Fairy Godmother Academy

Hiya Cookies, ChefGirl here!

As much as I LOVE Thanksgiving dinner (and I do!) I get a little, err, tired of leftovers…especially on day three. So I decided to start a new family tradition I call the Thanksgiving Reboot! On the Friday after Thanksgiving I take all the leftovers and turn them on their heads. My family loves it!

Here are two recipes on the menu for this year!

**ChefGirl would like to caution that there’s a lot of chopping involved in the following recipe. If you aren’t comfortable handling a knife just ask an adult for help in the chopping department (then you can shoo them away when they’re done!). As you know, you should always ask an adult before using the kitchen.**

Turkey and Black Bean Tacodillas

This is a quesadilla stuffed to the gills – more like a taco but grilled like a quesadilla. Taco? Quesadilla! Taco? Quesadilla! Wait-a-minute! Tacodilla! This is a really easy recipe because you can pretty much fill it with whatever you like but I must admit that this combo is yum-city. Feel free to use your imagination and whatever is available in the fridge.

Makes 4 Tacodillas

1 cup of chopped, cooked turkey
1 cup of black beans, rinsed
1/4 cup diced red onion
1/2 cup of quartered cherry tomatoes
1/2 cup chopped avocado
1/2 lime
cilantro (optional)
salt and pepper to taste
1 1/2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese
4 whole wheat, flour or corn tortillas

Combine turkey, beans, onion, tomatoes, avocado and cilantro in a bowl. Squeeze the lime over the top and season with salt and pepper. Toss well. Using a slotted spoon, fill each tortilla with the turkey filling and sprinkle liberally with shredded cheese. Fold in half.

Tip: Don’t skip the lime. Nothing says “this is not Thanksgiving dinner leftovers” like a big squeeze of fresh lime.

Heat slowly over medium heat on a non-stick pan and flip carefully when the bottoms are light golden brown. Enjoy!

Sweet Potato Chocolate Chip Bread
(yes, FOR REAL and it’s completely off the hook good!!)

Even if you pass on the yams or sweet potatoes at the Thanksgiving table you’ll want to secretly squirrel away a cup or two just for this recipe. Think of it like pumpkin bread’s punk rock cousin.

1 1/2 cup well mashed or pureed sweet potatoes or yams
1/2 cup canola or vegetable oil
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 cup flour
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1 cup chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees
Spray a 9×5 loaf pan with nonstick oil

In a bowl combine the sweet potato puree, vegetable oil, eggs and sugar. Mix well. In a separate, medium sized bowl combine the flour, salt, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and chocolate chips. Add the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and gently mix until all most the flour pockets have been incorporated into the batter. Don’t overmix this batter. Overmixing can cause the end-product to be tough and chewy.

Pour batter into the loaf pan and place on the center rack in the oven. Bake for 50-60 minutes. When the top is firm and a toothpick poked through the top of the loaf comes out clean the bread is done. Wrap tightly and your delicious creation will keep for 3-4 days at room temperature or frozen for 1 month.

How are you going to reboot your Thanksgiving leftovers??