A very happy Thanksgiving to all! I hope you are tucking into some well-prepared foods and beverages with the people you love. My niece Courtney took the helm this Thanksgiving tasking out dishes. We have a nice assortment of foods to create many of the perfect bites.

Now what to do with all of the leftovers…make the perfect bite in a pie! I would butter the pie dish, spread stuffing to make the “crust” and bake off in a 350-degree preheated oven until brown and crispy. Remove and fill with a pre-mix of turkey and whatever leftover vegetables moistened with some giblet gravy. Top with mashed yams and a couple of pats of butter and back into the oven for 30 minutes. Pull it out to cool, slice in wedges and serve with a dollop of cranberry sauce.

I also found this recipe from bakedbyrachel.com incorporating fresh ingredients to leftovers. Sounds delicious if you want to do just a little more cooking.

2 Tb unsalted butter

3/4 C onion, chopped

1/3 C celery, chopped

1/3 C carrots, chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

2 and 1/2 C leftover turkey meat

1/4 C peas or green beans

1/4 C corn

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp ground black pepper

1/2 tsp dried thyme

1/2 tsp dried basil

1 C gravy

2 C mashed potatoes*

4 oz cheddar cheese, shredded

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large skillet over medium heat, melt butter. Add onion, celery and carrots, cooking until onions are translucent. Add minced garlic, cooking for an additional minute. Add turkey, corn and peas (or green beans), along with seasonings and gravy, cooking until heated through. Transfer to a 1-quart baking dish, pressing into an even layer.

Heat mashed potatoes until lukewarm and easy to stir. Add half of the shredded cheese to the potatoes, stir to combine. Spread mashed potatoes over the turkey filling. Sprinkle with remaining cheese.

Bake for 30 minutes. If desired, broil or use a kitchen torch to char cheese slightly. Serve warm.

…or you could just make another plate of food. Either way, it’s elastic waistband pants season. Put ‘em to work!

Happy eating and thanks for reading!

Kysha Harris is a food writer and editor, culinary producer, consultant and owner of SCHOP!, a personalized food service in NYC for more than 15 years. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram, @SCHOPgirl, on Facebook, /SCHOPnyc, and her blog, www.talkingSCHOP.wordpress.com. Questions? Comments? Requests? Feedback? Invitations! Email AmNewsFOOD at AmNewsFOOD@SCHOPnyc.com. Follow us on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @NYAmNewsFOOD and tag us with #SoAmNewsFOOD with your food finds!