Break out of same old leftovers

If yet another round of soups, sandwiches and casseroles cobbled out of Thanksgiving leftovers leaves you uninspired, one of these recipes may get you out of the rut.

Try these popover-style breakfast treats studded with chopped turkey and stuffing. The combination of eggs, stuffing (think toast) and turkey works great together. Serve with maple syrup.

Leftover Turkey Popovers

Servings: 6

1 cup heavy cream

3 eggs

1 teaspoon thyme

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup chopped cooked turkey

1/2 cup stuffing

1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese

Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Lightly coat a 6-cup muffin tin with baking spray.

In a blender, whip the heavy cream until it begins to thicken, about 30 seconds. Add the eggs, thyme, salt and pepper, then blend again until smooth. With the blender running on low, sprinkle in the flour and blend until smooth.

Divide the batter between the prepared muffin cups. Divide the turkey among each cup, dropping it into the batter. Top each serving with a spoonful of the stuffing, then sprinkle with cheese. Bake for 20 minutes, or until puffed and lightly browned. Cool briefly.

Be sure to use cold rice when making fried rice. Otherwise, the grains will be too sticky and will clump. This recipe calls for white rice, but brown would be a healthy substitute.

Turkey Fried Rice

Servings: 6

1/3 cup low-sodium soy sauce

2 tablespoons turkey stock or chicken broth

1 tablespoon rice vinegar

2 teaspoons dark sesame oil

1 teaspoon chili garlic sauce

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

5 teaspoons canola oil

2 cups shredded green cabbage

1 cup sliced scallions

1 1/2 teaspoons minced peeled fresh ginger

5 cups cooked long-grain white rice, chilled

4 cups chopped cooked turkey (light and dark meat)

2 cups leftover green peas or frozen peas, thawed

1 cup leftover carrots or frozen carrots, thawed

1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro

In a small bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, turkey stock, rice vinegar, sesame oil, garlic sauce, salt and pepper. Set aside.

In a large nonstick skillet over medium-high, heat the canola oil. Add the cabbage, scallions and ginger, then saute for 3 minutes, or until tender. Add the rice, turkey, peas and carrots, then saute for another 3 minutes, or until thoroughly heated. Stir in soy sauce mixture and cook for another 2 minutes. Remove the skillet from the heat and stir in the cilantro.

— Recipe from Cooking Light magazine

This easy breakfast hash is a delicious way to use up some of that leftover turkey. To speed things up, you could substitute frozen hash brown potatoes for boiled potatoes.

Turkey Hash

Servings: 4

1 1/2 pounds medium Yukon Gold potatoes

7 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided

1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped

2 cubanelle peppers (Italian green frying peppers), seeded and chopped

1 cup shredded cooked turkey, preferably dark meat

3/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

4 large eggs

Place the potatoes in a large stockpot, then cover with enough cold water to cover by at least 1 inch. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then reduce to a simmer, partially cover the pot and cook for 20 to 25 minutes, or until just tender. Drain the potatoes and let cool slightly.

While the potatoes cool, in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat, melt 6 tablespoons of the butter. Add the onion and peppers and saute until golden brown, about 8 to 10 minutes.

Once the potatoes have cooled, peel them and coarsely grate them with a box grater.

Add the potatoes, turkey, salt and pepper to the skillet, then cook, turning occasionally, until browned in spots, about 15 to 20 minutes. Transfer the hash to serving plates.

Add the remaining 1 tablespoon of butter to the skillet. Set over medium heat. When the butter has melted, fry the eggs. Serve 1 egg over each serving of hash.

— Recipe from the November 2008 issue of Gourmet magazine

This hearty Caesar salad with leftover turkey will be a refreshing change from the carb-heavy feasts of Thanksgiving. To save time, the croutons could be made ahead.

Shredded Turkey Caesar Salad

Servings: 4

1/4 pound baby arugula (about 5 cups loosely packed), washed and dried

2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons lemon juice

2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest

4 oil-packed anchovy fillets

2 large cloves garlic

1/4 teaspoon black peppercorns

8 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

Kosher salt

4 tablespoons finely grated parmesan cheese, divided

4 slices French baguette, cut 1 inch thick on an extreme diagonal

2 cups shredded cooked turkey

2 cups halved cherry tomatoes

Heat a gas grill or the broiler. Place the arugula in a large bowl, then cover with a damp paper towel and refrigerate.

In a blender, combine the lemon juice and zest, anchovies, garlic, peppercorns, 6 tablespoons of the olive oil, the mustard and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Blend thoroughly until most of the peppercorns are well broken up and the dressing is emulsified.

Add 2 tablespoons of the parmesan cheese and blend to incorporate. Leave the dressing in the blender.

Brush the bread with the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil, then season each slice with salt. Grill or broil the bread until dark around the edges and golden brown at the center, 1 to 2 minutes per side.

If desired, cut each bread slice into 10 cubes. The bread also can be served whole.

Pulse the dressing in the blender. Add a bit of the dressing to the arugula and toss to coat.

Divide the arugula among 4 serving plates and sprinkle with some of the remaining parmesan.

In a medium bowl, toss the turkey with the remaining dressing, then divide it between the plates of arugula. Sprinkle with parmesan and arrange the croutons and tomatoes around the salad.

— Recipe from "How to Cook a Turkey and All the Other Trimmings," by the editors of Fine Cooking magazine, Taunton Press, 2007