Leftovers

Okay, what did you do with the T-Day leftovers? We didn't have any because we ate at relative's house, so I roasted a 21-pounder a couple of days ago and made the other fixin's--without a marshmallow in sight >gag<.

What a job trying to juggle it after it was roasted. (I also flashed on, "So this is what you lose when you diet off 20-lbs. Amazing.") A jet of turkey juice and melted fat arced up over the roasting pan and splashed on my new suede slipper. Whoopie. At least now I can tell at a glance which one is the left slipper.

Delicious on homemade bread (the turkey, not the slipper).

We ate all of ours much too quickly.

There was about 15# of sliced meat, also the legs and the wings. An 8"x8"x2" tray of "regular" sage-y dressing and one of apple/Italian sausage dressing remained. 2# of mashed potatoes and about 24 stalks of asparagus tossed in butter and lemon zest hung around. Not to mention, different cranberry sauces, very yummy gravy, corn bread, and a couple of pies. It was all consumed either in meal form or as CARE packages for my GF's kids or as pickin's in front of the fridge and sandwiches by the Tuesday after Thanksgiving.

There just wasn't enough left and I'm considering a T-Day redux ... without inviting anyone ... so I can chow down on the leftovers in peace!!

Dinner the day after I made the kids a thanksgiving frittata - saute'd some onions and celery that hadn't made it into the stuffing, along with some turkey meat. Added some eggs and topped it with homemade cranberry sauce. Sprinkled with parmesan and covered to melt. The cranberry got some looks but everybody liked it.

I had two pounds of dried kidney beans sitting around for Thanksgiving that I was tired of seeing hang around the pantry. So I cooked them up with the Cajun Trinity (onion, celery, green pepper) and kielbasa (because I was out of andouille), and cumin and cayenne.

Lots of most delectable and re-heatable leftovers, which I'm still enjoying.

-Paul W.

The nice thing about turkey is that it's almost free food every Nov. My 21-pounder cost a whopping $7.75 and we'll be gnawing on it for a long time.

If only steaks cost the same....