8 Recipes for left over turkey that won't put you to sleep!

8 Recipes for left over turkey that won’t put you to sleep!

Leftovers are one of my favorite things about Thanksgiving! Left over recipes are a great way to save money, and easy to freeze and save as ready-to-go meals. I’ve compiled 8 of my favorite thanksgiving turkey recipes to enjoy- fresh or as a frozen meal for prepping or camping! Let’s start with 2 quick recipes for the most important meal of the day;

1. Turkey Stuffed Breakfast Muffins 

Ingredients: 4 1/2 cups leftover stuffing 
2 cups chopped turkey 
3 large eggs, whisked 
1/2 cup chicken stock
1 cup fresh spinach chopped 
Leftover cranberry or gravy sauce optional for serving)

With oven pre-heated to 350*, combine stuffing, turkey, spinach, egg and stock until well-stirred. 
Divide mixture into 12 greased muffin cups. 

Bake for 30 minutes or until slightly crispy on top and throughoughly cooked. 

2. Creamed Turkey and Biscuits 

Ingredients: 2 tbsp unsalted butter
2 tbsp flour
1/2 cup chicken or turkey broth
1 1/2 cups half n half r51/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper 
2 cups chopped leftover turkey 

On a large skillet heated to medium, melt butter and whisk flour for 1-2 minutes. Add broth, half n half, salt and pepper, and continue whisking every minute for about 5 minutes. Add choppped turkey until heated and sauce is thickened (3-4 minutes) 

Serve over your favorite buttermilk biscuits, feel free to top with leftover mashed potatoes too! 

Need a left over recipe for your mid-day meal? These delicious fixes will fit right into your lunchbox and make all your co-workers jealous. 

3. Turkey Pasta Casserole with Asparagus and Cheddar Cheese

Ingredients: 10 ozs of frozen broccoli florets 
2 cups diced cooked turkey
1 1/2 cups of cooked noodles (elbow noodles work great!) 
2 tbsp butter
1/4 cup chopped onion 
9 ozs sliced mushroom
1 can condensed cream of mushroom soup
1/2 cup of milk
Salt to taste
1/4 tsp curry powder
1/2 tsp poultry seasoning 
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese 

Pre-heat oven to 350* and butter or oil a 2 quart baking dish 
In a large bowl combine broccoli florets, thawed peas, turkey, and cooked noodles. 
In medium saucepan melt 2 tbsp butter, adding onion and mushrooms to cook until tender. Stir frequently while adding in milk, soup, and seasonings. 
Pour hot soup mixture on top of turkey and noodles and stir to thoroughly combine. 
Turn mixture into baking dish and top with shredded cheese. Bake at 350* for 25-30 minutes. 

4. Thanksgiving Turkey Empanadas 

Ingredients: Premade pie crust (14 ozs) 
1 1/2 cups cooked turkey shredded
1/3 cup turkey gravy
3/4 cup mashed potatoes 
2 tbsp fine chopped parsley
3/4 cup leftover stuffing 
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste
I egg white whisked with 1 tsp water 

Pre-heat oven to 400* and roll out pastry, cut out three 6-inch rounds. Roll out scraps continuing to cut 6-inch rounds until gone. 

Combine turkey and gravy in a small bowl and set aside. Combine mashed potatoes and parsley in another bowl. 

On each 6-inch round, pile 1 1/2 tsp mashed potato, 1 tbsp stuffing, and 2-3 tbsp turkey. Sprinkle salt and pepper, wet edges of roll and fold over, sealing with the tines of a fork. Cut a series of 2-3 vent slits n the top of the pastry and line on a parchment lined baking sheet. Continue with remaining rounds. 

Brush each empanada with egg wash and bake for 12-14 minutes at 400* 

Serves well with leftover cranberry sauce! 

5. Thanksgiving Turkey Burrito

Ingredients: 2 cups turkey shredded
1 cup leftover stuffing 
1 cup leftover mashed potatoes
4 tortillas
1/2 gravy gravy
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese 

Heat turkey, potatoes, and stuffing and wrap inside tortilla. top with gravy and cheese. Continue for all tortillas. 

Now onto dinner recipes that are sure to be crowd-pleasers! 

6. Turkey Divan 

Ingredients: 2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp flour
1 1/4 cup milk
1 egg yolk (beaten)
1/4 tsp dry mustard
1/4 salt
1/8 tsp pepper1/2 cup shredded cheese
16 oz steamed brocoli florets
1 lb sliced turkey
2 tbsp parmesan cheese

Melt butter in 2 qt sauce pan using medium heat add flour and remove from heat, stirring for 1-2 minutes. Whisk in egg mixture, return to heat and add spices. Stir constantly until sauce thickens. Melt in cheddar cheese. 

Next, arrange broccoli and turkey across bottom of a 2 qt baking dish and pour cheese mixture over top of broccoli and turkey. Sprinkle parmesan over it and broil at 500* for 3-4 minutes. 

7. Slow Cooker Turkey Sweet Potato Chili

Ingredients: 1 lb turkey shredded 
1 15oz can black beans
1 28iz can tomatoes
3 diced sweet potatoes (medium sized)
1 cup quinoa 
1 yellow onion chopped 
2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 tsp salt 
2 tsp cumin
1 tbsp olive oil
1 12oz beer 

Add all ingredients including cooked leftover turkey into slow cooker and cook on high for 3-4 hours or low for 5-6 hours. Set it and forget it! This dish freezes very well for dinner in a pinch later! 

8. Creamy Turkey and Rice

Ingredients: 2 tbsp butter
1/2 cup diced onion
2 cloves minced garlic
1 cup chopped mushrooms
1/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp dried thyme
1/4 tsp paprika
2 cups chicken stock
1 cup milk
2 cups chopped turkey
1 cup rice 
1 cup chopped spinach

Melt butter over medium heat in a large skillet with a lid. Add in onion, garlic, mushrooms to cook for 2-3 minutes. Add flour salt, pepper, thyme and paprika, and slowly stir in broth and milk. Add turkey nd rice and bring skillet to a boil while stirring for 2 minutes. Reduce the heat and let simmer 15 minutes or until rice is tender. Stir in spinach until slightly wilted and serve. 

These 8 unique and fun left over recipes are sure to be crowd-pleasers and will save you time and money by putting those leftovers to good use. Enjoy!