The day after Thanksgiving is one of the saddest days of the year. You’re pretty much guaranteed to suffer from insane food withdrawals. As tragic as the end of the holiday is, one thing I’m definitely thankful for after the festivities are over is the legendary Turkey Day leftovers. The best part is that the food still tastes incredible the next day!
But what happens when a couple of days pass, and you find yourself bored of eating the same meal over and over again? I mean, don’t get me wrong—no one wants to waste perfectly good leftovers. What you may not know is that they have the capacity to be reborn into novel creations of your own. So try something new this year, and use these 15 Thanksgiving leftovers recipes to inspire you to switch up your traditions.
1. Egg Rolls
Asian and American traditions collide in this appetizer to fashion a new and exciting way to get rid of your Thanksgiving leftovers. Stuffing, mashed potatoes, turkey and cranberry sauce are all crammed inside the egg wrapper, allowing you to relive the dreaminess of your Thanksgiving feast with every bite.
2. Crescent Rolls
These Thanksgiving leftover crescent rolls are basically miniature versions of your Thanksgiving dinner. They are completely customizable, so go crazy with the kinds of leftovers you stuff them with—you can wrap any leftover ingredients you want into the crescent roll dough. Traditional rolls can feature sweet traces of cranberry riddled with tender bites of turkey and stuffing. If you want to go wild, fill them with anything from sweet potato to green bean casserole to pumpkin pie. Who knows how many combos you may find yourself falling in love with.
3. OTT Turkey Sandwich
If you’ve seen Ross Geller’s extreme devotion to his post-Turkey Day sandwich, you’ll know why this OTT masterpiece is worth all the rage. This day-after-Thanksgiving leftovers sandwich is basically an entire feast sandwiched between two pieces of bread. Stuffing, turkey, mashed potatoes, brie, cranberry sauce, and even a little bit of gravy ooze down the sides with every delectable bite you take.
4. Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls
Got any leftover pumpkin from that scratch-made pumpkin pie? Use it to transform ordinary cinnamon rolls into a more ~seasonal~ breakfast item. These pumpkin cinnamon rolls require minimal effort to whip up in the morning, making them the perfect breakfast for when you’re still recovering from the excitement of the day before.
5. Fall Fettuccine
There’s nothing better than a steaming bowl of pasta to warm you up after a cold day, especially if it has anything to do with garlic, cheese or pumpkin. Yup, that’s right—excess pumpkin puree that wasn’t needed in your pumpkin pie can also be used to make the sauce of this creamy, 6-ingredient fall fettuccine. You’ll surely be begging for a break from the kitchen after all the blood, sweat and tears you put into the Thanksgiving feast, but this dish makes cooking up a leftovers-inspired meal effortless.
6. Potato Cakes
Mashed potatoes are great paired with turkey, but it’s way more fun to turn them into a feature dish once Thanksgiving is over. Bacon and cheddar add a savory twist to these potato pancakes that top their crispy shells off with mouth-watering bursts of flavor. Talk about a major upgrade.
7. Sweet Potato Breakfast Bowl
Out of the countless ways you can cook with sweet potato, I’m sure you’ve never encountered this one. This smoothie-turned-harvest-bowl is so easy to throw together you’ll wonder why you’ve never tried it before. Add cinnamon, pecans and any other toppings you want to create a sweet potato breakfast bowl that tastes just like you’re eating a thick slice of fresh pumpkin pie.
8. Mac and Cheese
There’s no better way to re-experience all your leftovers than to mesh them into one cheesy, American classic. Fresh cranberries, turkey and brie are only some of the holiday components incorporated into this iconic mac and cheese dish. Every ingredient works in harmony to deliver a flavor-packed combination of all your Thanksgiving favorites.
9. Turkey Pot Pie
Never struggle for day-after-Thanksgiving dinner plans again. Instead of eating the same old leftovers for dinner every year after the big day, spice it up by repurposing your pie crusts into tasty turkey pot pies. Piles of turkey and your favorite vegetables are smothered in creamy gravy and topped with an irresistibly buttery crust. With all that extra holiday food at your disposal, making these pies won’t require any extra effort on your part.
10. Apple Turnovers
You can never get enough of warm, gooey apple pies. If you’re lucky enough to have extra apple pie filling sitting in the fridge, scoop up the rest of it and stuff it into a puff pastry to make a quick batch of some delicious apple turnovers. You get the full pie experience without going through the work of making the entire thing over again.
11. Thanksgiving Breakfast Muffins
No one really knows what to do with stuffing once it’s torn away from the side of a Thanksgiving turkey. These breakfast muffins, however, give the famous staple side dish a whole new purpose. Stuffing acts as the base of the muffin for this recipe—it can be filled with turkey, cheese, bacon, or any other leftovers you feel like throwing in there.
12. White Cheddar, Apple and Turkey Caesar Sandwich
Don’t feel like going all out for your Thanksgiving leftovers sandwich? This white cheddar, apple and turkey Caesar sandwich provides a happy balance between extravagance and blandness. Any Granny Smith Apples you have left from baking a tender apple pie will pair well with your leftover turkey and fresh vegetables, providing a nice sweet and salty contrast for you to enjoy.
13. Cranberry Bread
If you can’t figure out what to do with the extra cranberries that didn’t make it into your tangy, homemade cranberry sauce, why not throw them into some sweet bread dough? This cranberry bread is the perfect addition to any lazy morning breakfast. The loaf is simple to pull together, and you’ll still get hit with a wave of post-Thanksgiving nostalgia.
14. Chickpea, Sweet Potato and Apple Farro Salad
If you want a refreshing change from all the hefty food still sitting on your stomach, this farro salad is the way to go. Sweet potatoes, butternut squash and apples help to maintain that autumn authenticity you’ll be missing after the holiday is over, while still keeping it light.
15. Mini Mason Jar Pumpkin Pies
The day after Thanksgiving rolls around, and you wake up to find that the last crumbs of your precious pumpkin pie are gone. You want more (obviously), but you don’t want to go through the whole process again of baking the pie yourself. What should you do now? Enter mini mason jar pumpkin pies. All you need is store-bought pie crust, leftover pumpkin pie filling and whipped cream to make these adorable mini pies that will bring back allll the nostalgia from the night before.
Reinventing your favorite Turkey Day dishes has never been more joyful, easy, or unique. These out-of-the-box recipes for Thanksgiving leftovers make for great bonding experiences with your family, plus it’ll make up for some of the foodie mourning of the past weekend.