Turkey Alfredo pizza recipe is a unique way to use leftover turkey

It's getting to the time where we need to use up our leftover turkey. If you can't look at one more turkey sandwich, we have an idea for you. How about a pizza featuring turkey.

 Our pizza has lots of great ingredients that are probably around your kitchen already anyway. This recipe uses caramelized onions. If you do not have any, just skip them, but do use them if you have them. We like to keep some in our freezer just for times like this.

If you have leftover cranberry sauce that uses whole cranberries, this might be good sprinkled on top of the pizza after it's baked.  So yummy.  Actually, you can play around with this recipe to come up with ways to use your favorite leftover Thanksgiving items to make the perfect pizza for your family.

Turkey Alfredo Pizza
Serves 1-2
1 8” Boboli crust
5 tsp edo sauce
1 tbsp Caramelized onion
¼ cup Turkey, diced
1 tsp Bacon, optional
2 tbsp Grated parmesan cheese
2-3 tbsp Grated mozzarella cheese
Arugula, optional

1. Preheat oven to 450°.
2. Place crust on a baking sheet.
3. Lightly spread alfredo sauce over entire crust. Sprinkle caramelized onion over sauce, then turkey and bacon. Sprinkle parmesan then mozzarella over pizza. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until the cheese is bubbly.
4. Sprinkle arugula lightly on top of the pizza, if using. Serve.

What's your favorite way to use leftover turkey? Leave your favorites in a comment here at the site.

The best and easiest enchilada casserole recipe using leftover turkey

Still looking for ideas for that leftover turkey you have to use up. How about trying our turkey enchilada casserole. It's quick and easy and uses ingredients you have around the house.  It also freezes well.

We used red enchilada sauce but you could easily use green enchilada sauce if that's your preference.



Turkey Enchilada Casserole
Serves 4

2 cups Leftover turkey, diced
15 oz can Enchilada sauce (we used Macayos)
½ cup Rotel©tomatoes, mild
4 oz Canned chopped green chiles
15 oz can Black beans, drained
Nonstick cooking spray
12-16 Corn tostada shells (6”)
1 ½ cups Pepper jack cheese/cheddar cheese mix

1. Preheat the oven to 350°.
2. Dice the turkey into small bite-sized cubes. Set aside.
3. Mix together the enchilada sauce, Rotel©tomatoes and green chiles.
4. Spray an 8x8” or 9x9” glass baking dish with non-stick spray. Place ½ cup of the enchilada sauce into the bottom of the dish. Place a layer of tostadas over the sauce. You may need to break some of the tostadas in half to evenly cover the bottom of the dish. Top this with one third of the turkey, one third of the beans and about one quarter of the cheese.
5. Starting with more tostadas, repeat the layers, ending with the last tostadas on top. Pour remaining sauce over the dish and top with remaining cheddar/pepper jack cheese.
6. Cover with aluminum foil and bake in the oven on the middle rack for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and bake an additional 10 minutes, or until cheese on top is bubbly. Let rest outside the oven for about 5 minutes. Serve.

To brine or not to brine...that is the question

Sometimes we want a little extra insurance for our turkey to be flavorful and juicy. In that case,  brining is a great option. What is brining? Brining is a process similar to marinating in which the turkey is soaked in a brine before cooking. At the most basic level, a brine is nothing more than a solution of water and salt. Additional flavorings such as sugar and spices can be added to the liquid, but are not required. This soaking gives the meat lots of flavor and helps keep the turkey juicy. Table salt or kosher salt can be used to make the brine; however kosher salt is recommended since it does not contain any additives. You can either prepare your own brining solution or purchase one pre-made. 

Some turkeys are already brined. If you see something on the package like ‘contains 15% salt solution’, your turkey is already brined. Do not brine it again. Also, Kosher turkeys are usually brined. Just make sure to read the label or talk to your butcher if you are not sure whether your turkey is brined or not.

To brine your turkey you will need a large plastic bucket, cooler or a non-reactive stock pot. Start with a turkey that’s completely thawed if using a frozen turkey. Remove the giblet packet and rinse the turkey inside and out. It’s best to keep your turkey in the fridge while brining, but sometimes that is not possible. In that case, a cooler with lots of ice packs will work just fine.

You can make the brine directly in the vessel you will be using (cooler, plastic bucket, etc.). Dissolve 4 cups of Kosher salt in 2 gallons of water. Add 1 cup of sugar, if desired. Mix the brine until the salt and sugar are completely dissolved. The water should be clear; not cloudy. Then add in your favorite seasonings such as bay leaves and dried herbs, if desired.

You will usually want to start the brining process the day before you are going to make your turkey. Place the turkey in the brine solution breast side down. Cover and chill for no more than 6 to 8 hours. When you’re ready to cook the bird, remove it from the brine and dispose of the brining liquid. Rinse the turkey under cold running water. Pat it dry and place it in the fridge overnight until you are ready to cook it. Optionally, you can cook the turkey right away.

You can cook your turkey by your favorite method once it is brined.

We did a brining segment on the Valley Dish program a while back and here are the basics of brining we discussed.

You can make your own brine as discussed in that article or you can purchase pre-made brines from companies such as www.myspicesage.com. Their brine contains French sea salt, sugar, orange peel, black and green peppercorns, toasted onion, garlic, basil and rosemary.

Do you have a favorite brine recipe? We’d love to know. Please leave a comment so we can share your favorites with others.

The best way to defrost your turkey

Thanksgiving is just a few days away. Have you purchased your turkey yet? If you are buying a frozen turkey, keep in mind that you will need to begin thawing it several days before Thanksgiving.
Buying a frozen turkey is convenient, especially if you have room in your freezer to keep it until you are ready to use it.  Keep in mind that it will definitely take a few days to thaw. We are personally using the refrigerator defrosting method which generally it takes about one day per five pounds of turkey to defrost. This is the safest way to defrost a turkey.

So what do you do if your turkey isn’t totally defrosted by Thanksgiving? You still have options. Of course, you could buy a fresh turkey and not have to worry about defrosting it. But that can be expensive and impractical. There are options to defrost turkeys quickly.

The best way to defrost a turkey quickly is to keep it covered in cool water. It takes about 30 minutes per pound to defrost a turkey in cold water. Change the water about every 30 minutes or so. Also, your turkey must be cooked immediately. Why, you ask? Thawing your turkey in cold water does not allow you to control the temperature in which your turkey is kept. This might allow bacteria to grow if not cooked immediately.

One other option for defrosting a turkey quickly is putting it in the microwave. Your turkey will have instructions on the packaging for defrosting this method. This is a last ditch method for defrosting your turkey for a few reasons. First, turkeys are often bigger than the microwave so they may not fit anyway. If they do fit, microwaves do not cook evenly and some parts will begin to cook while others are still rock solid. However, if you do use this method, you must cook your turkey immediately.

DO NOT LEAVE YOUR TURKEY OUT ON THE COUNTER TO DEFROST. That is the perfect way to get your guests sick.

One other thing to keep in mind...a turkey will cook more evenly if you allow it to come to room temperature before you cook it.  I usually leave it on the counter for 30 minutes to an hour before roasting. 


Do you want to brine your turkey? See our brining article. Not sure how to cook your turkey, see our turkey cooking methods article.