Farmer's Pie (Poultry)

Today officially marks the start of the week of creative Thanksgiving leftovers.  While I used ground turkey, you can use shredded leftover turkey or chicken and make this in half the time.  It already only takes 45 minutes.

This is a lot like Shepherd's Pie, but shepherds grow sheep and this has turkey in it, so I'm calling it Farmer's Pie.  While cheddar does go well with turkey, I chose to top this with some herb goat cheese mashed potatoes.  They make everything taste better.  I didn't get out the food mill this time, used russets, and left the skin on, but goat cheese makes everyone forgive shortcuts.  You could also use whatever mashed potatoes you had at Thanksgiving.  This definitely counts as a leftovers recipe.

1 lb ground turkey or shredded leftover turkey
*2 C frozen veggies like peas and carrots
1/2 onion, diced
1 Tb olive oil
*2 ribs celery, diced
*2 Tb tomato paste
1/2 tsp each salt, dried sage, and thyme
1/4 tsp pepper
1 batch herb goat cheese mashed potatoes

1.  Start preheating oven to 350º.  Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  Add onion and celery and cook until they start to soften.  If working with raw meat, add to skillet and cook until browned.  With leftovers, skip to next step.

2.  Add frozen veggies, tomato paste, spices, and cooked turkey.  Cook until everything is heated through and uniform, about 5 minutes.

3.  Spoon meat mixture into an 8x8 baking dish and spread evenly.  Top with the mashed potatoes and sprinkle with parmesan (from the mashed potato recipe).  Bake until bottom layer is bubbly and top is lightly browned, about 15 minutes.  Let sit until it stops boiling before serving.

Difficulty rating  :)