which may be a first in the history of this blog

You have probably consumed all of your holiday leftovers by this time, but if there is still some stuffing hiding in your refrigerator, you may want to try a "Leftover Holiday Salad". Yes, Chris looked somewhat askance when I told him I was making this, ELEVEN days after Thanksgiving. He has a more delicate constitution than I and is not a proponent of the "if it smells ok, it's ok" rule, which I follow. 

So the key ingredient is your leftover stuffing which should be cubed and placed on a cookie sheet (sprayed with olive oil) in a 400 degree oven for 15-20 minutes. Key ingredient #2 is dried cranberries that you are going to pour some red wine vinegar over and get a quick pickle on them. Twenty minutes is plenty of time. 

Rest of ingredients are variable - I used chopped romaine, chopped smoked turkey, some roasted broccoli, chopped apple, and a few walnuts. All of this in whatever ratio works for you. Dressing was leftover from the Thanksgiving slaw - 1/3 cup vegetable oil, 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar, 2 T maple syrup, 4 tsp. dijon mustard, 1/3 cup finely minced red onion, 1/2 tsp kosher salt.  Mix it all together and let it sit while so flavors mix nicely. This was an excellent dressing which I will make regularly for dressing any kind of greens.  

I am already planning to make a pan of stuffing in February sometime, just so I can make croutons out of it. They really are that good. This salad has superseded my previous favorite way to use leftovers which was the toasted bread, cream cheese, turkey, cranberry sauce, sandwich AKA the cranky turkey.

Thus concludes the leftover post, which may be a first in the history of this blog, and is rightfully filed in the completely mundane category. Please feel free to share your dirty (or not) leftover secrets in the comments. 

Comments

[Emie]

Stuffing vs dressing first off... I can never figure out what means what. I've always went with stuffing is dressing made to stuff a turkey and dressing if you bake it in a separate pan? But, this year on The Rachael Ray show she made "stuffing balls". She formed and baked her dressing into meatball shapes and baked them that way. For us, we love those crusty brown bits so this is a fabulous idea. I've also done it in muffin tins but the balls were better. Plus, as Rachael Ray says, "Its just fun to say the word balls".

[jeanette sclar]

I am a strict adherent to the 3-days-maximum-for re-use-of-ANY-leftovers, please post again soon, so I can stop worrying that you've been poisoned. :-)

[Faith]

I am still mixing leftover cranberry sauce into my morning oatmeal.

[carol]

Faith: I did miss not getting any of my sister-in-laws cranberries for that very purpose this year. I bought a can of cranberries - cause that's what we had when we were kids - sliced. It doesn't seem like it would be great on oatmeal.... but then again....