Turkey Empanadas

__________________________________________________

            FOOD FUNNY
__________________________________________________

Thanks to Barb Jernigan for sharing this classic food funny:

A priest at a parochial school, wanting to point out the proper behavior
for church, was trying to elicit from the youngsters rules that their
parents might give before taking them to a nice restaurant.

"Don't play with your food," one second-grader cited.

"Don't be loud," said another, and so on.

And what rule do your parents give you before you go out to eat?"
the priest inquired of one little boy.

"Order something cheap!"

__________________________________________________

            TODAY'S RECIPE
__________________________________________________

Many readers have wondered over the years why I don't always publish
a bunch of "turkey with all the fixin's" recipes around Thanksgiving,
and the answer is simple: I think there are already enough such recipes
at this time of year. Every cooking show on TV has been saturated
with innumerable recipes for roast turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce,
and pumpkin pie for the past three or four weeks, and every cooking
magazine known to man has a roast turkey on the cover. Enough, I
say. Besides, you'll probably use your old tried-and-true family recipes
for your Thanksgiving meal anyway. You know it, and I know it.

Never one to blindly follow the crowd, I have almost always avoided
the cliche of publishing typical holiday recipes, and I hope you'll find
this week's recipes for Thanksgiving leftovers a little out of the ordinary.
Here is the lineup:

(Recipes in brackets are in the PLUS Edition only.)

Monday's Starter
Turkey Empanadas
[Cranberry Dip]

Tuesday's Soup or Salad
Succotash Soup
[Stuffing Balls]

Wednesday's Side Dish
Mashed Potato Cakes
[Sweet Potato Puffs]

Thursday's Entree
Turkey Hash
[Turkey Loaf]

Friday's Dessert
Cranberry Sauce with Yogurt
[Cranberry Smoothies]

Serve these little meat pies as an appetizer, or make them larger
and serve one or two as a main dish. You can use your favorite recipe
for pastry dough if you prefer, but pre-made pie crusts make these a
quick and easy treat for busy cooks still recovering from the
Thanksgiving preparations.

Turkey Empanadas

1 1/2 cups (375 ml) cooked turkey, finely chopped
1/4 cup (60 ml) leftover turkey gravy
1/4 cup (60 ml) leftover succotash, corn, or other
finely chopped cooked vegetables
2 9-inch (23 cm) pie crusts

Combine the turkey, gravy, and vegetables in a bowl, stirring to combine.
Cut the pie crusts into 3-inch (8 cm) rounds. Place about a tablespoon
(15 ml) of the filling in the center of each pastry round. Fold the pastry
over the filling to form a semi-circle and crimp the edges. Place on a
lightly greased baking sheet and bake in a preheated 400F (200C) oven
until golden brown, about 10 minutes. Serves 8 to 12 as an hors d'oeuvre,
or 4 to 6 as a first course.
Received on Mon Nov 21 01:59:21 2005