leftovers, take two!

Dear Mom,

I too love a good leftover Thanksgiving sandwich, although I prefer to put all of the side dishes on the sandwich itself.  This probably stems from when as a child, I'm sure you remember, instead of leaving the stuffing, mashed potatoes and veggies in neat little piles on my T-day plate, I would pile everything in layers in the middle of my plate and then mix it all up until I had one big pile of Thanksgiving-goodness.  I imagine it would have been difficult explaining my behavior to most family members, but if I remember correctly, I got the idea from Grandpa, so my methods were not questioned. 

I still occasionally will scoop up my mashed potatoes and stuffing together, but for the most part I've been keeping my sides separated.  John and I visited his family's place this year, and his mother made a whole turkey and an additional breast as well.  We were sent home with a lot of leftovers, and as much as I love the leftovers, sometimes they get a little boring after the 8th or 9th dinner.  So when I started getting eye-rolls from John in response to "So what's for dinner" - "Turkey" I figured it was time to switch things up.  It was mid-week so I didn't want anything overly complicated, stuffed manicotti with turkey, artichokes, sun-dried tomatoes and kale sounded different enough.

baked manicotti with turkey, artichokes,
sun-dried tomatoes & kale

1 8oz pkg. manicotti shells
1 8oz pkg. frozen artichokes, thawed and chopped
1-1/2 cups shredded cooked turkey
1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes packed in oil, rinsed, drained & chopped
1 16oz container part-skim ricotta
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
salt & pepper
1 bunch kale (or spinach) chopped
cooking spray
1 jar prepared marinara
1-1/2 cups shredded mozzerella or italian blend cheese

Preheat oven to 400.  Cook manicotti according to package directions. 

Meanwhile, in a large bowl mix together all ingredients from the artichokes through the parmesan cheese.  When the pasta is finished cooking remove from the water, but keep the cooking water boiling.  Add the kale (or spinach) and cook until wilted.  Drain and add to the other ingredients.  Stir to combine and season to taste. 

Spray a 9x13 dish with cooking spray.  Coat the bottom of the dish with a thin layer of marinara.  Carefully take each manicotti tube and cut open, place a heaping 1/4 cup of the filling in each tube, roll it back up and place seam side down in the 9x13.  Place all filled tubes in a single layer in the bottom of the dish.  Spread any leftover filling over top, and cover with the rest of the marinara.  Cover dish with foil and bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes.  Remove foil and cover with shredded mozzerella, and bake an additional 15 minutes uncovered, until golden and bubbly.  Allow to cool slightly before serving.