Using up the Christmas leftovers - Turkey Cottage Pie

Forgive me for talking about 'after Christmas' when we are barely into December, but I'm going to anyway, because we all need ideas for using up the leftover turkey.

I was provided with a Bernard Matthews Golden Norfolk turkey to cook and make a dish with the leftovers.

In the past I've made turkey spring rolls, curry, soup and lots of lots of sandwiches to use up the leftovers, but in the new year when I can't look at another buffet I crave a good home cooked comfort meal. This turkey cottage pie is exactly that; a warming, satisfying dish topped with buttery mash.

Turkey Cottage Pie

tbsp olive oil
large onion, chopped
clove of garlic, crushed
2 carrots, peeled & diced
400ml turkey stock (reserved from roasting the turkey)
2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
tbsp dried rosemary
1 courgette, diced
leftover turkey
tbsp cornflour
approx 1kg mashed potato

• Heat the oil in a pan & fry the onion until starting to brown
• Add the garlic & carrots & fry for a minute longer
• Add the stock, worcestershire sauce and rosemary
• Stir well & place the lid on and simmer for 10 minutes
• Add the courgette & turkey and simmer for a few minutes longer
• Mix the cornflour with a little water and add to the pan, stirring well
• Transfer to an ovenproof dish and top with mash
• Place in a preheated 180C oven until the mash is golden brown

It definitely made a nice change to the usual turkey curry.

I was recently invited to a 'Bootiful Ideas' event hosted by Bernard Matthews at the fab Horniman Museum in Forest Hill, London. During the event we were given some food styling tips by stylist Olia Hercules, had chance to meet other bloggers and sample some existing products as well as give our views on some potential new ones - fingers crossed that my favourite makes it to the shelves!

It's always nice to attend blogger events and meet new bloggers, especially when the kids are invited too, and this time I got to spend a day with my budding food stylist Hanna.

We even got to take a few samples home and Jack was treated to a 'Turkey Munchkin'.

Fast Family Fakeaway - Sweet & Sour Turkey Drummers

I cook the majority of our family meals from scratch and we rarely eat takeaways, but from time to time it's nice to have a night away from cooking, especially if I've been baking all day.  On these occasions the kids might have fishfingers or something equally as easy to throw in the oven.

This recipe is for one of those quick and easy meals for evenings when there isn't a lot of time between school runs and swimming or football, and it's just as quick to prepare as fishfingers, chips and beans, yet it's just as good as a Chinese takeaway. 

The main ingredient is Bernard Matthews Golden Turkey Drummers, which are made from turkey raised on British farms, and don't contain any artificial colours, flavours or preservatives.

The Golden Drummers are just £2 for a 500g bag (approx 10 pieces), and available in Asda, Tesco, Sainsburys, Morrisons, Iceland and Farmfoods.

You can add pineapple to the dish along with the baby corn, but as my kids aren't that keen on pineapple I left it out. The dish takes just 20 minutes to cook, which is the length of time it takes to cook the drummers.

Sweet & Sour Turkey Drummers - serves 4

1 packet Bernard Matthews Turkey Drummers
oil
1 yellow pepper, chopped
1 red pepper, chopped
baby corn, chopped
1 jar sweet & sour sauce
chopped pineapple (optional)

• Place the turkey drummers on a baking tray and bake in a preheated 200C oven for 20 minutes
• Whilst they're cooking prepare the sauce
• Heat a little oil in a pan
• Add the peppers and fry for a couple of minutes until starting to soften
• Add the baby corn and fry for a little longer
• Pour in the sauce and mix well, and heat through
• Once the turkey is cooked cut each in half
• Stir the turkey pieces into the sauce to coat fully
• Serve with egg fried rice

I'm working with BritMums and Bernard Matthews on this project and have been compensated for my time. Check out more quick and easy meals using frozen breaded turkey by following the hashtag #BootifulMeals