Revisiting the Turkey

What would the week after Thanksgiving be without a recipe for leftover turkey? I try to limit the foreign objects that float around in my refrigerator by purchasing extra Gladware before any holiday meal. As the table is cleared, I can package up leftovers for everyone. My guests leave with the makings of a couple of meals at the ready, and I don't have to worry about what to do with too much turkey.

Not that I worry too much, anyway. Turkey adapts pretty well to any recipe that calls for cooked chicken. Chicken noodle soup becomes turkey noodle, and chicken salad is reinvented as turkey salad with the wave of a wooden spoon. My lunch today is one of many variations of turkey salad sandwiches. This one combines pesto and roasted red peppers to optimize flavors. I had an Asiago herb bread on hand that worked beautifully for a sandwich so good that you wouldn't know it is turkey revisited.

Pesto Turkey Salad Sandwiches

¼ cup low-fat mayonnaise
¼ cup plain fat-free yogurt
¼ cup pesto sauce
¾ tablespoon fresh lemon juice
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
2 cups cubed cooked turkey
½ cup diced celery
focaccia bread, cut in half horizontally, toasted, and sliced
3-4 tablespoons chopped roasted red peppers (from bottle)
romaine lettuce leaves

Combine first 6 ingredients in a large bowl, stirring with a whisk. Stir in turkey and celery.
Spread 1/2 cup of salad onto half of bread slices. Top each serving with chopped roasted red peppers, lettuce leaf, and remaining bread. (May sub rotisserie chicken for the turkey for a quick year-round alternative.) (Makes 5 sandwiches.)