Turkey Salad Tea Sandwiches with Dried Cherries

Special thanks to Stoneridge Orchards for sponsoring this post. As always, all opinions are 100% my own.

Dried sour cherries add a pop of sweet-tart flavor to the turkey filling in this simple yet elegant tea sandwich recipe. Perfect party food!

There’s something magical about a well made tea sandwich. The ingredients can be simple, but the flavors have to really deliver. And your presentation needs to be on point.

I’m talking trimming the crusts off, cutting them into pretty shapes… the whole nine yards.

Of course, this turkey salad is equally delicious slapped between 2 pieces of bread, spread atop crackers, or even served in lettuce wraps. You could even spoon it into endive leaves for a gorgeous dinner party presentation. The choice is yours!

No matter how you serve it up, this stuff is absolutely delicious.

The real star of the show here is the addition of Stoneridge Orchards’ dried Montmorency cherries. These little beauties are plump and juicy and just jam-packed with intense real cherry flavor.

According to Wikipedia, Montmorency cherries are a variety of sour cherries that have a history that dates back to ancient Rome. They are named for an area of France, and have been cultivated in the United States since at least the early 20th century.

There is a lot of research around the health benefits of tart cherries – studies have shown that they have tons of potential from reducing the risk of heart disease, fighting inflammation, soothing arthritis and post-workout muscle pain, and even promoting a better night’s sleep.

Anthony Komaroff, M.D., Editor in Chief of Harvard Health Letter shared some great perspective on the benefits of dried fruit in this Ask the doctor piece:

Dried fruits also contain more fiber and more of the antioxidants called phenols than fresh fruit, per ounce. Fiber fights heart disease, obesity, and some types of cancer (although its possible protective effect against colon cancer is controversial). People with diets rich in plant phenols have lower rates of heart disease, diabetes, several kinds of cancer, and possibly degenerative brain diseases.

I first got acquainted with Stoneridge Orchards this past December when I attended ShiftCon in New Orleans, and fell in love at first bite! I have always been a fruit lover – fresh, dried, dehydrated… you name it, I am happy to gobble it up.

My 5-year-old is the same way – we have to divvy fruit up between us at home. And let me tell you – the bag of strawberries dipped in dark chocolate was a hot commodity when I got back from my trip. It didn’t even last a full day.

Stoneridge Orchards’ dried fruit packs so much flavor. I love that they use whole fruit – not just pieces. And they offer lots of different varieties of dried fruit – even some dipped in dark chocolate or Greek style yogurt.

I couldn’t get over how plump the cherries were! Up until that point, my dried cherry experiences had all been really thin, sticky flakes of cherries. These really do feel like an indulgence.

Their fruit is proudly grown  by third-generation family farmers in Washington State. Their products are all natural, gluten-free, non-GMO, and free of artificial colors, flavors, hydrogenated oils, sulfites, and high fructose corn syrup.

It’s just ridiculously delicious fruit.

And then there’s the chili lime cherries, which were aweeeeesome in the Pan-Roasted Pork Tenderloin with Chili Lime Cherry Sauce that I made mid-week. But that deserves its own post here sometime soon!

The inspiration for my tea sandwiches came from a (now closed) local tea house that served a turkey salad with dried cranberries mixed in. The little bits of sweetness were really nice, and it has a vaguely Thanksgiving-ish vibe. Actually, this would be a great recipe to go to when you’re looking to repurpose leftover turkey from Thanksgiving dinner.

Turkey breast chops are poached in a mixture of chicken stock and white wine along with a dried bay leaf and a few black peppercorns. Once the turkey is cooked and cooled, give it a few whirls in the food processor to chop it up nice and small.

I roughly chopped the dried cherries while my turkey was cooling. They’re a little sticky, so be careful while you’re chopping. Stir in a few more ingredients and pop the turkey salad in the fridge until you’re ready to serve.

In true teahouse fashion, I’ve called for buttering your bread and trimming the crusts off. While these aren’t necessary steps, they really take the sandwiches up a notch. You could spread a little mayo on the bread instead of butter if you want – just some moisture barrier to help keep them from getting soggy.

I made this turkey salad on a Friday morning and slapped together a sandwich and brought it out on a picnic playdate with my son and some friends. It was fantastic, and it was even better the next day after it chilled in the fridge overnight.

And, as a side note, I won this insulated picnic backpack at an auction at my son’s school and we have been loving it!! Perfect for toting lunches like this around. I look forward to bringing more delicious dried fruits along for many more family picnics.

Looking for more delicious sandwiches? Check out these 5-star recipes:

• French-Inspired Egg Salad Sandwiches
• Garlicky Tomato, Ri(goat)ta Cheese, Thyme, Honey + Aged Balsamic Toast
• Emeril’s Classic Fried Shrimp Po’boys
• Persian Malbec Lamb Burgers with Mast-o-Khiar and Pomegranate Tomato Jam
• Challah Nutella Banana Panini
• Falafel with Yogurt-Herb Sauce
• Halal Chicken on a Pita AKA Rafakey 2.0

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