My husband and I hosted his family for Thanksgiving this year. That meant that 9 adults and 3 kids were going to be piling into our house expecting a delicious Thanksgiving dinner....talk about stress! Fortunately my in-laws are absolutely AMAZING and brought pretty much everything we'd need to make dinner. And to top it off my mother in law taught me her recipes and helped me cook everything!! We had a 26 pound turkey, homemade mashed potatos, sweet potatos with brown sugar topping, green bean casserole, creamed corn, stuffing, homemade applesauce, and my sister in law brought homemade rolls! It was not only extremely filling but also delicious!
Dinner table before we got ahold of it!
Yes, we had an extra table added at the end of our dining room table. My husband and I are not used to hosting 12 people for dinner yet. It was great though. Thanksgiving is probably one of my favorite holiday, after all, it revolves around food! But we do take the time to go around the table saying what each one of us is thankful for in our lives. It is times like this that you realize how great your family really is....even if you think they're crazy 99% of the rest of the year!
The other great thing about Thanksgiving is the leftovers!! Turkey sandwiches with mayo and salt is one of my favorites. Since we hosted this year we got to keep all the leftover food...which was surprisingly a lot of food considering we had 12 people at dinner! My father in law is a caterer and as he was leaving to go back home he mentioned that I should use the leftover turkey to make Turkey Tetrazinni. And since I LOVE pasta and had more turkey than I knew what to do with, I thought it was a great idea! I found this recipe for Turkey Tetrazinni by googling it. After looking at a handful of recipes I thought this one looked simple and delicious. It has a very earthy, woodsy taste to the sauce but it works wonderfully with the turkey.
The other great thing about Thanksgiving is the leftovers!! Turkey sandwiches with mayo and salt is one of my favorites. Since we hosted this year we got to keep all the leftover food...which was surprisingly a lot of food considering we had 12 people at dinner! My father in law is a caterer and as he was leaving to go back home he mentioned that I should use the leftover turkey to make Turkey Tetrazinni. And since I LOVE pasta and had more turkey than I knew what to do with, I thought it was a great idea! I found this recipe for Turkey Tetrazinni by googling it. After looking at a handful of recipes I thought this one looked simple and delicious. It has a very earthy, woodsy taste to the sauce but it works wonderfully with the turkey.
Turkey Tetrazzini
Simplyrecipes.com
- 12 oz egg noodles, spaghetti, linguini or other pasta (I used egg noodles)
- 12 ounces mushrooms, sliced (about 4-5 cups)
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 cups of milk
- 1/4 cup cream
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 1/4 cup dry sherry (or vermouth or dry white wine)
- 3 cups coarsely chopped cooked turkey
- 1 cup peas
- 2/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan (divided into 1/3 and 1/3 cups)
- 1/3 cup shredded Swiss cheese (I used Monterey Jack b/c I'm not fond of Swiss)
- 2 Tbsp lemon juice
- Salt and Pepper
- Ground nutmeg (optional - I did not use)
- 1/3 cup fine fresh bread crumbs (or panko - I used Italian bread crumbs)
- Freshly chopped parsley for garnish (optional)
2 Cook the mushrooms in 3 Tbsp of the butter over medium heat, stirring, until all of the liquid the mushrooms give off has evaporated, 5-10 minutes. Set aside.
3 In a large, heavy saucepan, melt 1/4 cup of butter. Stir in the flour, and cook the mixture over low heat, stirring, for 3 minutes.
4 About now, put the pasta into the boiling water you've heated. Follow the package directions and cook until al dente. While the pasta is cooking continue on with the recipe.
5 Into the saucepan with the butter and flour, slowly whisk in the milk, cream, broth, and the sherry. Bring to a simmer and cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, for about 5 to 8 minutes.
6 When the pasta is ready, drain it. In a large bowl combine the pasta, the sauce, the mushrooms, the turkey, and the peas. Stir in 1/3 cup of the Parmesan and the 1/3 cup of Swiss cheese. Stir in the lemon juice. Add salt and pepper to taste. Note that if you have been using unsalted butter, and/or unsalted or low sodium stock, you will need to add more salt than you might expect. Just keep sprinkling it in until it is seasoned to your taste. Add a pinch of ground nutmeg if using, again to taste. Transfer the mixture to a buttered 3-quart casserole.
7 In a small bowl combine well the remaining 1/3 cup Parmesan and the bread crumbs. Sprinkle the mixture evenly over the tetrazzini, and dot the top with the remaining 1 tablespoon butter, cut into bits.
8 Bake the Tetrazzini in the middle rack of the oven for 30 to 40 minutes, or until it is bubbling and the top is golden. Garnish individual servings with chopped parsley.
Serves 4 to 6.
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