By Kathryn van
Well, the big day is over. The turkey has been devoured, the mashed potatoes have been consumed and the candied yams have gone the way of the Dodo.
Now what?
Usually there are enough leftovers from Thanksgiving dinner to last at least a week – enough to go from turkey craving to turkey abhorrence. This year, however, we spent Thanksgiving at my sister Abbie’s place in Tooele, and somehow I ended up with no leftovers whatsoever. So now I am sitting here craving a turkey sandwich with cranberry sauce, a huge dish of candied yams and a pile of stuffing topped with gravy.
If you’re in the same boat I am, you’ll be happy to hear that you don’t have to cook a whole turkey or make a boatload of mashed potatoes to enjoy the taste of Thanksgiving any time you want. Just think smaller portions and shortcuts.
Start with a whole turkey breast instead of the whole bird. You can find them in the meat section of your grocery store. Cook it according to the package and you have a small supply of good white meat to work with. You can then whip up a batch of mashed potatoes using potato flakes. For gravy, McCormick has a great turkey gravy mix that is quick and easy. You can find it with the other gravies and sauces on the soup aisle. Then heat canned yams mixed with some brown sugar and butter in the microwave, top them with marshmallows and put them under the broiler until the marshmallows brown.
The one place I never compromise is the stuffing. Yes, Stovetop is edible, but I like my stuffing full of flavor and texture. Fortunately, thanks to a wonderful invention called a crock pot, homemade stuffing is easier than pie.
If you are in the usual position and have Thanksgiving leftovers coming out of your ears, check out my article in this month’s “St. George Magazine” on how to keep that turkey interesting. (You can see this article soon in my other blog at southernutahwriter.blogspot.com )
Sage Mushroom Stuffing
This is best if you use dried leaf sage instead of powdered. If all you have is powdered, cut the amount in the recipe in half.
1 cup chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup butter or margarine
2 tablespoons dried sage leaves
1 cup sliced fresh mushrooms or 2 4-ounce cans sliced mushrooms.
1 cup matchstick carrots
8 cups dry bread cubes
1 cup chicken broth, plus extra for use during cooking
1/4 teaspoon ground pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
Melt the butter or margarine in a medium saucepan and use to cook the garlic and onion until the onion is tender but not brown. Add the mushrooms and carrots and cook just a bit longer until the mushrooms begin to get soft. Remove from heat. Stir in the sage, salt and pepper. Place the bread cubes in a large bowl. Pour the mushroom mixture over the bread and mix together. Add 1 cup chicken broth and mix until the bread is just moistened. Put the stuffing mixture into a greased 2-quart crock pot. It may overflow a bit at first, but the size will reduce with cooking. Turn the crock pot on high for about an hour, then turn to low for another 1 to 2 hours, stirring occasionally and adding more broth as needed. Serves 8 to 10.
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