The second time around

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Tomorrow is Thanksgiving and once all the relatives and friends leave your home, there is nothing but kitchen clean-up and the leftovers.

I always make turkey vegetable soup with the carcass. Simply remove all the meat from the bones and, if your bird weighed more than 15 pounds, chop the carcass in a few pieces so it will easily fit into the pot. You can freeze the bones for later use, but I always like to make the soup on Black Friday.

Since I will be out in stores on the biggest shopping day of the year, I want to come home to a hearty bowl of steaming soup and a turkey sandwich. Sometimes I make turkey salad and stuff it into a pita or serve it on whole wheat toast.

A wonderful thing about poultry is turkey can be used in place of chicken in many recipes. (Raw ground turkey has become a butcher-shop staple.) The Thanksgiving bird is already cooked. All you do is chop it by hand or in the food processor to use in a myriad of recipes.

I just received a copy of the "What Can I Bring? Cookbook," by Anne Byrn. She is the author of "The Cake Mix Doctor" and a few others I have written about through the years. Byrn’s newest is a collection of more than 200 recipes for great-tasting, easy-to-tote dishes for parties, picnics, potlucks, backyard barbecues, holiday dinners or any get-together. I have her recipe for Turkey Tetrazzini here for you to enjoy.

Ingredients:

• Canola oil, to cover the bottom of a six-quart stockpot
• 2 large onions, diced
• 4 large carrots, diced
• 4 ribs of celery, diced
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• Turkey carcass
• 1 32-ounce package chicken or vegetable stock
• Enough cold water to cover the carcass
• 4 cups leftover turkey, cubed or shredded

Directions:

• Heat the oil over medium-high. Add the onions, carrots and celery and saut� for about eight to 10 minutes. Add the salt and pepper. Saut� the vegetables for about one minute more.
• Add the remaining ingredients, bringing the contents to a boil. Lower to simmer and place the lid askew. Simmer for at least 90 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• Serves six to eight.
• Note from Phyllis: Serve the soup with either steamed rice or egg noodles.

Ingredients:

• 8 ounces thin spaghetti, cooked according to package directions
• 3 cups of cooked turkey, chopped or shredded
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 8 ounces mushrooms, sliced
• 1/2 cup of onion, chopped
• 1/2 cup of celery, chopped
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 cups of chicken broth
• 1 cup of heavy cream
• 2 tablespoons sherry
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 1 cup of grated Parmesan
• 1/2 cup of pecans, chopped
• 1/4 cup of green olives, sliced

Directions:

• Place the noodles and turkey in a large mixing bowl and toss.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
• For the sauce, place the butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add the mushrooms, onion and celery and stir until softened, three to four minutes. Reduce the heat to medium-low and add the flour, stirring for one minute.
• Add the broth and stir until it begins to thicken, one to two minutes. Add the cream and stir until combined.
• Add the sherry, salt and pepper, stirring until the mixture just comes to a boil, about two minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in one-half cup of the Parmesan.
• Pour the sauce into the bowl with the spaghetti and turkey and combine well.
• Transfer the mixture to a 13-by-9-inch glass or ceramic baking dish and top with the pecans, olives and remaining Parmesan,.
• Bake until it is bubbly, 25 to 30 minutes. Let rest for 10 minutes.
• Serves eight to 10.

Ingredients:

• 4 cups of leftover turkey, cubed or shredded
• 4 ribs of celery, diced
• 1 small carrot, finely grated
• 1 shallot, finely diced
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• Mayonnaise, to taste

Directions:

• Place all of the ingredients in a bowl and combine.
• Serves six to eight.

Note from Phyllis: You can serve this as the centerpiece of a cool platter lined with romaine lettuce, cucumbers, tomatoes, rinsed and well-drained canned artichoke hearts — all sliced — and a handful of your favorite olives.