Turkey Shepherd’s Pie

My parents made lots of leftover turkey so we could take some home. I decided to use it to make Shepherd’s pie. This particular recipe was simple and fast! I liked it but Joey wished for regular gravy - so you can use that instead of this sauce!

Ingredients
2 C chopped leftover turkey
1/2 onion chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 C frozen peas or frozen vegetable mix
1 1/2 C beef broth
2T tomato paste
1T worsteschier sauce
2t olive oil
2 C mashed potatoes
2 sprigs fresh thyme
1/2 C grated cheese
Salt

Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 350 or if you want a crispy top, turn on the broiler
2. In a small skillet sauté onion and garlic until the onion is soft
3. Add salt, tomato paste, Worsteshier sauce, broth and thyme, stir and bring to a simmer
4. Simmer 2 minutes then add peas and turkey. Simmer 2 more minutes. Salt to taste
5. Divide meat mixture between two oven-safe ramekins
6. Top meat mixture with mashed potatoes and add cheese on top
7. Bake 5-10m at 350 until cheese is melted and dish is warmed through
*If broiling, keep a close eye because cheese can catch on fire 2-5m
**If you want to use gravy instead of the sauce, omit broth, tomato paste and worsteshier sauce and replace with gravy.

Happy Eating!

Roasted Turkey Legs

Just after Thanksgiving, I saw this fantastic sale for Turkey Legs for only $2 for 2! I bought them and threw them in the freezer for a rainy day.

Well it wasn't rainy, but it was sunny and warm and I decided to roast the legs. I looked up recipes online but I didn't want to do anything crazy. We like our meat to have flavor but not to be covered in oils and brines. Dry rubs or BBQ sauce are the main favorites.

I was interested in the Pioneer Woman's recipe and cooking method but I didn't like the brine part, so I skipped it. The results were delicious! I kind of eyeballed the cooking time because I was sure my legs were bigger than PW's and also because chicken thighs usually take 45-50 minutes so bigger turkey legs had to take longer.

Ingredients:
2 turkey legs
1 T spice rub
1 t salt
1 t paprika
1/2 t fresh ground pepper
1 t chili powder (I used chipotle)

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 400
1. Mix spice rub in a small bowl
2. Pat turkey legs dry with a paper towel
3. Rub spices all over legs and place on a rimmed baking sheet.
4. Bake 30 minutes at 400, turning once. Then, reduce the temperature to 350 and bake an additional 15 minutes.

Check out PW's recipe if you're interested in brining or have small legs.