Day After Sliders and Dagwoods

I think one of the best parts of Thanksgiving is the leftovers. If we have an early Thanksgiving dinner, we may have sandwiches later that evening. No matter when you have them, they are something to be thankful for.

Turkey Sliders/Cluckers
(little sandwiches that slide down your throat)

Small buns or rolls (my favorite roll recipe follows)
Turkey
Miracle Whip (so says sister Alyssa, but just on these)
or good mayo like Best Foods
Cranberry sauce

Spread Miracle Whip or mayo on each side of roll
Whatever else you what to put on them, remember they are to be small as opposed to the Dagwood.

Dagwoods
(my honey’s favorite)

Good whole grain bread
Mayonnaise
Mustard, whole grain (optional)
Turkey
Ham (optional)
Cranberry sauce
Dressing/stuffing
Sprouts
Ranch House dressing

Spread mayo and mustard on both sides of bread. Start stacking one side of bread with turkey and ham, then cranberry sauce,dressing, sprouts, and drizzle with Ranch House dressing. Place the remaining slice of bread on and hope you can wrap your mouth around it.

Savory Rolls
(courtesy of the Ford sisters)
¾ cup Parmesan cheese (the finer, the better)
¼ cup dried parsley
¼ tsp. garlic salt
melted butter
24 Rhodes Rolls

Mix cheese, parsley and garlic salt, set aside. Dip frozen rolls in melted butter and roll in cheese mixture. Place on cookie sheet and let rise per roll directions on bag, about 4-5 hours. Bake according to package directions.

To Stuff Or Dress, That Is The Question

…a confusing dilemma indeed. So, I turned to my trusty food dictionary, sort of a foodie’s Bible if you will, Food Lover’s Companion (from now on referred to as FLC). Under dressing it says, “A mixture used to stuff poultry, fish, meat and some vegetables. It can be cooked separately or in the food in which it is stuffed. Dressings (also called stuffings) are usually well seasoned and based on breadcrumbs or cubes-though rice, potatoes and other foods are also used.” It also refers to dressing as “a sauce, usually cold, used to top salads-some cold vegetables, fish and meat dishes”. I will be referring to the first one.

Clear as gravy? My thinking is a stuffing is anything you stuff into something, of course that could be a wad of cash you put in your bra or what you do when you put your jeans on following Thanksgiving. Anyhow, I digress when I am suppose to be clarifying this muddle for the home cook, perhaps even for an Iron Chef.

Back in the day of going out and killing your own game for dinner/supper (yet another quandary) the hunter would need to “dress” his catch. “Meaning to prepare game, fowl, fish and so forth by plucking, scalding, eviscerating, and so on.” It also can mean, “to dress a salad, which simply means adding a dressing”(FLC). This had nothing to do with being dressed by Tim Gunn, although a girl can dream.

So whatever you want to call it, I love it. I even like Stove Top, but at Thanksgiving I have to make the real thing. It doesn’t take long and you can experiment with it. Below is a basic recipe that you can build upon, following it one of my favorites. What FLC didn’t define is stuffing yourself!
Happy Thanksgiving.

To my sister Alyssa who asked for recipes:

Basic Stuffing:
1 16-oz bag stuffing (I prefer Pepperidge Farm’s Herb Seasoned Stuffing)
1 ½ sticks unsalted butter (12 Tablespoons)
4-6 stalks celery with leaves, medium dice
1 large yellow onion, diced
4-6 cups low-sodium chicken broth
10 sprigs fresh thyme leaves, stripped from stem
10 fresh sage leaves chopped

Preheat oven to 350’. Butter 2-quart baking dish.

Melt 3 Tablespoons of butter in skillet and sauté’ onions and celery until soft. Add remaining butter, thyme and sage. Add broth and season to taste with salt and pepper, heat through. Pour over stuffing mix, toss well and place in buttered dish. Bake 30-40 minutes until browned on top. Let set 10 minutes before serving.

Sausage, Cherry and Sage Stuffing
1 lb. sweet Italian sausage, remove casings
1 stick butter
3 cups onions, chopped
2 cups celery, chopped
1 T. fresh sage and thyme, chopped
2 T. fresh parsley, chopped
6 cups croutons or Pepperidge Farms Herb Stuffing
½ t. allspice
¼ cup maple syrup (the real stuff)
2 cups dried cherries
1 cup toasted pecans, chopped
2 cups chicken broth (low sodium) may need more
Salt and Pepper to taste

Preheat oven 350’

Sauté’ sausage in large skillet, crumbling until cooked through. Remove sausage with slotted spoon to a large bowl. Discard sausage fat. Melt butter in pan and add onions and celery. Sauté’ until tender 10-15 minutes. Add sausage, herbs, stock, allspice, maple syrup and warm through.

In bowl, place croutons, cherries and pecans. Pour stock mixture over and toss to coat. Mixture should be moist, not soggy. Add salt & pepper to taste. Place stuffing in buttered baking dish and cover with foil. Bake 1 hour then uncover and bake another 20 minutes until top is golden.

Turkey 101

Talking turkey could be considered a political term as well as a food term and either could apply at this time of year. However, before I delve into the "light or dark" side of politics, Thanksgiving happens to be one of my favorite holidays. I have been cooking turkey since I was in high school. About 15 years ago I found a great recipe and have used it ever since. I even experimented with how to get it done the day before so I would have room in the oven and the turkey mess already cleaned up. So "here it tis".

The Perfect Turkey

Preheat oven 375'
1 fresh turkey
stuffing
Bed of root veggies: White onion, scrubbed carrot (cut in chunks),
celery stalks (no leaves), cut in chunks, 5-6 garlic cloves,
three sprigs fresh thyme, rosemary or both (I prefer rosemary)
3 bay leaves, 2 turnips (scrubbed and cut in chunks)

Scatter root vegetables on bottom of roasting pan. Place turkey on top of veggies, stuff with favorite stuffing/dressing. Tie turkey legs together. Brush with baste mixture.
Baste mixture: 1 stick melted butter mixed with
3 T. olive oil
1 T. salt (that is right)
1/4 t. pepper

Place turkey in oven uncovered for 30 minutes at 375'
or until nicely browned.
Reduce the temperature to 275' cooking 20 minutes per each pound
of turkey or until internal temp reaches 160'.
Baste every 30 minutes with baste mixture and/or pan drippings.
Tent with foil and let turkey rest at least 20 minutes before carving.
Strain pan juices of solid and make your gravy.

*Do turkey the day ahead, carve and place in oven proof dish.
Pour some pan juices and place any loose turkey skin over the sliced turkey.
Seal well with foil.
Next day heat up at 350' for 30' minutes.

** I will be adding a FAQ at some point
to answer any cooking questions and to offer needed recipes.