Your Turkey Sandwich

Almost as central to the big turkey dinner for American families is the turkey sandwich, the favorite use of turkey leftovers in the days after Thanksgiving. But just how to make a turkey sandwich seems to be as personal as one's DNA. When I was first married, I thought that a turkey sandwich was white bread (hey, I grew up when whole grain wasn't cool!) slathered with lots of mayo, and sliced turkey, very minimalist. After all, the turkey was the star, no need for distractions. So imagine my surprise when my husband asked me for a turkey sandwich after our first Thanksgiving together, and I found that he had a completely different and more complex expectation for what would be included.

My favorite: one slice of bread or leftover rolls split, small slathering of leftover stuffing, sliced turkey topped with warmed leftover gravy (My name is Deborah and I am gravy-holic...)

My husband's turkey sandwich: White bread spread with a thin layer of butter (or lately, Smart Balance), a light sprinkle of salt, a layer of stuffing, sliced turkey, thin slices of canned jellied cranberry sauce, topped with another slice of white bread.

In our house, some children have followed his lead- Andrew likes the Dowd Full Monty turkey sandwich like his dad, with Bridget simplifying by taking off the cranberry sauce. Young Gavin tends towards my minimalist approach, but with a very large helping of mayo (it has to be Duke's)

In looking around the blogosphere, I can see that there are as many versions of the turkey sandwiches as there are individuals, so tell me- what is your favorite formula for a knock -out turkey sandwich?

Weekend Herb Blogging: What to do with leftover...cheese grits!

Between catching up on work, trying to get the kids back in school, preparing for the possible visit of Tropical Storm Gabrielle, and celebrating my 33rd wedding anniversary, I wasn't sure that I would find the time to post to Weekend Herb Blogging, brainchild of Kalyn of Kalyn's Kitchen, and this week hosted by Katie of Thyme for Cooking. However, I made some cheese grits to go with some delicious scallops for our anniversary dinner (Before you say anything, we went out for lunch to my favorite sushi place!), and since I am still cooking for 8, I had leftovers, and being a good southerner, I could not throw out good cheese grits. But what can you do with leftover grits?

I decided to make a casserole to have the next night with some leftover barbecue pork, and in searching for mix-ins I headed to my garden cart (featured on a earlier WHB), which I have to say has been seriously affected by the drought (it is that unruly, cart right). Despite watering from our well,our fennel has gone to seed, we have gotten maybe a half-dozen tomatoes and a dozen cherry tomatoes all season, however I have tons of chives, and my tricolor sage apparently does not need much water. So I decided to take my chives and add them to the cheese grits with some scallions, bacon bits (real, of course), and some eggbeaters. Since I was getting rid of leftovers, I put some steamed broccoli I had leftover on the bottom of the casserole and poured the grits mixture over it and topped with cheddar and parmesan cheese and more chives (I guess you can tell Dowds love cheese!). I baked this in the oven and it was a great hit!

The chives added a delicate flavor to the grits, that was less of a star than an understudy. You could mix in whatever you want to the basic leftover grits, egg base to customize it for your family and tastes (or the Tupperware containers full of leftovers in your fridge. A great alternative to rice and potatoes, particularly when paired with spicy foods!


Leftover Grits Casserole with Chives

2 cups leftover cheese grits

3 chopped scallions

1 cup egg substitute or three beaten eggs

1/4 cup chopped fresh chives

1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese (reserve 1/2 cup)

1/4 cup bacon bits or three slices cooked bacon broken into pieces

Mix first three ingredients and stir in 1 and 1/4 cups of the cheese and the bacon bits. Spray casserole with non-stick spray or olive oil and pour grit mixture into casserole. Top with grated cheese and some additional chopped fresh chives. Bake in 350 degree oven about 25-30 minutes or until bubbly.