Turkey Cottage Pie with Sweet Potato Crust

I’m betting you have leftover turkey today.  I do.  I would also put money on having your fridge full of gelatinized gravy, a serving or so of green beans, and so, so many mashed potatoes.  In my fridge I had a little glass dish that I wasn’t sure if it held pureed sweet potatoes or pureed pumpkin…

Yes, it is the after Thanksgiving glut.  We all have bits and pieces of different dishes that may or may not belong together any more.  Well, like a giant puzzle, I suggest you combine them to make something totally new.

Shepherd’s Pie comes to mind instantly with the leftover mashed potatoes….  But I was lectured once for several minutes by a chef who let me know that Shepherd’s Pie is only Shepherd’s Pie if it contains actual lamb.  Everything else is Cottage Pie. So Shepherd’s Pie or Cottage Pie, this savory baked dish is a great way to use up all those scraps that don’t actually equal an entire plate. It will add up again into an entirely new meal.

Turkey Cottage Pie

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups chopped or shredded Roasted Turkey
• 1 cup leftover Green Veggies.  I used Brussels Sprouts & Green Beans
• 1/2 small Onion, chopped
• 2 Celery Ribs, chopped
• 1 cup Root Vegetables.  I used a combination of  Carrots & Butternut Squash
• 1/4 cup Dried Cranberries or Cranberry Sauce – optional
•  1 cup leftover Gravy
• Any leftover Poultry Herbs on hand, chopped fine
• 1 1/2  cups Mashed Potatoes
• 1 1/2 cups Mashed Sweet Potatoes – you CAN do all mashed potatoes for the crust, but I love mixing them together
• Salt & Pepper to taste

Method:

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.  Start with a deep, oven-safe dish – I used my biggest soufflé dish, but you can also use a deep casserole dish.  Combine the Roasted Turkey, Green Veggies, Celery, Onion, Root Veggies, and Cranberries.  Pour the Gravy over the top of and mix it all together.  Add in snips of any leftover fresh herbs.  Some sage went into mine – sage in a savory pie takes things to a whole new level.  Ta-da! Your filling is done.

 Mix together the mashed potatoes and sweet potatoes – I recommend using your hands here.  It was all I could do not to sculpt the Devil’s Tower ala Richard Dreyfuss in Close Encounters of the Third Kind.  I should have…  I was home alone and Greg wouldn’t have been able to make fun of me.

If you just have leftover sweet potatoes, just use them.  If you only have mashed potatoes – go that route.  But if you have both, combining the two will transform them into something special.  This will form the ‘crust.’

Spread the filling flat in the baking dish, spoon the sweet potato / potato mixture on top and spread it around evenly.  The goal is to spread it right to the edges to form a tight seal and keep the moisture inside the pie.

Put the dish on a baking sheet (gravy sometimes escapes and drips over the side).  Into the oven it goes for 45 minutes – just enough time for the crust to get crispy and the filling to get hot.

Serve it by the spoonful,  crust and all, piping hot from the oven with a green salad.

How do you use your Thanksgiving leftovers?  I’d love to hear all about it!

Lydia, blue jean baby