Southwestern Egg Rolls

Crispy flour tortilla egg rolls filled with chili seasoned turkey, avocado, corn, cheddar, jalapenos, and olives.  

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving! As I told you in my last post, Sunny hosted this year’s dinner with twenty-five guests. She and Chris made two turkeys, so there’s been a few typical leftover meals: hot turkey sandwiches, turkey and cranberry paninis, turkey soup, and turkey dinner with all the trimmings…again.

I thought we needed to get a bit more creative before we all tired of leftovers, so here’s something that my family happily welcomed. At first when they saw me shredding turkey breast, they said, “Turkey again?” Then came the deflated sighs.

But when they tasted these Southwestern Egg Rolls that are crunchy, spicy and bursting with all kinds of flavors, I heard a different kind of sigh. You know, the one you hear when someone bites into something that pleases the palate.

So, give these big bites a try and get away from the humdrum turkey leftovers. Serve them warm with your favorite taco  sauce or hot sauce. 

Didn’t have turkey for Thanksgiving? It’s great with chicken, too.

Makes 12

• 12 flour tortillas  (8 inches in diameter)
• 4 cups shredded turkey
• 1½ tsp. chili powder
• 1½ tsp. garlic salt
• 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
• 1½ cups sliced black olives
• about 1 cup sliced jalapenos
• 2 avocados
• 1 can corn kernels
• oil for frying
• hot sauce for serving

Toss the turkey meat with the chili powder and garlic salt.

It’s easier to roll the tortillas if you start with the smaller ingredients. Put about a tablespoon of corn on the tortilla, leaving about an inch and a half space on each side of the tortilla. Put several olive slices on top of the corn.  Add some jalapeno slices on top of the olives. Sprinkle some cheese on top of everything. Add a few slices of avocados next. Then top it all with the turkey. 

Fold the left and right sides of the tortilla towards the center. Hold all the stuffing together, squeezing it really tight, and roll the tortilla away from you like a burrito. Stick a toothpick in it to hold it together until you’re ready to fry them. 

Fill a small frying pan with oil to about a half an inch deep. Keep it on medium heat, so the tortillas brown slowly and the insides get hot. Remove the toothpicks before frying and place the roll seam side down into the hot oil. Fry each side until golden brown. Slice in half and serve with your favorite hot sauce.