Turkey

Mrs. Wheelbarrow's After-Thanksgiving Turkey Slab Pie

November 21, 2018
5
1 Ratings
Photo by James Ransom
  • Prep time 4 hours 45 minutes
  • Cook time 1 hour
  • Serves 8
Author Notes

There comes a time in every post-Thanksgiving home when leftovers are no longer interesting: The sandwiches have happened. The second-day plate with everything covered in gravy has been devoured. That’s when I gather whatever is left and make pie. Because so much of what might be included in the filling may have been salted already, make the filling first, taste it, and add more salt and pepper only if needed.

Recipe adapted from Pie Squared: Irresistibly Easy Sweet & Savory Slab Pies, copyright © 2018 by Cathy Barrow. Reprinted with permission of Grand Central Life & Style. All rights reserved. —MrsWheelbarrow

Test Kitchen Notes

Featured in: A Simple (& Very Buttery) Way to Give Thanksgiving Leftovers a New Lease on Life. —The Editors

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • Butter and Shortening Crust
  • 1 1/3 cups (160 g) all-purpose flour
  • 4 tablespoons (56 g) unsalted butter, cubed and frozen for 20 minutes
  • 4 tablespoons (56 g) Spectrum or other vegetable shortening, cubed and frozen for 20 minutes
  • 1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/4 cup (60 ml) ice water
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons vodka, optional
  • Filling
  • 1/4 cup (60 ml) olive oil
  • 2 (285 g), onions, sliced into 1⁄2-inch disks (about 3 cups)
  • 2 cups (170 g) cooked carrots or sweet potatoes; or 2 medium carrots, peeled, cut in half, and sliced into 1⁄2-inch half moons
  • 3 stalks celery (85 g), sliced 1⁄2 inch thick
  • 1 teaspoon (heaping) fresh thyme leaves
  • 1/2 teaspoon fresh sage leaves, minced
  • 1/4 cup (60 ml) white wine or water
  • 4 tablespoons (56 g) unsalted butter
  • 1/4 cup (30 g) all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup (240 ml) leftover gravy plus 1⁄2 cup (120 ml) water; or 11⁄2 cups (360 ml) turkey or chicken stock
  • 12 ounces (340 g) fully cooked turkey, cubed or shredded (about 2 cups)
  • 3/4 cup (85 g) cooked green beans or frozen petite peas
  • 1 pinch kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, if needed
  • 3 cups leftover stuffing
  • 4 tablespoons (56 g) unsalted butter, melted
Directions
  1. Butter and Shortening Crust
  2. In the food processor, pulse the flour, butter, shortening, and salt until the fats are in small pieces coated with flour, about 15 times. Add the water and vodka (if using) all at once and process until the mixture almost forms a ball. Form the dough into a 3- by 4-inch rectangle using plastic wrap and a bench scraper to firmly press the dough into a cohesive form. Wrap tightly and refrigerate a minimum of 4 hours.
  3. Remove the dough from the refrigerator and allow it to warm slightly. Roll out the crust to 11 by 15 inches and place in the slab pie pan, pressing it into the corners of the pan and allowing the excess to drape over the sides. Pierce the crust all over with the tines of a fork or a docking tool. Crimp the edge. Refrigerate.
  4. Heat the oven to 425°F; if you have one, place a baking stone, Baking Steel, or inverted baking sheet on the center rack to heat.
  1. Filling
  2. Warm the olive oil in a deep, wide skillet or Dutch oven over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add the onions and cook until translucent, about 8 minutes. Add the carrots, celery, thyme, and sage. Stir well to coat the vegetables in oil and cook until slightly tender, 4 or 5 minutes. Splash in the wine and cook until the pan is nearly dry.
  3. Over medium-high heat, add the butter and cook until foaming. Sprinkle the flour over the vegetables and cook, stirring, until the flour smell goes away and the roux (the paste created with butter and flour) has turned golden, about 4 minutes. Pour in the gravy and water and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and let the stew bubble away until thickened, 5 or 6 minutes. Stir in the turkey and green beans. Most of these ingredients will have been seasoned already, so taste and season judiciously with salt and pepper. Cool the filling for at least 30 minutes before filling the pie.
  4. Place a sheet of parchment in the crust-lined pie pan, weight with pie weights, and blind bake the crust (on top of the steel, stone, or baking sheet if using) for 20 minutes. Remove the paper and weights and place the pan back in the oven for 5 more minutes to dry out the crust. Reduce the oven temperature to 375°F.
  5. Spoon the filling into the crust, smoothing the surface. Pinch off walnut-sized pieces of stuffing and dot the top of the pie. Drizzle the stuffing nuggets with the melted butter and slide the pie back into the oven. Bake until the stuffing is toasty brown and the filling is bubbling, about 25 minutes longer. Serve hot.
  6. Swaps: Almost anything left over from Thanksgiving will find a place in the pie filling. Scatter roasted Brussels sprouts, creamed onions, or roasted sweet potatoes over the filling.

See what other Food52ers are saying.

  • Enid Barnes
    Enid Barnes
  • MrsWheelbarrow
    MrsWheelbarrow
  • tineross
    tineross
Four cookbooks. 100s of recipes online. It all started with Food52

7 Reviews

Enid B. November 30, 2021
Help!! I need to make a Tortiere slab pie. Do you have any recommendations, as I'll need a top crust.
 
MrsWheelbarrow November 30, 2021
Double the crust ingredients. Divide the dough into two parts.
 
Enid B. November 30, 2021
OK thank you....but, what about oven temp/time?
 
MrsWheelbarrow November 30, 2021
I usually start double crusted pies at 425 for 20 min then reduce to 350 and bake for 40 more minutes. There should not be a need to blind bake.
 
Enid B. November 30, 2021
Thank you! Love your ideas/recipes!
 
tineross November 24, 2018
There is a typo in the second ingredient, seems to be onions based on the instructions.
 
MrsWheelbarrow November 24, 2018
Thank you for letting me know. I've made the correction!