Start the Year with a Refrigerator Remnant Potluck!

Company's gone and so are most of the special holiday meals and decadent treats. Time for Potluck Paradise to follow the original meaning and "make potuck" from what's at hand. I found myself considering the last half cup of turkey and it's mate, a half cup of mashed potatoes, with New Year's Resolution Resolve.

This year I will make the most of what I have, following the old adage "Waste Not, Want Not."

I was already feeling virtuous having made two liters of "free turkey soup" while cleaning the turkey roaster. So I poked around in the fridge and found the makings for Mock Shepherd's Pie. Some mushrooms that were past salad perfection sauteed in a bit of butter made the rich-flavored base. I thickened some of the afore mentioned free soup with a bit of cornstarch, ready to bind the turkey, mushrooms, some green pepper and frozen mixed vegetables. In a perfect world, I would have at least a cup of mashed potatoes left so I could mound them on top of the baking dish. No such luck. So I stretched those, too, by adding a lightly beaten egg and a couple of tablespoons of flour. Then I fried them up as potato pancakes.

When I was growing up, refrigerators had a freezer compartment designed to hold just two metal ice cube trays and a maybe, if it didn't need defrosting, box of frozen peas. So my mother was a master of making something tasty out of the "dribs and drabs" from meals past. By Wednesday the last of the Sunday roast was pushed through the meat grinder, tenderizing the gristly bits. She'd mix the meat with a bit of the leftover gravy and spread it between two slices of soft, white bread, then pour the rest of the gravy on top. Yum! hot roast beef sandwiches and you didn't need a knife to cut them. Ham went into scalloped potatoes. Pot roast leavings went into the soup pot. I still use those basics with a twist or two. I tuck salmon into the scalloped potatoes and sometimes make stir-fry from the pot roast.

Using up holiday condiments can be a bit trickier. Cranberry sauce can be melted, combined with a bit of peanut butter and used as a dipping sauce for turkey or chicken. Pickles and olives keep practically forever, and are key ingredients in turning small bits of meat, cheese, or vegetables into appetizer spreads. Perfect for Bowl Game snacks.

Refrigerator Remnant Potluck does well with dessert, too. The last slice of delicious fruitcake (Oh yes! I make a fabulous fruitcake!) can be nicely shared when folded into slightly softened vanilla ice cream. The last of the fudge can be melted down in a bit of milk to make a chocolate sauce for dipping nuts or fruits. Plain oatmeal or sugar cookies can be crumbled and used as a delicious topping for a fruit cobbler made from the centerpiece apples.

The trick is to pretend the kitchen is a cooking show studio. Chopped or Iron Chef come to mind. I open my refrigerator and before me are the secret ingredients. Ready to be embraced with imagination. That's where I'm starting this new year.

Free, Roaster-Cleaning Turkey Soup

Cook the turkey in a heavy roaster, not a throw-away aluminum pan.

Immediately after enjoying the holiday meal, cut all the meat from the carcass. Cut the carcass into pieces. Cover with water and return to the oven at 325 degrees F. If some stuffing is stuck on the bottom, no problem. It will cook off the pan and flavor the soup. I put a piece of cheesecloth on top of the turkey while it is roasting to hold the basting liquids against the skin. I gently pull it off during the last half hour cooking time. I set this aside and then toss it into the soup mix, too. The lovely brown color and rich meaty flavor comes off the cloth and into the soup. Cover the roaster with the lid, or heavy-duty foil. Let cook for one to two hours. Cool slightly, then remove bones, strain liquid, and chill. Once cold, lift off the layer of fat on top.

The roaster will be much easier to clean now that the soup has boiled off a good bit of the stuck on the bottom bits. Use soup within three days or freeze.

Thanksgiving Relish

I've been reflecting over more than forty years of cooking Thanksgiving turkeys and even further back when I helped my Mother. My brother was both fascinated and shuddering as she drew the innards from the turkey back in the days before even "minimally processed" birds arrive with the useful parts wrapped and tucked neatly back.

Some holidays are more memorable than others. Dinners delayed until the weekend when blizzards closed the highway. The "fresh" turkey I shopped for at three grocery stores, freezing in the garage where I'd put it for safe-keeping. The year our addition contractor knocked out 20 feet of the back wall of the house, totally gutting the kitchen, two days before Thanksgiving and then disappeared until the Monday after. You would be amazed what you can do with a hot plate and a smoker in a mild Alabama autumn.

Through all the adventures some culinary and holiday truths emerge.

It's hard to totally mess up a turkey -- gravy can always come to the rescue.

If you blend flour with cold water or broth and use that to thicken gravy, you won't have lumps.

Youngsters can always help "make Thanksgiving" by coloring paper napkin rings, writing place cards, spreading cream cheese in celery sticks, setting the table, or helping arrange the buffet line.

An abundance of fresh vegetables, simply prepared, make a more refreshing meal and more room for leftovers.

Precious little is better than a turkey sandwich with potluck relishes pulled from the fridge after the pots are washed, the plates are put in the dishwasher or back in the cupboard, Turkey carcass soup is simmering, and your team has won the big game.

And, above all, what we have most to be thankful for is around our tables, even if we are in different time zones.

Blessings of the season to all.

This quickly and easily made cucumber and onion relish is the perfect accompaniment. It keeps for days in the refrigerator - perfect to go on top of a sandwich made from the turkey leftovers.

Quick Cucumber Pickle

(serves 7 to 8)

1 large cucumber (or use 2 cucumbers and leave out onions)

2 medium onions

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup vinegar

1/2 teaspoon salt

Select a cucumber that has not been coated with wax and scrub it well. Slice cucumber and onion as thinly as possible and put into a heatproof bowl. Combine the sugar and vinegar in a small saucepan. Stir to dissolve sugar as you bring it to a boil over medium heat. Pour the boiling mixture over the cucumber and onions. Add salt if desired. Let stand until room temperature, stirring from time to time. Cover and put in refrigerator. Keeps for several days.