Turkey Shepards Pie

October is such an amazing month, it heralds in an array of beautiful colours, all across the prairies. October is Pumpkin Month and the celebration of Thanksgiving. I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving weekend. With Thanksgiving, often comes the task of using up leftover turkey. Here are some ideas. There is the famous turkey on a freshly baked bun, with some mayo, lettuce, and a spoonful of cranberry sauce. There is the Hot Turkey Sandwich, with a slice of bread, sliced turkey, and covered in leftover turkey gravy. You can also make Turkey Salad spread with chopped turkey, chopped onion, celery, some relish, mayonnaise, and salt and pepper. Serve on sandwiches with buttered bread and lettuce. Leftover turkey can become a turkey wrap. Another way to use up Turkey Supper leftovers is a Turkey Shepards Pie. Find the recipe below for this prairie favorite. All of these ideas will be helpful again when December 25 rolls around, which is always super-fast.

The carcass from the turkey can be turned into a nutritious bone broth. You can use a whole raw chicken, or the bones of your Thanksgiving or Christmas turkey, to make a healthy and delicious bone broth for turkey soup. Remove the meat from the turkey bones, & place the bones in a pot of water. Boil them for 3 or 4 hours with some salt, pepper, a carrot, a bay leaf, and an onion. Add a little pickle juice (4 tablespoons) or vinegar (2 tablespoons) to help pull all the beneficial minerals from the bone. If you don’t have time to boil the bones up, simply freeze the bones in a freezer bag, until you have a convenient time to make broth. You can also make bone broth in the slow cooker, letting it cook for overnight or up to 2 days. Bone broth is considered a food for healing, as it is filled with many beneficial nutrients. Strain the broth from the bones for your soup stock base.

Pumpkins are in season all month, so it is the perfect time to get one and cook it for all your favourite pumpkin desserts. Speaking of pumpkin, a local pumpkin grower from Lloydminster Don Crews, grew the largest Pumpkin in /Canada, taking first place in the Smoky Lake Pumpkin growing contest. His Pumpkin was over 2,000 pounds. Don Crews also won this year again and will be in downtown Lloydminster, on October 15, from 1 – 5 p.m. with his winning pumpkin on display. Until two years ago, I had no idea that we could grow pumpkins that big in our region. Another local pumpkin grower will be present as well with his large pumpkin and locally grown large watermelon if all goes well.

Turkey Shepards Pie

Cubed cooked turkey

Gravy

Cooked peas and carrots

1 cup chopped onion

Cooked mashed potatoes

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Combine the turkey, leftover gravy, leftover peas, carrot, and chopped onion. Pour the mixture into a casserole dish, with the size suited to the size of the mixture. Cover the mixture with mashed potatoes. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 – 40 minutes.