Leftovers, Freezing and Preserving

Leftovers, Freezing and Preserving

Thanksgiving 2011 was a great success with good friends and family. We had a ton of food, some pictures I will share with you here. We also had a ton of leftovers that I did not want to go to waste.  I purchased a 18 pound Turkey and we had all the trimmings; stuffing, corn, beans, spaghetti squash, carrot/turnip mash, mashed potatoes, gravy and homemade dinner rolls. Although I must confess - the dinner rolls didn't turn out as well as expected. But overall the meal was a hit!

Here is a list of the leftovers I managed to save and freeze for use another day. Included in this list is some produce from my crisper drawer that I had picked from my garden and had not had a chance to use.

• Spaghetti Squash - 2 cups (4 portions or 2 adult sized portions)
• Mashed Potatoes - 5 cups (to be used this week as topping for a Shepherd's Pie)
• Corn and Beans - 4 cups (to be used for a turkey stew or soup later)
• Chopped Turkey -  12 cups (separated into 4 cup portions for 3 meals)
• Carrot/Turnip Mash - 6 cups (frozen side dish for a later meal)
• Green Pepper - 4 cups (diced for additions to pasta sauce, stir fry, etc.)
• Diced Tomatoes - 8 cups (separated into 4 cup portions for 2 meals)
• Bread Crumbs - 4 cups (blended dinner rolls in the food processor)

I also made a delicious turkey stock with the turkey carcass - 2 pots full to be exact. I let the stock cool and then I ladled it into ice cube trays and froze in batches. For each ice cube you get 1/4 cup of stock, so 8 cubes equals about a cup. I saved them in a couple of giant zipper freezer bags for use later in soups and stews, etc. I saved a few extra litres of the stock in Mason Jars in the fridge as well. They will keep here for up to 2 weeks. If you don't use it all by that tine just freeze it!

Here is a link to the recipe:

Turkey Stock -- http://nobodysperfect-supermommy81.blogspot.com/2011/10/homemade-turkey-stock.html

Important Safety Tips for Freezing & Thawing of Foods:   http://life.familyeducation.com/foods/safety/36570.html