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November 26, 2005

Tomorrow's Turkey

Turkey burnout is insidious. One minute your bird is beautiful and fragrant, floating majestically to the table, its crisp skin glistening. You could eat every last bite all by yourself. But in a twinkling--or, to be exact, after a couple of servings--the feast loses its luster. By the time the candles have been snuffed, the good china put away, and the wine glasses washed, what's left of your 20-pounder looks like just one more responsibility. Worse, the week ahead looms with the dreary prospects of turkey hash, turkey supreme, and turkey a la king. For a moment, you consider getting a really big dog.

Not to sound unsympathetic, but snap out of it! Strip that bird straightaway with a sharp knife, and quickly refrigerate the white and dark meat in separate airtight containers (for up to five days or freeze for up to two months). Don't labor over the bones and fatty "parson's nose," telling yourself you'll boil them down into soup stock--you know you won't be in the mood for that anytime soon. Toss 'em, and be done with it. Feel better? You should. You've cleared the slate for a fresh approach to this versatile, forgiving meat and stocked a ready-to-use supply.

Have you tried...

White Turkey Chili

1 tablespoon stick margarine or butter
1 1/2 cups chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped celery
1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper
1 tablespoon minced seeded jalapeño pepper
1 garlic clove, minced
3 cups chopped cooked turkey (about 15 ounces)
2 (19-ounce) cans cannellini beans or other white beans, drained and divided
2 (16-ounce) cans fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
1 (4.5-ounce) can chopped green chiles
1 cup frozen whole-kernel corn
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 cup 1% low-fat milk
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro

Melt the margarine in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onion and next 4 ingredients (onion through garlic), and sauté 5 minutes. Add turkey, 1 1/2 cups beans, broth, and next 6 ingredients (broth through black pepper), and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 15 minutes.

Mash remaining beans. Add mashed beans and milk to the turkey mixture. Simmer, uncovered, 20 minutes or until mixture is thick, stirring frequently. Stir in chopped cilantro.


Yield: 11 servings (serving size: 1 cup)

CALORIES 217(19% from fat); FAT 4.6g (sat 1.1g,mono 1.3g,poly 1.6g); PROTEIN 19.6g; CHOLESTEROL 33mg; CALCIUM 82mg; SODIUM 462mg; FIBER 3.5g; IRON 3.2mg; CARBOHYDRATE 25.1g
Courtesy of Cooking Light

Posted by Lisa at November 26, 2005 03:50 PM

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