From the day after Thanksgiving, 2012:
The dishes are done, family and friends safely back in their own homes, but you still have turkey and stuffing and cranberries and stuff taking up space in your fridge and/or freezer; and there are just so many turkey sammiches one can eat… how about spicing up your turkey and cranberries with black beans and chipotle, and serving it on a tortilla? Or mebbe combining your turkey and stuffing with Swiss cheese and mayonnaise in a casserole; it’s not your momma’s tetrazini!
INGREDIENTS
Chipotle Cranberry Sauce:
•1 cup whole-berry cranberry relish
•1/3 cup taco sauce
•1 canned chipotle pepper, minced
•1 tsp chili powder
•1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
•1/2 tsp seasoned salt
Turkey Tostadas:
•1 large onion, sliced
•1 poblano pepper, seeded and sliced
•1 large red bell pepper, sliced
•2 tbsp olive oil
•3 cups shredded roasted turkey
•2 garlic cloves, minced
•Salt
•8 flour tortillas
•1 cup refried black beans
•Spicy Cranberry-Chipotle Sauce
•1 cup crumbled cheese
•Sour cream
•Sliced Scallion
Make the cranberry-chipotle sauce by combining the cranberry relish with the taco sauce, minced chipotle and the seasonings in a small bowl.
Pop into the ‘wave for 90 seconds, then give it a stir.
Back into the ‘wave for another 90 seconds and your are good to go! Smoky, spicy cranberry relish that is perfect in tostadas, and you should just taste it in plain old tacos!
Preheat oven to 400°.
Sauté the onion, poblano, and red pepper in hot olive oil over medium-high heat ten minutes or until onion is golden. Stir in turkey and garlic; cook 2 to 3 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Season to taste.
Bake the tortillas for three minutes, then spread with refried beans and top with the turkey mixture. Drizzle with a small amount of cranberry-chipotle sauce and sprinkle with cheese.
Back into the oven for 10 minutes, then serve with sour cream and scallions.
Nice (and different); but, you still have a ton of stuffing hanging about? Here’s a nice riff on my Aunt Buzz’s Swiss Chicken Casserole:
INGREDIENTS
•4 cups diced turkey
•1 tbsp celery seed
•2 cups stuffing (or bread cubes)
•1 cup mayonnaise
•1/2 cup milk
•1/4 cup diced onion
•1 tsp salt
•Dash pepper
•8 oz. Swiss cheese cut in thin strips
Heat the oven to 350º.
Stir together all of the ingredients and turn into a greased casserole dish.
Cover and bake for 3o minutes, then remove the cover and bake for another five to ten minutes to crisp up the top.
Serve with cranberry relish (regular, or the spicy chipotle), and mebbe a salad, and say good-bye to your leftovers.