Tag: Hints

Sausage, Peppers and Onions

There are a lot of opinions when it comes to Sausage & Peppers sandwiches. The main controversy is if they should have marinara sauce or not. I have had both and though I don’t have a strong opinion and I will eat the sandwich either way, I like to make my sandwiches without marinara sauce. My main reasoning is that less ingredients is better. If I use a jar of marinara sauce, that means I will have one less meal of spaghetti or if I make meatballs, I may be lacking in sauce (because we all know meatballs taste so much better in sauce). I’m not going to write out a huge recipe on this since I don’t season it other than adding oil. I also just use mild Italian sausage, though if you like hot, that’s also popular. The only thing that’s kind of weird is that I like to cut my sausage in half lengthwise. I also try to remove the casing at this point because it can cook up kind of chewy. I cook the flat side down for a few minutes until it’s mostly cooked through, then I’ll flip them and place them along the outer edge of my pan to cook the whole curved surface. Once they are cooked, I’ll add either my fresh cut peppers & onions and a bit more oil, or just add a frozen bag of peppers & onions. Then, I serve each half on hotdog buns. I usually plan 2 sandwiches per person, and serve other dishes on the side like a veggie and a pasta.

1

Thanksgiving: Leftovers – Turkey Shepherds Pie

Shepherd’s Pie is a great way to use up any mashed potatoes or any other Thanksgiving leftovers you have left. I used 1 can of sweet peas and 1 can of sliced carrots, and I added what little corn I had left from Thanksgiving. I used up my leftover veggies, my thanksgiving mashed potatoes, and the remaining turkey that hadn’t been frozen yet. I also used a mixture of light and dark meat. As always, my recipe is very forgiving and versatile, and making it your own is encouraged!

  • Chop a medium onion (1 cup) and cook in butter/oil (5 Tbsp) until translucent.
  • Once that is cooked, you can add any uncooked veggies you desire (corn, peas, carrots), cook until soft, then add any other veggies you have left or desire.
  • Dice up any turkey you have left maxing at about 3 cups for a hearty meal, then add to the veggies. Add 1 Tbsp of ground thyme and dried sage (or any other variety of the 2 herbs).
  • Add 4 cups of turkey or chicken stock cook until hot, then slowly add flour while stirring to reduce clumping. Add flour until the mixture begins to form thick coating on your spoon (about 5 Tbsp).
  • Transfer mixture to a casserole dish and top with mashed potatoes and optional grated cheese.
  • Bake at 400 F for 15 minutes or until hot and bubbling. Wait for it to cool about 35 minutes to serve.

To see the other recipes I cooked this year, head back to my Thanksgiving: Overview post!

1

Thanksgiving: Leftovers – Turkey Stirfry

After several days of thanksgiving dinners, we needed a break from the standard thanksgiving flavor, so I decided I would take my usual Chicken stir fry recipe and just substitute in some cooked turkey. If you don’t have Worcestershire sauce, you can use soy sauce and add garlic and onion (powder or minced). Sorry no photos this time! I’m still trying to remember to take some whenever I cook.

  • 1 1/2 cup of cubed turkey
  • some oil
  • Worcestershire sauce
  • Ground ginger
  • Frozen stir fry veggies
  • Cooked rice (for serving)
  1. Start by placing 2 Tbsp of oil into a wok or dutch oven and heat to medium-high.
  2. Carefully add the Turkey and cook till you begin to see color
  3. Add the frozen veggies and any ice in the bag. Add 4 Tbsps of Worcestershire sauce, and 1 Tsp of ground ginger. Coat everything in the sauce and cook until veggies are hot.
  4. Serve over rice!

To see the other recipes I cooked this year, head back to my Thanksgiving: Overview post!

1

Thanksgiving: Leftovers – Turkey Sandwich/Wrap

Turkey Sandwiches are a staple of thanksgiving leftovers. This was the wrap I made my husband for lunch today, using up the last of the leftovers I had in the fridge. Though everyone makes their sandwiches different, this is the way that I learned. You can make this recipe by heating things up as I do to eat it now, or you can make it cold and reheat it, or you can just eat it cold. I put below the recipe for a sandwich, but you can do the same process (minus mayo) for a wrap. As you can see from my photo, I layered stuffing, turkey, then cranberry sauce.

  1. Toast your bread.
  2. Microwave 1 cup of stuffing, and about 1/2 cup of turkey till warm, about 1 minute.
  3. Mayo both inside faces of your bread if you desire.
  4. Layer turkey on one face and pack stuffing onto other mayo face.
  5. Cut a thin slice of cranberry sauce and place on top of stuffing.
  6. Invert turkey bread onto stuffing mountain, consume.

To see the other recipes I cooked this year, head back to my Thanksgiving: Overview post!

1

Thanksgiving: Aftermath – Stock

I had never made turkey stock before, but I know so many people say that stock is a must because it tastes so good. It also felt good to feel like I was using the entirety of the bird rather then throwing out a part that could be used; that is also part of the reason I tried cooking the giblets this year.

After thanksgiving and removing the meat from the bones, I placed plastic wrap over the carcass in the roasting pan and placed it in the fridge overnight and I don’t think that made a difference compared to cooking it right way. I took the largest pot I have, broke apart the bones as much as I could, put them into the pot, covered them with water, got the liquid to simmering with the lid on, then took the lid off and simmered it for 3 1/2 hours. You can also add herbs like sprigs of thyme and sage to get the thanksgiving flavor into the stock, or veggies like onion, garlic or celery.

I used no seasoning because my cat likes the flavor and I don’t want to give him something that is bad for cats, ie onion or garlic, from what I’ve heard.

If you choose not to season it like I did, I have found I need to add salt, because I like a more savory broth. I also add some onion, and sage and thyme to my soup when I’m cooking it.

  • Get largest pot, and place broken up turkey bones into pot (and neck if you kept it)
  • Cover bones in pot with water and get to a boil, add additional veggies/herbs
  • Once boiling, reduce heat to simmer and simmer for 3-3.5 hours
  • Place larger bones into strainer, then strain remaining stock through strainer into another dutch oven.
  • If you want less matter in you stock, strain again through cheese cloth
  • Sock is good in the fridge for a week or can be frozen for 3 months

To see the other recipes I cooked this year, head back to my Thanksgiving: Overview post!

2

Website Powered by WordPress.com.

Up ↑

Design a site like this with WordPress.com
Get started