Leftover Thanksgiving Turkey

Many of us will be fortunate enough to have turkey leftover from Thanksgiving Dinner. What to do with all of those leftovers?  Of course there’s the usual; turkey sandwiches, turkey tetrazini, another turkey dinner (my least favorite), turkey hash, so on and so forth.  What I did with the left over turkey from last weeks blog was to make Turkey Pot Pie.  So easy, so delicious, so one pot meal.

I made a one crust (top crust) pot pie just because I wanted it to be really easy.  I used a sheet of puff pastry for my top crust.  I always have a package of puff pastry in the freezer since it is so versatile.

I recommend making your pot pie, and all other pies for that matter, in a glass or ceramic pie dish:  Especially a two crust pie.  Using glass or ceramic insures perfectly cooked pies every time.  And it looks really nice.

I don’t use any herbs in this dish because there are so many layers of flavor already and I don’t want anything to interfere with the taste of the turkey and the vegetables.

Turkey Pot Pie

Turkey Pot Pie

When I made my pot pie I had some corn pudding left over and put that into the mixture as well.  So don’t be afraid to substitute left over corn instead of adding fresh to the recipe.  (Who doesn’t have corn of some sort on Thanksgiving?)

Makes One 9” Deep Dish Pie

4          Tablespoon (1/2 Stick) Unsalted Butter

2          Cups Sliced Carrots, Sliced Crosswise ¼” Thick

1          Cup Sliced Celery, Sliced Crosswise ¼” Thick

½         Cup Finely Diced Spanish or Vidalia Onion

1          Cup Medium Diced Yukon Gold Potato, Peeled

1          Cup White Pearl Onions, Peeled

1          Cup Fresh Corn Cut From the Cobb or Frozen and Thawed

1          Teaspoon Coarse Sea Salt

½         Teaspoon Freshly Ground Black Pepper

4          Tablespoons All-Purpose Flour

2          Cups Homemade Chicken Stock or Canned Low Sodium Chicken Broth (Heated)

1          Cup Half and Half (Heated)

1          Cup Petite Green Peas

3          Cups Shredded Cooked Turkey

1          Sheet Frozen Puff Pastry

1          Egg Beaten with 1 Tablespoon Cold Water for Egg Wash

Preheat oven to 400°.

Thaw puff pastry sheet and on a lightly floured surface roll the pastry to 1/8” thick.  Cut the pastry into a circle that is 1 inch larger than your pie dish.  Transfer the pastry to a baking sheet and refrigerate until ready to use.  It is important to have the pastry cold when you place it over the pot pie.

In a large sauté pan melt the butter over medium heat.  When butter starts to sizzle, add the carrots, celery, onion, and potato.  Add the salt and pepper.  Sauté until vegetables begin to soften, stirring often, about 10 minutes.  You do not want the vegetables to brown. Add the corn and pearl onions and sauté for 5 minutes, stirring often.  Sprinkle the flour over the vegetables and stir to combine.  Cook, stirring the whole time, for 5 minutes.

Slowly add the chicken stock stirring the whole time to combine.  Bring to a simmer and cook for 15 minutes, stirring often.  Add the cream; stir to combine, bring back to a simmer and cook for 5 more minutes until the sauce is thickened and the vegetables are cooked through.  Add the peas and turkey and stir to combine.

Transfer the pot pie mixture to a 9” deep dish pie dish.  Brush the edges of the pie dish with the egg wash and place the crust on top of the pot pie mixture.  (If the crust is too stiff, let sit at room temperature for just a few minutes.)  Lightly press the edge of the crust to the pie dish making sure the crust is sealed to the edge with a slight overlap.  Make a small hole (about ½”) in the top of the crust to let the steam escape.  This will keep the crust from exploding.   Brush the crust all over with the egg wash.

Bake the pot pie for 30 – 40 minutes, until the crust is puffed and golden brown.  Remove from the oven and let the pot pie rest 15 minutes before serving.  (We all remember when we were kids digging into a little pot pie just out of the oven and burning the roof of our mouths from the scalding pot pie filling.)

If you have any questions don’t hesitate to ask.  You can either comment directly on this blog in the comment section or send me an email.

camille@camillecooksforyou.com 

Leftover Turkey’s Second Wind

This entry was posted in Ahh Haa Moments, Food For Thought, Hints and Tips, Puff Pastry, Recipes To Share, Turkey, Vegetables and tagged . Bookmark the permalink.