - 25 minutes. The top will brown a little and the edges may bubble.

Almost any bread would make a great side for this dish, but I just didn't have any on hand this night. I usually keep those cans of Pillsbury rolls or croissants in the fridge for nights like this but no such luck. You'll also see in the picture that I had peas....but didn't mention them. This is because I HATE peas. However, I like my family (most days) and they like peas. While dinner baked in the oven I cooked the frozen peas as described on the package (you pretty much just boil them in water) and then served them on the side so my family could sprinkle them over the top of their dish and I could save myself some time by not having to pick them out of my own. Hey, no judging.....go eat!

My Thanksgiving Turkey

There was of course a lot more food that went along with the fabulous turkey (sorry, but I really impressed myself, ha) but I'll cover those in another posting. I've cooked my turkey the same way for the last 3 Thanksgivings and it has always been really easy and moist.

What you'll need:

Whole Turkey (your choice on size)

1 Apple

2 Celery Stalks

1 Onion

2 Lemons

Chicken Broth (about 16 oz)

Butter

Salt & Pepper

Poultry Seasoning

Olive or Vegetable Oil

Rosemary (prefer fresh, but used dried)

Onion & Garlic Powder

Because I only cook a whole turkey once a year I found a BIG one...21 lbs! When you buy a frozen turkey (which they almost always are) you'll want to start thawing it by putting it in your refrigerator about 4 days before you will cook it. After 3 days I still had to rinse some ice out of mine.

Preheat the oven to 350.

Cleaning it: I'm sure they turkey is already clean but I always cut mine out of the wrapper and place in in a large strainer in the sink (or if you scrub your sink really well, right in the sink). I remove any ties, plastic pieces, or anything else the turkey wasn't born with (except the plastic timer if you prefer to use it). I put the neck, and the "bag of organs" to the side. These can actually be cooked in a skillet with a little of your favorite seasonings and eaten while you wait for the turkey to cook. I've only eaten the neck, but I here some of it's pretty good. I also cut off his tail piece (just because it gets in the way) and then rinse him well inside and out.

I then move him (I'm really not sure if it was a boy or girl ok, but it's shorter than typing "the turkey" each time) to a large pan that has a grate in the bottom of it. You can also buy those big disposable foil pans and they have built in ridges that work....the point is just to keep the turkey out of the liquid that will build up. The turkey should be placed breast side up. The wings should be folded under. You might have to force them, and if he won't cooperate I don't think it's all that important. It's for appearance, not flavor.

Chop the fruit and veggies. You can do it as pictured but how they are chopped is not really important. You will not be eating any of these and removing peels is not necessary. Stuff the inside of the turkey with the fruit and veggie pieces and put any remaining pieces in the pan around the turkey. If you have fresh rosemary a sprig of that can be put inside the turkey. I forgot to buy it and was not going to the store on Thanksgiving.

Pour the chicken broth into the pan around the turkey and pour a little of it inside the turkey. Sprinkle with each seasoning listed and feel free to remove or add anything you want. After the sprinkling is complete put a few dabs of butter on him and pour a little oil over the top of him. Now give him a good rub down....hey, it is his last meal. Ok, bad joke, just make sure he's seasoned well :)

Cover with foil and put him in the oven. The rule of thumb I've always been told is 20 minutes of cook time per pound. Mine took 7-8 hours so the rule was right on. Be sure to baste the turkey about every hour and a half or so. Because of the fruits and veggies it's pretty hard to dry this turkey out...so if you miss a basting do not be too hard on yourself. During the last hour of cooking remove the foil so that the skin can brown and baste every 20 minutes. If the skin is browning too quickly you can cover that part of the turkey back up.

I always use a meat thermometer to make sure it's done. Turkey should be at least 170 degrees in the breast. Avoid checking it too often because the juice leaks out of each hole you poke in it (even the fruits and veggies can't save him if you poke him too often). After you remove the turkey from the oven it's best to let it sit for about 15 minutes before cutting it up. Let the juices settle in a little and then feast!

Hamburger Helper Helped Me

I try to make as many "real" meals as I can during the week but to save money and time I usually squeeze in a quick meal or two...three and a glass of wine on a bad week. To be honest I can't say that Hamburger Helper has ever been a meal that I look forward to but most of the flavors are pretty good.

This time I went with one I hadn't tried....the Italian Four Cheese Lasagna. I won't go into great depths with this one since it's so easy to follow the directions on the box. As you can see in the pictures I did use 1 lb of ground beef and 1 lb of ground turkey. It can of course be made with one or the other but the combo came out pretty good (and nobody in the family even noticed there was turkey in it). Ground turkey is healthier and although I'll never give up some of my favorites (such as chili cheese fries) I am trying to be a little more conscientious about my dining choices.

I also like to mix in a little sour cream and shredded cheese if I have it (I know, not healthy....but hey, it's dairy). Top with parmesan and it appears close to home-made :)