I enjoy cooking so much because food provides connection on so many levels: with people, with the environment, with my body. I’ve found that as a common theme around the holidays, especially while cooking with my family for Thanksgiving. It’s a time to gather and share, and I’m thankful for the time and people who I’ve gotten to start off the holiday season sharing that with, and the leftovers after the big meal.
Last year was a year for firsts for our turkey day. Our family started buying a field-fed turkey from Dominion Valley, a local farm, and it was the first take on re-purposing Thanksgiving leftovers for Scrap Eats. While the sustainable turkey has now become a tradition, the take on Thanksgiving leftovers called for more innovation this year. I was inspired by watching the Great British Baking show when they were challenged with baking meat pies. As someone who rarely eats meat I was mystified by the episode. Nonetheless it got the wheels turning as the turkey and sausage in stuffing fit perfectly into the meat pie category. After some collaboration and brainstorming with my mom and my roommate, we concocted a dangerously tasty cottage-style pie complete with a flaky crust and topped with mashed potatoes.
The key to the pie crust is rolling it ¼ thick, cooking it for the allotted time based on the recipe you prefer and cranking the heat up 50 degrees higher for the last few minutes to get that golden brown crust with a nice crunch. I can only vouch for this if you’re baking a crust without a filling in it as the filling for this recipe was already cooked and would dry out in the oven. To keep the crust from puffing up, I recommend placing parchment paper over the crust and filling the pan some dried beans. I’ve done it with aluminum, but aluminum has insulating properties that can hinder baking time and consistency. If you have any excess pie crust - make cookies! My grandma used to sprinkle some cinnamon and sugar on the dough and just bake it on a baking sheet with the pie crust. Simple, yet satisfying and no pie crust wasted.
Thanksgiving Pie
Pie crust of your choice (I use All Recipes’)
Turkey (Mixed with gravy)
Stuffing
Green beans (or green bean casserole)
Cranberry sauce
Mashed potatoes
Bake the pie crust ahead of time and heat up leftovers. Once the pie crust is done, put the stuffing, green bean casserole, turkey and gravy in the crust and spread the mashed potatoes to cover the top of the pie. Garnish with some cranberry sauce and you’re done. Easy and delicious.
A slow morning with a slice of pumpkin pie and coffee on Black Friday will always be my favorite part of Thanksgiving leftovers, but this pie gave that tradition a run for its money. I’m looking forward to working with some Minneapolis food communities, as well as cooking for and with my family and friends as it starts to get almost too cold to venture outside. What dishes were on your Thanksgiving table this year, and is there anything you would change? How are you sharing food and connecting this holiday season? Cheers to carrying on traditions and creating new experiences!
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