Kentucky Hot Brown Turkey Sliders

A twist on the classic hot brown, these Kentucky Hot Brown Turkey Sliders feature Castle Wood Reserve® honey turkey breast, homemade pimento cheese, bacon and tomatoes.  The perfect appetizer to add to your Kentucky Derby Party.

Spring has officially sprung and I’m thinking all things sunshine, flowers and parties.  Spring has some great events to kick off the party season.  The Kentucky Derby, Cinco de Mayo and Memorial Day. We also celebrate my husband and both of our kids birthdays (they share the same day!).

I have always been fascinated with the Kentucky Derby and attending the actual race one day, is on my bucket list.  But in the meantime, I’ll just continue throwing parties at home.

Who doesn’t love getting dressed to the nines in big fancy hats, cute sundresses and betting on some horses?!  And it’s “The Most Exciting Two Minutes in Sports; The Run for the Roses!”  Count me #allin

It wasn’t until last year I threw my first Kentucky Derby party with my friend, Kayla.  We went shopping for hats, party decor and of course food.  We set up a photo booth, made some food and got to work.  It was so much fun and everyone had a blast.  Fast forward to this year and I’m planning a derby party, on a much larger scale, at our local Moose lodge where all of our friends are members.  They’re all in for a fantastic shindig!

So, if you know anything about me, I love to plan a good party.  Only bad thing is, I’m a type A person and plan parties to the most minute detail and tend to go way over board, well not in my opinion, but the hubs.  Is there a such thing as going overboard when it comes to party planning though?  I think not.  My biggest concern is making sure people have a great time no matter what I need to do to make that happen.  DIY photo props…oh yeah.

The first thing I think about when planning a party is the food, duh.  I knew for this Kentucky Derby party I wanted to make hot browns. They’re a classic dish dating back to the 1920’s from the Brown Hotel in Louisville, Kentucky.  A hot brown is an open-faced turkey sandwich on Texas toast, with Mornay sauce, bacon and tomatoes.  They’re served in a skillet, which isn’t practical for serving a crowd of people.  Insert Kentucky Hot Brown Sliders.

I took {most} of the classic ingredients from the Hot brown and added my own twist.  Last year, I made my own turkey breast for the sandwiches, but this year I choose Castle Wood Reserve® Smoked Honey Turkey meat. It’s delicious, contains no binders, no MSG, and is trans-fat and gluten-free.

For the rest of the Kentucky Hot Brown Sliders I used Sweet rolls, bacon and roma tomatoes.  Now, comes the twist.  Ready?  It’s two words.  Pimento cheese.  Oh yeah, I went there and it’s delicious.  The traditional hot brown has a roux with pecorino romano to create a Mornay sauce but when you’ve got only 2 minutes to catch a race, who has time for that.  The pimento cheese can be made days in advance and tripled because it’s delicious on veggies and crackers as well so it serves a dual purpose.  #winning.

This is a new recipe for pimento cheese.  I posted this pimento cheese recipe a few years ago stuffed into jalapeno poppers.  (don’t judge me on the photos, they’re on my to do list to reshoot) but they’re super delicious and a great appetizer!

Besides whipping up the pimento cheese, these Kentucky Hot Brown Sliders come together in a snap.  And let me warn you, make a few pans.  I made 2 pans and they were gone in the blink of an eye.  All you need to do for assembly, is cut the sweet rolls in half and place them into the bottom of a pan.  Spread some mayonnaise on the bottom, top with Castle Wood Reserve® Smoked Honey Turkey deli meat, pimento cheese, bacon, tomatoes and the top bun.  Melt some butter and add parsley, minced onion and parmesan cheese and spread that all over the top.  Bake in the oven for 15 minutes, whip the drool off your face and wait.  Cut into sliders and serve.

These Kentucky Hot Brown Turkey Sliders are a must for your Kentucky Derby party!

4 votes

Print

Kentucky Hot Brown Sliders

Prep 5 mins

Cook 15 mins

Total 20 mins

Author Megan Marlowe- Strawberry Blondie Kitchen

Yield 12 servings

A twist on the classic hot brown, these Kentucky Hot Brown Sliders feature Castle Wood Reserve® honey turkey breast, homemade pimento cheese, bacon and tomatoes.  The perfect appetizer to add to your Kentucky Derby Party.

Ingredients

Pimento Cheese

• 4 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, grated
• 4 ounces gouda cheese, grated
• 4 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
• 3 tablespoons mayonnaise
• 1 (4oz) jar diced pimentos
• 1/4 teaspoons salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon red chili flakes

Kentucky Hot Brown Sliders

• 1 package (12) Sweet Slider rolls
• 1/4 cup mayonnaise
• 1 package Castle Wood Reserve® Smoked Honey Turkey
• 1/2 cup pimento cheese (recipe above)
• 12 pieces bacon, cooked
• 2 roma tomatoes, sliced into 12 slices.
• 2 tablespoons butter, melted
• 1 teaspoon minced onion
• 1 teaspoon dried parsley
• 2 tablespoon parmesan cheese, grated

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Cut sweet rolls in half and place them on the bottom of a 13 x 9 pan.
3. Layer mayonnaise, deli meat, pimento cheese, bacon, tomatoes and top layer of bread.
4. Combine butter, minced onion and parsley and brush over the tops of the buns.
5. Cover with foil and bake in the oven for 10 minutes.
6. Remove foil and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.  Place back into the oven for 2-3 minutes until the cheese is melted and the tops are golden.
7. Cut into sliders and serve.

Courses Appetizer

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size 12 servings

Amount Per Serving
Calories 252
% Daily Value
Total Fat 13 g		20%
	Saturated Fat 5 g	25%
Cholesterol 42 mg		14%
Sodium 788 mg		33%
Total Carbohydrates 19 g		6%
	Sugars 6 g
Protein 19 g		38%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.

The smoked honey turkey with the creamy pimento cheese, salty bacon and juicy tomato is enough to make your taste buds sing.   These go perfectly served with some Derby pie and a Minty beverage!

Definitely serve these at your next Derby party.  Heck, serve them for Easter, for a friend or dinner.  They’re absolutely delicious, easy and feed a crowd!

still hungry for more?

follow me on facebook, pinterest and instagram for more deliciousness!

pin this recipe on pinterest!

Subscribe! sign up for easy + delicious recipes delivered weekly-straight to your inbox!