FORK REQUIRED: POLENTA PANINO WITH TURKEY, CRANBERRY, AND MANCHEGO

Posted by Sarah Kiino at 11/26/2006 3:18 PM
Categories: uncategorized






Call me un-American, but I don’t love turkey—especially the dull, characterless white meat. Sure, I’ll eat a slice or two on Thanksgiving, but really just because it’s a great vehicle for transporting gravy and cranberry to my mouth. Give me stuffing, give me mashed potatoes, give me Brussels sprouts, give me pumpkin pie, but the turkey, frankly, I can live without.

 

Of course, you can’t really go without turkey on Thanksgiving, and this year—my first time hosting—I brined and roasted a 12-pound bird with pretty decent results. The brine gave the meat flavor, and the breast was moist and entirely edible. Even, dare I say, tasty?

 

I wish I could say my love affair with turkey lasted at least through the leftovers, but by Friday morning, the magic was gone. I opened my fridge to a big, Saran-Wrap-wrapped pile of stringy white meat and felt not even a flutter of excitement. What can I do, I wondered, to make this stuff disappear in a way that actually tastes good?

 

A few weeks ago, craving a midnight snack, Brian and I put some cheese between a couple slices of leftover polenta and popped the wobbly sandwich into our panini press, unsure if we were on the verge of a great discovery or a huge mess. Well, the thing held together and was quite delicious, actually. Aha! What better way to dispose of those Thanksgiving leftovers? Moist polenta checks the dryness of the turkey, cranberry sauce adds tartness and a gorgeous color contrast to the yellow cornmeal, and nutty Manchego is a delicious complement to the cranberry. For a savory finish, don’t forget the gravy!

 

POLENTA PANINO WITH TURKEY, MANCHEGO, AND CRANBERRY


2 slices cooked, cold, very firm polenta*

Sliced turkey

Cranberry sauce

Sliced Manchego cheese

Gravy (optional)

 

Brush outside of each slice of polenta (the part that will touch the panini press) with a little bit of olive oil or melted butter. On one piece of polenta layer a couple slices of cheese, turkey, cranberry, and another slice or two of cheese. Place very gently in heated panini press and press down just a bit (be careful not to squish the polenta too much). Cook until the cheese melts and the outside browns to your liking. Serve with gravy, if you want.

 

* Recipes abound—I used the one from Lidia’s Italian Table, substituting leftover turkey broth for the water

 

 

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