Yummy Turkey Leftovers

If you are anything like me, you didn't cook a turkey this year-- you made your husband do it!

Reality aside, how often do we look for new ways to make turkey leftovers taste good during the holiday season? I found a great Turkey Pot Pie recipe that I wanted to share. And I don't even like pot pies! (I did make the pot pie, but yes, I did make Rob help with the crust!)

I got this recipe from the free Kraft recipes at Meijer. That's right, not only do I refuse to do the difficult cooking, I also am too cheap to buy a cookbook.

Here's the recipe:

3/4 c. skim milk
1/4 c. Miracle Whip/mayo
1 tbsp. flour
3 c. chopped, cooked turkey
1 pkg. frozen mixed vegetables, thawed
1 c. shredded cheddar cheese
1/4 c. chopped onions
1 ready-to-use refrigerated pie crust (or have Rob make you one :) )

1. Thaw pie crust according to package directions. Heat oven to 400 deg.
2. Mix milk, dressing and flour in a large microwaveable bowl. Microwave on HIGH for 2-3 minutes or until sauce is thickened, stirring after each minute. Add turkey, mixed vegetables, cheese and onions; toss to coat. Spoon into 9-inch pie plate.
3. Rob's Job: Place crust over filling; flute edge and seal to rim of pie plate. Leah's job: Cut several slits in crust to permit steam to escape.
4. Bake 30 minutes or until crust is golden brown. Cover edges of crust with aluminum foil to prevent burning.

Tomorrow's meal:
Turkey Tortilla Soup from bhg.com













3 6-in corn tortillas cut into strips (I plan to use the crunchy tortilla strips for salads)
2 tbsp. cooking oil
1 c. salsa
28 oz. broth (I plan to use my turkey broth I made by boiling the turkey, etc.-- and yes, I did this, not Rob. :))
2 cups cooked, cubed turkey
1 can black beans
Optional: zucchini (gross--not me!), cilantro and sour cream

1. In a large skillet, cook tortilla strips in hot oil until crisp; remove with slotted spoon and drain on paper towels.
2. In a large saucepan combine salsa and broth; bring to boiling over medium-high heat. Add turkey, black beans and optional zucchini; heat through. Serve in bowls topped with tortilla strips, sour cream and cilantro. Makes 4 servings.

Family and Sundays....

I have once again commandeered Rob's blog. Oh how I enjoy telling him, "but I thought we shared everything...." and smiling.

Every so often we have the cousins (in town) over for a Sunday early dinner pitch-in. Kids only, no adults allowed. This week was Thanksgiving-themed. We got out the china, served turkey and dressing, green beans and pumpkin bread. Unfortunately, I have no good recipes or "how to" stories for cooking the turkey and stuffing, except to say, "Hire Rob." That's right, as a the dutiful wife, I have again outdone myself and delegated the difficult cooking to my husband. With that being said, it was quite delicious.

So, instead I thought I'd share an older recipe from a different Sunday afternoon. As anyone that has talked to me about cooking knows, I love the Cooking Light recipes. Here's a delicious soup:

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon canola oil
  
• 1 1/2 teaspoons bottled minced garlic
• 3/4 pound chicken breast tenders, cut into bite-sized pieces
• 1 teaspoon chipotle chile powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 cup water
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
  
• 1 (14-ounce) can fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
  
• 1 (14.5-ounce) can stewed tomatoes, undrained
  
• 1 cup crushed baked tortilla chips
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 lime, cut into 4 wedges

Preparation

• Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add minced garlic and chicken; sauté 2 minutes. Add chile powder and cumin; stir well. Add water, salt, broth, and tomatoes; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 5 minutes. Top with tortilla chips and cilantro, and serve with lime wedges.

In the past I have served it with: a salad of romaine lettuce, pico de gallo, corn, black beans, taco-blend cheese and spicy ranch dressing.

birthday, breadsticks and all-around goodness....

This weekend I have chosen to do as any good wife would-- to take that which belongs to my husband with the old adage, "what's yours is mine". Last week, it was his dessert. Today, it was his blog.

Tomorrow is Rob's birthday, so we invited a few family and close friends for a little birthday party Friday night. His gifts: snickerdoodles, Twizzlers and coconut bars. They know him well.

Since Rob and I have been married, I have enjoyed hosting many parties with him and trying out new recipes on my unexpecting guests. The poor guests seem to have lost their sense of taste and ate nearly everything I made. So, I thought I would share the most popular recipes.

Herbed Cheese Breadsticks from BHG.com and a few of my own changes....
1 1/2 - 2 c. flour
1 pkg. active dry yeast
1/2 c. warm water (105 deg. to 120 deg.)
1 T. honey
1 T. olive oil
1/2 t. salt
2 T. grated Parmesan cheese
1 t. dried oregano
1 slightly beaten egg white
Directions

1. In a small bowl, stir yeast into warm water. Let stand for 5 minutes.

2. In a large mixing bowl stir together 1/2 c. of flour and the yeast mixture. Add honey, oil and salt. Beat with an electric mixer on low speed for 30 seconds, scraping the sides of the bowl. Beat on high speed for 3 minutes.

3. Using a wooden spoon, stir as much of the remaining flour as possible and 1 T. of cheese and 1/2 t. of oregano.

4. Turn the dough out on a lightly floured surface. Knead in enough of the remaining all-purpose flour to make a moderately soft dough that is smooth and elastic (6 to 8 minutes total). Shape into a ball. Place in a lightly greased bowl. Cover with a damp and let rise in a warm place until double (about 1 hour).

3. Punch dough down. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Cover with damp towel and let rest for 10 minutes. Lightly grease two baking sheets (I used cooking spray and it worked, too).

4. Roll dough into a 15x7-inch rectangle. Cut into fifteen 1-inch strips. Place strips on prepared baking sheets. To make shorter bread sticks, I cut the strips in half. I also twisted them to make them look more fun. (That's important, you know!)

5. Cover and let rise in warm place until nearly double (about 30 minutes).

6. Brush breadsticks with egg white. In a small mixing bowl stir together 1 tablespoon Parmesan cheese and 1/2 teaspoon oregano. Sprinkle over breadsticks.

5. Bake in a 375 degree F oven about 12 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from baking sheets. Cool on wire racks.

Spicy Chicken Tortilla Roll-Ups
I got this recipe from another blog. I couldn't find flavored tortillas, so I used the white flour and wheat flour tortillas. It was easy, but a little time-consuming. The nice part is that you can make it a few hours to a day in advance. I doubled the recipe and they went fast!






I hope you can enjoy these fun little treats. I hope to add more recipes and other fun little posts in the future.