Don't let that refrigerator full of food go to waste. — restaurants from around New Jersey are sharing some delicious ways to make the day-after meal just as enjoyable
"What am I am supposed to do with all of these leftovers?"
It tends to be a popular question following the big Thanksgiving feast. Turkey sandwiches -- several different variations of them -- are the obvious (and undeniably satisfying) day-after solution. The team at Samba Montclair has its own variation: layering sliced leftover turkey with Brie, cranberry and honey mustard on ciabatta bread.
But it's certainly not the only way to play up those leftover turkey slices. The team at Pilsener Haus in Hoboken suggests making a roast turkey sandwich with lemon garlic aioli, arugula, tomato and red onion on sourdough. Sister restaurant Asbury Festhalle in Asbury Park suggests making an open-faced roasted turkey Reuben with Russian dressing, Emmenthaler and sauerkraut on country toast.
Common Lot may not be opening in Millburn until early next year, but the team is jumping into the what-do-with-leftovers conversation by suggesting turkey ramen -- a simple, comforting dish featuring poached turkey breast, sweet potatoes, broccoli rabe, sesame and noodles.
http://www.nj.com/cooking/index.ssf/2013/11/thanksgivukkah_deep_fried_turk.html
For those looking to do something with leftover turkey and that extra pie crust, the team at the Montclair Bread Co. recommends baking a turkey pot pie. Owner Rachel Crampsey's family of five always looks forward to this dish the day after Thanksgiving. Here's the recipe:
Turkey pot pie
-- From Rachel Crampsey of Montclair Bread Co. 6 servings
Note: Make an extra pie crust on Wednesday and freeze it for Friday.
Ingredients for pie crust
3 cups flour
1 stick butter
1/4 cup cold water
Salt to taste
Ingredients for pot pie filling
2 to 3 cups diced turkey
2 to 3 cups veggies (Crampsey uses succotash, her family's favorite side)
1 to 2 cups turkey gravy
Salt and pepper to taste
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Use a food processor to pulse the flour and butter until the butter is pea-sized. Add the water, and pulse until it looks like a mass of dough.
2. Halve the dough and roll out to fit your pie plate (one for the bottom, one for the top). Fill the bottom of the shell with pot pie filling.
3. Cover with the remaining pie crust and crimp the edges to seal in all of the yummy ingredients. Cut 3 to 5 slots on the top of the crust to vent.
4. Bake for 45 minutes, or until the pie crust is crisp and golden brown.
Mulligatawany Soup, a long-established British tradition, is a favorite of Ryland Inn General Manager Thomas McAteer. How aboiut some soup to go with that pie? Thomas McAteer, general manager of The Ryland Inn, suggests going with a family favorite: mulligatawny soup. This long-established British tradition dates back to the Empire days in India.
Mulligatawny soup
-- From Thomas McAteer of The Ryland Inn in Whitehouse Station Serves 10
Ingredients
1 roast turkey carcass broken into quarters (reserve some turkey "pickings" to finish the soup)
2 diced carrots
1 diced onion
3 stems of celery
10 peppercorns
1 bay leaf
1/4 cup of grapeseed oil
4 garlic gloves
3 teaspoons of fresh grated ginger
2-3 teaspoons of curry powder
1 teaspoon of cumin
4 cups of chopped onion
1 pound of diced uncooked potato (Yukon Gold)
3 chopped medium carrots
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 glass of dry Riesling
1 teaspoon of ground pepper
1 can of unsweetened coconut milk
1 cup of crusty bread cubes
1/3 cup chopped cilantro
Directions
1. Make a basic turkey broth by simmering the turkey carcass in water (6 quarts) with the carrots, onion, celery, peppercorns and bay leaf. Simmer for three hours.
2. Drain through a chinois and reduce further to about 10 cups.
3. In a large saute pan, add the grapeseed oil and bring to heat. Add the garlic, onion, grated ginger, and bring to a sweat. Stir in the cumin and curry powder, and cook for 30 seconds.
4. Add the Riesling and deglaze.
5. Add the carrots, potatoes, salt and pepper, and cook for five minutes over medium heat. Transfer to a large pot with half of the stock, and cook until the ingredients are tender (about 30 minutes on a low heat).
6. Using an immersion blender, blend all the ingredients until smooth. Add the remaining stock and coconut milk, and bring to heat. Season to taste.
7. Saute the bacon in a pan, and remove. Saute the bread in the bacon fat with half of the finely chopped cilantro. Serve in bowls garnished with the bacon cilantro croutons, turkey pickings and a sprinkle of cilantro.
Suggested pairing: Serve with 3 Monts Amber Ale Sur Lie, Grande Reserve from Brasserie De Saint Sylvester, Belgium.
Contact Bill Gelman at bkgelman@hotmail.com.
