turkey dinner sandwiches + sides ala pecans

this evening of ‘real simple’ wednesday-night cooking we made turkey & cranberry chutney sandwiches with sweet potatoes w pecans & parmesan and green beans w pecans & maple vinaigrette sides.  the meal was actually very simple and was quickly able to be prepared. 

the most flavorful were the sweet potatoes; however, if the turkey sandwich was made with real roast turkey, that would be amazing.  (i swear i have had this sandwich on the cape before.) 

the green beans were from a summer issue, and the directions have them as a cold salad.  but for the season, we were thinking that they would be great warm.  it wasn’t the most amazing..we had just enough pecans for these three meals that included it.

we had this with a cab sav and it was a pretty good pairing!

 

turkey & cranberry chutney sandwich

serves 1| hands-on time: 15m | total time: 15m
ingredients

2 tablespoons cranberry or some other fruit chutney

2 tablespoons chopped toasted pecans

2 slices sourdough bread

2 ounces thinly sliced roasted turkey

2 ounces Brie, sliced

1/4 cup arugula

directions

In a small bowl, combine the chutney and pecans. Spread the chutney mixture on the bread and form a sandwich with the turkey, Brie, and arugula.

sweet potatoes w pecans & parmesan

serves 8| hands-on time: 15m | total time: 1hr 10m
ingredients

3 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for the baking dish

2 1/2 pounds sweet potatoes, peeled and sliced into 1⁄4-inch-thick rounds

1/2 cup grated Parmesan (2 ounces)

kosher salt and black pepper

3/4 cup chopped pecans

1/4 cup light brown sugar

2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves

pinch of cayenne pepper

directions

Heat oven to 375° F. Oil a shallow 2 ½- to 3-quart baking dish. In a large bowl, toss the sweet potatoes with the Parmesan, 2 tablespoons of the oil, 1 teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon black pepper; transfer to the prepared baking dish. Cover tightly with foil and bake until tender, 45 to 50 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the pecans, sugar, thyme, cayenne, the remaining tablespoon of oil, ¼ teaspoon salt, and ⅛ teaspoon black pepper.

Remove the foil from the baking dish, sprinkle the pecan mixture over the potatoes, and continue to bake, uncovered, until the pecans are toasted, 10 to 12 minutes.

green beans w pecans & maple vinaigrette

serves 8| hands-on time: 15m | total time: 1hr 50min

ingredients

3/4 cup pecans

kosher salt and black pepper

2 pounds green beans, trimmed

1/4 cup olive oil

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

1 tablespoon pure maple syrup

directions

Heat oven to 400º F. Spread the pecans on a rimmed baking sheet and bake, tossing once, until toasted, 6 to 8 minutes. Let cool, then roughly chop.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil and add 1 tablespoon salt. Add the green beans and cook until just tender, 4 to 5 minutes. Drain and run under cold water to cool.

In a large bowl, whisk together the oil, vinegar, mustard, maple syrup, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Add the green beans and pecans and toss to combine