The family has been fed and the dishes consigned to the dishwasher. And now you're left with a pile of leftover food that no quantity of sandwiches or reheated plates of food is going to use before it all starts going bad.
There are some pretty basic recipes when it comes to dealing with Christmas dinner leftovers, but there are others with a little more creativity. Whether it be a casserole, soup or even some kind of dessert, there's no reason you can't use up all your leftovers without growing so tired of turkey you pledge never to eat it again.
Turkey Casserole
1 c. leftover stuffing
2 c. sour cream
1 can condensed cream of mushroom soup
1 can condensed cream of celery soup
5 tsp. dry onion soup mix
2 cans French-style green beans, drained
2 c. cooked, chopped turkey meat
Preheat oven to 350 F. In a medium bowl, mix the sour cream, cream of mushroom soup, cream of celery soup and dry onion soup mix. Spread the green beans in a 9-inch by 13-inch dish. Top with a layer of turkey. Pour the soup mixture over the turkey. Top with stuffing. Bake in the preheated oven 30 minutes or until browned and bubbly.
Turkey Tetrazzini
8 oz. spaghettini or vermicelli, broken into smaller pieces, cooked, rinsed and drained
1 c. shredded cheddar cheese
1/4 c. Parmesan cheese
3 c. diced cooked turkey
2 Tbsp. diced pimientos
1 Tbsp. butter
1/2 c. sliced mushrooms
1/4 c. chopped onion
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1/2 c. chicken broth
1/4 c. dry sherry
Salt and pepper, to taste
Combine spaghetti with 1-cup cheddar cheese and half of the Parmesan cheese. Add turkey and pimientos. In a skillet, melt butter and sauté mushrooms and onions until tender, then add to the turkey mixture along with remaining ingredients. Gently stir to combine ingredients. Place in a greased casserole and sprinkle with remaining cheeses. Cover with lid or foil and bake at 350 F for about 45 minutes, or until hot and bubbly in the centre.
Sweet Potato Bites
A novel twist on leftover sweet potatoes (or, if you served them instead, yams).
Leftover baked sweet potatoes, cut into bite-size pieces
2 Tbsp. melted butter
Dash white pepper
10 slices bacon, cooked until crisp, each slice cut in half
1 can pineapple chunks, well drained, reserving 2 Tbsp. juice
Preheat oven to 400 F. Place the sweet potato pieces on ungreased pan and drizzle with butter and sprinkle with pepper. Top each sweet potato piece with a piece of bacon, then top that with a pineapple chunk. Secure each stack with a toothpick. Brush some of the reserved pineapple liquid over each stack.
Bake at 400 F about five minutes until heated through. Cool slightly before serving.
Turkey Soup
Roasted turkey carcass
2 onions, sliced
2 carrots, sliced
2 celery stalks with leaves
8 c. water
1/4 c. butter
1/4 c. flour
2 Tbsp. sherry
1 c. half-and-half cream or soymilk
Discard all the leftover skin from the turkey. Break turkey into sections that will fit in into a large stockpot with vegetables and water, making sure the water covers everything. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for one hour until stock is golden. Discard bones and vegetables. Strain the soup, rubbing as many of the solids through the strainer as possible. Discard residue in strainer. In a saucepan, melt butter. Stir in flour and cook until bubbly, about 5 minutes. Pour in strained hot soup stock and cook and stir over medium heat until smooth and bubbly. Then stir in sherry, if using, and simmer for five minutes. Just before serving, add the half and half and heat thoroughly, but do not boil.
Stuffing Frittata
2 c. leftover stuffing
1 c. of diced leftover turkey
1 c. of shredded cheddar cheese
8 large eggs
3/4 c. cup milk
3 Tbsp. grated Parmesan
Pinch of red pepper flakes
Salt and pepper
2 Tbsp. fresh parsley leaves
Preheat oven to 400 F and coat an ovenproof non-stick skillet with cooking spray. Place over medium heat on stovetop. Mix stuffing and turkey in a bowl, then put mixture in the bottom of pan to warm through. Sprinkle grated cheddar cheese over top. In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, 1 Tbsp. of parsley and the red pepper flakes. Add salt and pepper to taste. Pour egg mixture over stuffing and cheese to cover stuffing. Sprinkle Parmesan over top. Carefully transfer to preheated oven. Bake until the eggs are set and the sides have puffed up a little bit and cheese is golden, about 15 to 20 minutes. Cool before cutting and sprinkle with remaining parsley.
Cranberry Trifle
2 c. cranberry sauce
1/2 c. sugar
2 c. whipping cream
1/2 c. powdered sugar
1 pound cake, thawed
1 c. crushed sugar cookies
1/2 c. toasted, sliced almonds
Mix the cranberry sauce and sugar in small saucepan. Heat, stirring frequently, until sugar melts and the mixture is smooth. Cool to room temperature. Beat the whipping cream with powdered sugar in a large mixing bowl until stiff peaks form. Cut pound cake into 12 slices and arrange in bottom of 13-inch by 9-inch dish to cover bottom. Spoon the cranberry sauce over the cake, then sprinkle with the crushed cookies. Spread whipped cream over cookies and top with almonds. Chill at least 3 hours before serving.
