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Gobble, gobble, gobble! There’s a story behind those words. Every Thanksgiving my younger sister calls me at about 7 a.m., the phone rings where upon I pick it up and we both start “gobbling.” Each of us trying to out do the other with sounds and time and the ending of craaaack! I won last year––poor birds. In all seriousness, do you wonder what to do with Thanksgiving dinner leftovers? Don’t limit yourself to sandwiches. Try some new recipe using whatever leftovers you have. We always get a big bird so there is a lot of meat to make some easy meals after Thanksgiving. This includes lots of stuffing, extra mashed potatoes and lots of gravy.

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You might do this using all of the above. You don’t even have to bring out the good dishes. Use paper plates.

THANKSGIVING DINNER REVISITED

4 (12x18 inches) heavy duty aluminum foil

2 c. prepared stuffing

2 c. mashed potatoes

12-16 slices turkey (about 1 lb.)

1-1/2 c. gravy

1/2 t. dried sage or thyme

1/4 t. pepper

Center 1/2 c. stuffing and 1/2 c. potatoes on each sheet of foil. Top with one-fourth of sliced turkey. Combine gravy, sage and pepper; spoon over turkey.

Bring up foil sides. Double fold top and ends to seal packet. Don’t make it too tight as you will need room for heat circulation inside.

Bake at 450 degrees for 15-18 minutes on a cookie sheet. Makes four packets.

If you’d rather not do the same dinner again, the next day, refrigerate all the ingredients and make it up within three days.

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Don’t you dare throw the turkey carcass away as it’s the base for delicious turkey soup.

TURKEY VEGGIE SOUP

1 meaty leftover turkey carcass (from at least an 11 lb. turkey), broken to fit in the kettle

7 cups water

3 chicken bouillon cubes

2 t. poultry seasoning

1 bay leaf

6 peppercorns

3-4 sprig fresh parsley

1/2 t. salt

1/2 t. pepper

SOUP INGREDIENTS

1 medium onion, diced

2 celery ribs, diced

2 medium carrots, sliced 1/2-inch thick

1 c. frozen beans

1 c. frozen corn

1 c. frozen peas

In a large kettle or Dutch oven, combine first nine ingredients. Bring to a boil. Lower heat; cover and simmer for one hour. Remove carcass, bay leaf, peppercorns and parsley.

When carcass is cool, remove meat; set aside.

To the broth add all of the soup ingredients and the turkey. Bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer for 15-20 minutes or until veggies are tender. Makes 8-10 servings.

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I like the name of this recipe. Another way of making stroganoff.

TURKEY IN THE STRAWganoff

1 c. diced onion

1/2 butter or margarine

2 garlic cloves, minced or 1/8 t. garlic powder

1/4 c. flour

1 t. salt

1/2 t. pepper

2 cans cream of chicken soup, undiluted

two 4 oz. cans mushrooms

2 c. cubed, cooked turkey

1-1/2 to 2 c. sour cream

2 T. snipped parsley

3/4 lb. of a 1 lb. bag medium noodles, cooked or 1-1/2 c. rice, cooked

2 T. snipped fresh parsley for garnish, optional

In large skillet, saute onions in butter; add garlic and saute two minutes. Stir in flour, salt and pepper until blended. Add soup, mushrooms and turkey; bring to a boil; stirring.

Lower heat and simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes. Stir in sour cream and parsley; heat until hot but not till boiling, about 5 minutes, stirring often.

Serve over hot noodles or rice. Garnish with additional parsley if you wish. Makes 6-8 servings.

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This is a recipe you can make the night before and pop in the oven 40-45 minutes before suppertime.

TURKEY-MACARONI

CASSEROLE

1-7 oz. package (2 cups) macaroni, cooked according to package directions, drained

1 medium onion, diced

1 T. butter or margarine

2 c. diced cooked turkey or chicken

1 c. frozen green peas

2 cans cream of chicken or cream of mushroom soup, undiluted

1-1/2 c. milk

1/2 c. pitted ripe olives

1/2 t. salt

1 c. shredded cheddar cheese

Saute onion in butter until tender. Combine all ingredients, except cheese; turn into 3 qt. casserole. Bake at 350 degrees 40 minutes. Sprinkle cheese on top and bake additional 5 minutes. (If refrigerating, bake 5-8 minutes longer.) Makes 4-6 servings.

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Thought for the day: Middle age is when your narrow waist and broad mind begin to change places. I think that happened to me after eating Thanksgiving dinner, as I’m past middle age.

CORRECTION: In last week’s Cranberry Punch recipe, it should read––1/2 c. cranberry juice

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