Thanksgiving leftovers -

by forkitude

Leftovers Week: Laundry Room Turkey Coconut Curry Soup

Luckily for my family there was a culinary student chef in the room when it came time to carve the Christmas turkey. And there I was, carving a turkey with tongs in my great aunt’s laundry room amid detergent and dryer sheets. The turkey, which had been cooking for what looked like days, sat in a roaster placed on top of the washing machine. The turkey cooked for so long in fact, that the meat just fell off of the carcass. Yes, this happened. Bless my great aunt who does all of this on her own and refuses anyone’s help. Even a chef’s. Ah, the stubborn Czech.

After the Christmas turkey had been “carved,” green bean casserole consumed, and stomachs bulged over belts, the leftovers were put in doggie bags for us to take home. What to do with this uber-cooked turkey? Well, soup of course.

Gridiron Grub: Remixing the Mixto

A Cuban sandwich is simply a variation of ham and cheese originally created in Cuban cafes as an easy lunchtime meal. Later on, Cuban immigrants brought it to South Florida where it is still very popular. Traditionally the sandwich is made with ham, roasted pork, Swiss cheese, pickles, and mustard. Simple enough, unless, like me, you live in an area where it is almost impossible to find good Cuban bread and when your previous attempts at duplicating the sandwich just didn’t turn out quite right. Despite previous failures I thought I would again attempt what the Cubans call a mixto sandwich, but make some changes to kick it up a few notches.

I attempted this right after Thanksgiving so I decided to incorporate turkey instead of roast pork to make my Remixed Mixto Sandwich. Ingredients and prep are simple because after hosting our first Thanksgiving, Black Friday and a trip to visit family a few hours away, I was beat on Sunday when game time rolled around. You will need: sweet honey cured ham, turkey, Gruyere, cranberry dressing, bread and butter pickles, mustard and ciabatta.

What Are We Leftovering?

ES reader MonkeyBoy writes in with this shot of his post-Thanksgiving breakfast the Endless Simmer way — with an egg on top.

What are you doing with those t-day leftovers? Boiling up a carcass or just classic sandwiching? Any creative ideas? Let’s hear it in the comments!

in Eggs / Holiday 4 comments

by Russell Warnick

Thanksgiving Extras: A Turkey Carcass Concoction

Let’s forget for one moment that I’m British, and just pretend that I’m an experienced hand at all things American, including Thanksgiving. I’ve lived in DC for many years now and during that time I’ve cooked several Thanksgiving dinners, and have even been trusted with the turkey.

Most of my friends venture home for Thanksgiving so we always make a point of getting together and celebrating the holiday ahead of time. I find that this is a great way to experiment with new recipes without the added pressure and guilt if something should go wrong. This year I experimented with the turkey. I grilled it, or should I say roasted it on the grill. It was an opportunity to do something different and create the extra space in the oven for all the sides — a dinner for twenty-three people brings with it a lot of sides. I’m not going to tell y’all about my turkey or how to cook it, ES has done that already but what I am going to tell you is what you can do with the turkey once it’s been hacked apart.