My Leftover Turkey Compilation

It’s 28th December, and despite having a 5kg bird to work our way through with only five of us I will have to cook sooner or later.  So I am trawling through last year’s turkey recipes and thought it would be good to bring them together in one place.

In no particular order:-

• Turkey stock – same principle as chicken stock, you just might need a bigger pan!
• Turkey Minestrone
• Jamie Oliver’s Sweet Leek & Turkey Pie – a warming winner every year
• Turkey & Chipolata Cassoulet – substitute chicken for turkey
• Red or Green Thai Turkey Curry – Substitute the butternut squash in this recipe for a big handful of leftover turkey
• Chilli con Christmas Turkey Leftovers
• Turkey Chow Mein – I would substitute 2 handfuls of chopped cooked turkey for the chicken in this recipe
• Christmas Turkey Noodle Soup – again substitute chicken for turkey
• Turkey Congee (Rice Soup/Porridge) – I made this with duck stock last year but turkey would work just as well
• Spicy Korean Turkey Rice Salad – a fitting end to turkey and cranberry sauce

Brussel Sprout Minestrone & Other Christmas Variations

I bought some brussel sprouts the 2 weeks ago to decorate a homemade wreath with.  I came across the sad little remainders last weekend and decided to pop them in a minestrone, and no-one was none the wiser.  It got me thinking about all the variations of Christmas minestrone that could be made.  And I think that list is probably endless.

Makes 4 hearty servings

1 medium onion (or substitute with leek)
1 large clove of garlic
I large carrot
1 large stick of celery
100g smoked bacon, or one handful chopped cooked turkey or ham
1 can of chopped tomatoes
1 can of beans (haricot, cannellini, kidney, whatever)
1 chicken stock cube + 1 litre boiling water, or 1 litre ham, turkey, or chicken stock
Handful of brussel sprouts, finely sliced or half a small cabbage, spring greens, courgettes, kale…)
1 handful broken pasta or small pasta for soup.
1 tbsp olive oil for frying

Chop the onion and garlic and fry with the oil in a large saucepan over a medium heat. Add the bacon if using, otherwise add the cooked meat later.  Chop the carrot and celery, or any other vegetables you are using except any leaf/green vegetables (these need less cooking and are added near the end) and add when chopped. Stir and put the lid on for a few minutes to let the vegetables sweat.

Add the beans, tomatoes, stock cube if using, and the stock/boiling water to just cover the vegetables. Add the chopped meat, stir, cover with a lid and simmer for 15 minutes.

Finely slice the brussel sprouts or whichever green leafy vegetable you are using and push down into the soup together with the pasta pieces. Cover and simmer again for 5-10 minutes or until the pasta is soft.

Serve with grated parmesan, or more usually the case in our house, mature cheddar.

Twitter: Leesa@sunhillcurry