Independently of whether we want or not, the global financial crisis is instinctively making us if not save money at least to count it more carefully before spending. No one likes eating the leftovers from last night but throwing away food was never good and this year we must not do it. Few traditional for the Mediterranean cuisine recipes help us turn the leftovers from the Christmas turkey into a various menu.

Soup with turkey bouillon, lemon and herbs from Euboea island

Required products for 6 servings - 1.5-2 liters of turkey bouillon, 200 grams of rice, 2 eggs, the juice of 4 lemons, 150 milliliters cream, half a rope of parsley cut in small pieces, 2 soup spoons of dill cut in small pieces, salt to taste.

Preparation - Put a metal pot on the stove and all the bouillon in it. Right before it boils add in the rice. When the rice is done, separate it from the bouillon and strain it. Then put it back with the bouillon and leave it to boil for another 10 minutes. After that take it off the stove. Mix the eggs in a separate bowl, slowly add the lemon juice (from 2 lemons) and when mixed, slowly add it to the soup. In a separate bowl put the cream, the juice from the 2 other lemons, the parsley, the dill and salt to taste. Whip everything until it turns to cream. The soup is served hot with a spoon of cold cream in the middle.

Recipe from Santorini - Salad with marinated turkey and chestnuts

Required products for 4 servings - 250 grams of turkey fillet, one lettuce, a rope of dandelions, 4 boiled and cut on small pieces chestnuts, parsley cut on small pieces, mint and dill, one onion cut on small pieces, pomegranate seeds, 30 pistachios – baked, cleaned and broken into big pieces, salt and pepper to taste.

Preparation - Cut the turkey fillet into thin lines and put salt and pepper to taste. Fry them in a frying pan with a little bit of olive oil for 5-6 minutes until they turn pink. Put the meat at the bottom of the salad plate and put the seasonings over it. Add a little bit of olive oil and leave it in the fridge for few hours in order to marinate. Cut the lettuce in small lines and add it in a salad plate with the chestnuts, the fresh onion, and the pomegranate seeds. Over them, put the marinated turkey fillets and dust it with the pistachios. Add salt, olive oil and balsamic oil to taste.

Ionian cake with minced turkey and yogurt glaze

Required products for 6 servings - One sheet puff pastry, 2 soup spoons of sesame, 1 soup spoon of black sesame, 500 grams of yogurt, 150 grams of grated parmesan, ½ kilo of grated turkey meat, ½ tea cup of dry white wine, 2 canned dry tomatoes, ½ kilo spinach cut into big pieces, 3 onions cut into small pieces, salt and pepper to taste, ½ tea cup of parsley, mint, and dill cut into small pieces.

Preparation - Fry the minced turkey with a little bit of olive oil for 5-6 minutes and then add the wine. Add the dry tomatoes, one tea cup of water and salt and pepper to taste. Boil everything slowly for about 20 minutes. Add the spinach, the onion, the seasonings and boil for another 15 minutes. Right before taking it off the stove, increase the temperature in order for the mixture to eat out the humidity. Preheat the oven to 170⁰C and put a baking-dish oiled with olive oil and with spread sheet puff pastry on it. Add the minced turkey mixture on the sheet puff pastry and raise the ends of the pastry. Put the mixed yogurt, the grated parmesan over it, and the white and black sesame on top of it. Bake in the oven for about 45 minutes.

Stuffed turkey legs with Limnos sause

Required products for 4 servings - two turkey legs, 40 grams of raisins, ½ tea cup black rum, ½ tea cup of water, 100 grams of butter, 100 grams of chicken livers cut in small pieces, 150 grams of minced pork, 2-3 lines of bacon cut in small pieces, 3 soup spoons of blueberries, ½ kilo of chestnuts – boiled, cleaned, and cut in small pieces, 200 grams of mushrooms cut into small pieces, 200 grams of onion cut in small pieces, 1 soup spoon of sugar, 1 bottle of dry white wine Mousket from Limnos island, 300 grams of cream.

Preparation - Separate carefully the bones from the meat of the turkey kegs without tearing the skin and put salt on taste. For about an hour leave the raising soaked in the rum and water. In 15 grams of butter, fry the livers, add the minced pork and fry for another 5-8 minutes. Add the bacon, the blueberries, 150 grams of the chestnuts and stir until mixed well enough and then take off the stove. Preheat the oven to 180⁰C. Stuff the open turkey legs with the mixture and tie them with a thick thread in order to keep them closed. Fry the stuffed legs in a frying pan until they become gold. Put them in a large baking dish and add the rest of the butter with a little bit of water and bake them for about an hour. In a frying pan, fry the mushrooms, the rest of the chestnuts, and the onion until they change their color. Sprinkle the mixture with the sugar, add 1 tea cup of water, and salt and pepper to taste. Boil the mixture slowly for around 15 minutes until all products soften. After the legs are done, around them add the garnish and bake everything for another 10 minutes. Boil the wine with the cream in a separate pan until only 1/3 of it is left. If needed, add salt and pepper to taste. Serve the legs sliced, the sauce poured over them, and with the garnish on the side.

Happy and Tasty Holidays!