Leftovers: The Eternal Question

It is the blessing and curse of family feasts that the memorable meals we create also generate a substantial amount of leftovers. This is particularly true in the case of turkey-related meals, because a small family will have leftovers from even a tiny bird, and a large family typically overestimates how many pounds of bird it will take to sedate its members into a tryptophan-induced stupor. Everyone wants to be sure that there's at least enough bird leftover to make a turkey sandwich or two, preferably on sourdough bread spread with cranberry sauce and maybe just a touch of stuffing - because nothing says holiday leftovers like bread stuffed with bread. Except, in my case, I would rather chop the hapless leftovers into small pieces, smother them in a velouté sauce, and cover them with bread - er, biscuit, actually.

The biscuit dough was a little feistier than usual, or I was a little heavier-handed, because this batch wasn't as featherlight as is typical. Still, it's a whole new lease on life for turkey leftovers (and the bits of bacon that cling tenaciously to the skin) that a) uses up most of the leftovers at once, so they don't languish in the fridge or freezer, and b) is significantly different from the feast whence it came in flavours, despite being full of turkey goodness. A little corn, some sliced carrots, some mushrooms - turkey is very veggie-friendly, so you could easily add whatever you like best: some braised fennel, peas, yam chunks, even potatoes if you feel your dinner is not sufficiently carbohydrate-rich.

And, if by chance (and it would have to be by chance, in my household) there's a teensy bit of wine leftover from the dinner or there's an extra unopened bottle lurking around just waiting for a purpose in its life, you pour yourself a glass and sit down to a meal that's fit for anyone who knows good food.