Here we are, just a few days away from what is, without a doubt, the biggest food day of the year and I’m thinking not of the day itself, but of the leftovers.
But let me back up a moment. Until the other day, I hadn’t actually given much thought to my menu. I guess because for us it never changes: turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, Cookie Lert (aka chocolate wafer icebox cake, but that’s another story). I did do some preliminary taste testing of Trader Joe’s gluten-free boxed stuffing mix (don’t judge) and stood and stared at the turkeys that have pushed all other meats aside.
But standing and staring isn’t buying and planning, and by the time I actually bought a turkey, I had to get just that: a turkey. What I wanted was a turkey breast; instead, I ended up with the whole kit and caboodle. And with just three of us around the table this year, that means a lot of leftover turkey.
Which is why this recipe, adapted from Martha Stewart, will be put into use on Friday. I tested this one with chicken, adding walnuts and apples for even more crunch. And since it’s going to be in the 70’s here all week, it isn’t exactly soup weather in San Diego. And that’s fine by me.
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- 1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
- 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (one lemon)
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
- 2 cups diced chicken
- 2 large stalk celery, diced
- ¼ cup chopped parsley
- ½ cup diced apple, such as Honeycrisp
- ¼ cup golden raisins
- ⅓ cup chopped walnuts or almonds
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- Arugula, for serving as a salad, or whole wheat gluten-free bread, for serving as a sandwich
- Make the dressing: in a small bowl, combine the mayonnaise, lemon zest, 1 tablespoon lemon juice and pepper. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, combine the chicken, celery, parsley, apple, raisins, walnuts and the remaining lemon juice. Add the dressing.
- Serve as a salad atop arugula or as a sandwich on toasted whole wheat gluten-free bread.
Love the addition of the honey crisp apple, my favorite. Happy Thanksgiving, Lisa – just three of us and a kitty, so we will have lots of leftover turkey as well.
Thanks Liz – happy Thanksgiving to you three as well!
The leftover turkey is the best part of Thanksgiving. Great salad and I love the addition of apples.