Throw it in There! Leftover Turkey Risotto

So my problem is how to get my wife to help eat leftovers. Lots of time there's not much leftover and whatever is leftover I can eat for breakfast. But, when you've cooked a whole turkey the leftovers are just too much. Heck, you might as well eat out if you're not going to try to eat what you've cooked, otherwise, home cooking is just too expensive! Fortunately, I can usually lure my wife to the table with the promise of cooked mushrooms. And, mushrooms in a risotto is not an uncommon thing so there was my idea. To this risotto add everything leftover from a Thanksgiving dinner and add a few sliced mushrooms. My little plan worked pretty well and perhaps this can give you a new risotto idea too.

Ingredients:
1 cup of arborio rice
1 quart of chicken stock
1 medium onion, chopped
1 slice of bacon, when cooked chop fine
2 cups of cooked turkey chopped rough
1/4 teaspoon sage
1/4 teaspoon thyme
1/4 teaspoon white pepper
dash of cayenne pepper
1/2 cup brussel spouts chopped rough
4 medium large mushrooms sliced normal
2 precooked carrots
2 precooked celery
1 tablespoon olive oil

Preparations:

Being that the arborio rice only takes about 16 minutes to prepare some of the ingredients may need precooking (carrots and celery boiled for 12 minutes). While these are getting softer, cook the slice of bacon in a large fry pan over medium heat. Once it's crisp remove the bacon and drain some of the oil off. Don't wipe or clean the pan as we want some of the bacon flavor to carry over into the next step. Now add the olive oil to the pan and cook the onion until soft about 6 minutes. Add the spices (white pepper, cayenne pepper, sage and thyme) and stir briefly. Add the arborio rice and stir to coat about 1 minute. Add the chicken stock, turn the heat to high and stir until boiling. Reduce heat to medium, add the carrots, celery, brussel sprouts and bacon. Stir this mixture constantly as it cooks by a gentle boil. This mixture will take about 16 minutes and so I added the sliced mushrooms at about the ten minute mark. Continue to stir gently, add the turkey after the sixteen minutes stirring to warm through for an additional 2 minutes.

Serve with colorful sides (spinach and orange slices).

Comments:

It's a one pan and one pot dinner so not alot of clean up. Nice way to use leftovers. The cayenne pepper gives it a lift beyond the turkey dinner you just had the night before!