I think we can all agree, there’s just nothing like Mom’s home cookin’. It just tastes better, doesn’t it? For that reason I’ve asked my Mom to submit some of her favorite recipes for me to share with y’all each Monday. Let’s get cooking in the kitchen with Mom!
Turkey, turkey, turkey! It’s all over the place! Not only do we have a bunch of leftover Thanksgiving turkey, you can also score some pretty cheap at the grocery stores right now (last I heard Safeway had them on clearance for $0.29 per lb!). I’m tempted to pick one up just because it is so cheap and you can get so many meals out of them.
One of our favorite after Thanksgiving dishes is Turkey Tetrazzini. Not only is it quick to whip up, it’s a great way to use up those turkey leftovers, and it is delicious. In fact it is so delicious we like to make it in batches and keep it in the freezer for when we need a quick fix 😉
- 1 ½ pounds thin spaghetti, broken in half
- 4 tbsp. butter
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 pound white mushrooms, quartered
- ½ tsp. salt
- 1 cup white wine (I prefer Chardonnay)
- ⅓ cup flour
- 4 cups turkey or chicken broth
- 1 8 oz. block of cream cheese, room temperature
- 3 cups cooked turkey (or chicken), shredded or diced
- 1-1/2 cup green peas (you can use frozen; I prefer canned extra small peas)
- 1 cup grated Monterey Jack cheese
- 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- Extra broth for thinning (just in case)
- 1 cup panko bread crumbs
- Cook pasta until not quite done - al dente according to package instructions (it will finish cooking in the oven.) Drain, rinse, and set aside.
- While the pasta is cooking, heat butter over medium-high heat in a large pot. Add garlic and saute for a couple of minutes.
- Add mushrooms and salt, then saute for a couple more minutes.
- Pour in the wine and allow it to cook with the mushrooms for several minutes, or until the liquid reduces by half.
- Sprinkle in flour, then stir the mixture for another couple of minutes.
- Pour in the broth and stir, cooking for another few minutes until the sauce thickens.
- Reduce heat to medium low.
- Cut cream cheese into pieces and add it to the pot. Stir it to melt. (Note, the cream cheese may not melt entirely at first; no worries, it will eventually.)
- Add the leftover turkey, the peas and the cheeses. Stir to combine, taste and add salt and pepper as needed.
- Add the cooked spaghetti and stir it to combine.
- Splash in more broth as needed; you want the mixture to have a little extra moisture as the pasta will soak some of it up while in the oven. If it's a little soupy, that's fine! Add up to 1 more cup of liquid if you think it needs it.
- Pour the mixture into a large baking dish and sprinkle the top with panko crumbs. Bake at 350 degrees F for 20 minutes, or until the casserole is bubbly and the crumbs are golden brown.
- Enjoy!