Make the Most of Your Turkey Day Leftovers With These Ideas

One year I was enjoying Thanksgiving with my family, a lively and lovely bunch. While flipping through the channels we came across a food network show all about the random and different things you could do with leftovers. My cousin, while watching a professional chef scoop the filling out of a pie to make breakfast pancakes, said “Why not just eat the pumpkin pie?”

I feel the same way about leftovers. If all I have is one more day’s worth of turkey, potatoes, gravy, or pie then why not just eat the pie… for every meal of the day until it’s gone?

But if you’ve made way too much food and couldn’t possibly eat turkey with gravy for a week then I thought I’d share some of my favorite uses for leftovers with you.

Breakfast

Southwestern Turkey Scramble. Fry an onion and a bell pepper. Add chopped leftover turkey and scramble with enough eggs to go around. Top with shard cheddar cheese and salsa if desired.

Pumpkin or Apple Pie Oatmeal. Make a plain batch of oatmeal. Give each person half a serving and then throw in 1/2 to a whole piece of pie and some cream. Yum.

Potato Pancakes. Mix your leftover mashed potatoes with some finely diced onion and enough eggs to make a thick batter. Fry in 1/4 cup increments in a hot skillet with plenty of lard or coconut oil until golden brown and easy to flip. Serve with apple sauce and sour cream.

Main Dish

Leftover Hash. My grandmother made this comfort food every day after Thanksgiving that I can remember and it is one of my favorites. Combine leftover mashed potatoes, stuffing, diced turkey and enough gravy to thin it out and flavor it. Heat through and serve. So good.

Turkey Tetrazzini. This dish is about as far away from sage-filled turkey day as you can get, in case you’re in need of a real change.

Turkey Tortilla Soup. Take your favorite chicken tortilla recipe and use turkey in it’s place. Spicy, creamy, and yummy.

Potato Soup. Make sure you’ve made stock from that turkey carcass and then combine that with the leftover mashed potatoes until you achieve the desired consistency. Top with bacon and cheese and serve.

Dessert

Cranberry Cheesecake. Use this delicious and good-for-you recipe, but substitute your leftover cranberry sauce. Easy and so good.

Apple Pie Ice Cream or Shake. Mash a few pieces of your apple (or other) pie until it is in fine pieces. Mix into your favorite vanilla or cinnamon ice cream recipe towards the end of freezing. Or, simply blend with ice cream and milk for an unbelievable milk shake.

What about you… how do you get creative with Thanksgiving leftovers?