Tasty Tuesday: The Thanksgiving Leftovers Collection

Just a few yummy ideas of what to do with all those Turkey Day leftovers!

Do you have leftover cranberry sauce? Try these Cranberry Sauce Muffins with Cranberry Butter:

(image source)

The Ingredients: 

• 1 cup leftover cranberry sauce
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• juice of one lemon
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup evaporated milk (or egg nog)
• 1/3 cup butter, melted
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 stick butter, softened

The Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray muffin pan with cooking spray or line with paper liners. In a small bowl, whisk together cranberry sauce, nutmeg & lemon juice. Set aside.

In a large bowl, mix flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon & salt. In a small bowl, whisk together egg, milk or egg nog, melted butter & vanilla extract. Add egg mixture to flour mixture & mix until just moist.

Fill muffin cups with half of the batter. Spoon 2 tsp cranberry sauce onto the center of each cup of batter. Top with remaining batter. Bake for 15-20 mins or until top springs back when touched lightly.

To make cranberry butter, combine softened butter with a dollop of cranberry sauce in a food processor. Add more cranberry sauce until it's as cranberry-y as you want. Transfer to small bowl & serve with warm muffins. 

(Click here for source.)

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After your turkey has been picked clean, don't throw away what's left... make this Turkey Soup instead!

The first step to this soup is making turkey stock, which you can start right after Thanksgiving dinner.

To make Turkey Stock:

• What's left of your Thanksgiving turkey (bones, skin, drippings, giblets except liver, everything)
• 1 yellow onion, quartered
• 3 carrots, chopped
• Handful of fresh chopped parsley
• Sprinkle of thyme
• 1 bay leaf
• Celery tops (the leafy parts)
• A few peppercorns
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper

Remove all useable turkey meat for sandwiches, to add to the soup later, or make turkey pot pie (recipe below).

Break up the turkey bones a bit so the turkey carcass isn't quite so bulky. Put the entire turkey carcass into a large stock pot & cover with cold water by an inch. Add yellow onion, carrots, parsley, thyme, bay leaf, celery tops & peppercorns.

Bring to a boil & immediately reduce heat to bring the stock to barely a simmer or just below a simmer. Skim off any foamy nastiness that floats to the top.

Add salt & pepper.

Cook for at least 4 hours, uncovered. Occasionally skim foam off top of stock. You can also put the stock in the oven at 180-200 degrees to maintain a constant, even heat.

Strain stock to remove veggies, bones, skin & any other undesirables.

To make Turkey Soup:

• Turkey stock (recipe above)
• Carrots, onions & celery, chopped... add these in equal parts (ie. 1 of each, 2 of each, etc)
• A few sprigs of fresh chopped parsley
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• Seasoning as desired (suggestions include poultry seasoning, sage, thyme, marjoram, crumbled bouillon cube)
• Starch, such as egg noodles, rice or even leftover mashed potatoes. If you decide to use potatoes, they should already be cooked.
• Turkey meat (the good stuff that you picked off before making the stock), shredded
• Optional: tomatoes (fresh or stewed), tabasco sauce, fresh spinach, leftover green beans, shredded cabbage

With stock still barely simmering, add carrots, onions, celery, parsley, garlic & seasonings. If desired, also add cabbage &/or green beans.

Cook at just below a simmer until vegetables are softened. Add starch & shredded turkey meat. Add tomatoes &/or spinach if desired. Add salt & pepper to taste. Add a shot of tabasco sauce if desired.

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Use up some of your leftover turkey, veggies & cranberries in this Turkey Pot Pie:

The Ingredients:

• 2 cans condensed cheddar cheese soup (cream of mushroom or cream of chicken soup will work too)
• 2 cans cream of celery soup
• leftover turkey meat, cubed
• 2 medium onions, diced
• 2 cups cooked squash, diced (or leftover squash casserole)
• 2 cups cranberry sauce
• other cooked veggies if desired (ex. green beans, peas, corn, carrots)
• salt & pepper
• 2 canned biscuits or croissants

The Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large saucepan, heat the soups. Stir in turkey, onion, squash, cranberry sauce, other veggies if desired, salt & pepper. Bring mixture to a boil. 

Pour mixture into oven-safe dish & top with canned dough. Press crust firmly around the edges of the pan. 

Bake until crust is golden brown (about 5 mins).