The 23 Best Thanksgiving Leftover Recipes on the Web (2024)

1. Leftover Stuffing Waffles

This recipe is best when the stuffing doesn’t have large pieces of meat or vegetables in it. Serve with leftover cranberry sauce and warm leftover gravy.

2. Bacon Stuffing Bites

These tasty bites make a great day-after-Thanksgiving snack. This recipe involves rolling leftover stuffing into balls then wrapping a piece of bacon around each one. Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, seam side down, and bake for 30 minutes.

3. Thanksgiving Pizza

The best part about this Thanksgiving Pizza recipe is that you can use whatever leftovers you have on hand. Start by pressing a thawed puff pastry sheet into a greased pie pan. Spread mashed potatoes on the bottom, drizzle gravy on top then add corn and green beans. Top it off with leftover turkey, stuffing, another drizzle of gravy, cheddar cheese, and French fried onions.

4. Chocolate Mashed Potato Cupcakes

To make this incredibly original recipe, plan on using basic mashed potatoes without skin or any other inclusions that would ruin the texture and flavor of the cupcake.

5. Thanksgiving Leftovers Salad

This salad recipe is all about the cranberry dressing. Fill a bowl with mixed greens, leftover turkey, and some soft cheese if you have it. To make the vinaigrette, whisk together cranberries, orange juice, olive oil and apple cider vinegar. Best of all, you’ll love the pieces of cranberry in your salad.

6. Spiced Sweet Potato Hummus

For this spiced up hummus recipe, add together a cooked sweet potato, chickpeas, tahini, olive oil, garlic, lemon juice, cumin, Sriracha, and a dash of nutmeg and cinnamon. Blend it all in a food processor until you get a consistency you like. Serve with crackers from Thanksgiving, or pita chips.

7. Thanksgiving Leftover Sandwich with a Moist Maker

Anyone can make a leftover Turkey sandwich, but have you ever made one with a moist maker? Made popular by the show “Friends,” this sandwich goes from ordinary to extraordinary thanks to a piece of bread soaked in gravy. To make this turkey sandwich recipe, build your sandwich with turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce, and anything else you like, then place a piece of gravy soaked bread in the center. Push it all together and enjoy.

8. Drop Donuts

These donuts are great for breakfast or as a snack and are made with mashed potatoes, sugar, egg, and sour cream. According to the recipe, you’ll want to roll each doughnut in sugar while they’re still warm from the fryer for an extra dose of deliciousness.

9. Turkey and Stuffing Dumpling Soup

For this flavorful and hearty soup recipe you’ll need a turkey carcass, an onion, carrots, celery, garlic, parsley, and leftover cooked turkey chopped up. Use leftover stuffing, eggs, and flour for the dumplings.

10. Cran-Sorbet

The recipe includes using an ice cream or sorbet maker, but if you don’t have one, this site offers instructions on how to do it without a machine.

11. Mashed Potato Pancakes

Here’s a recipe that shows the versatility of potatoes. Throw in spinach or any leftover veggies for extra nutrients. And don’t forget to top it off with some of that leftover delicious gravy—or ketchup works too if you like it on your potatoes.

12. Leftover Turkey and Stuffing Stuffed Peppers

Make this semi-healthy recipe, with a delicious infusion of bell peppers, by combining egg, turkey, and stuffing together then spooning it into the peppers and topping it off with mozzarella. Bake at 350 for about a half hour. It’s that easy.

13. Orange Cranberry Parfait

Whip up this tasty dessert recipe using leftover cranberry sauce, vanilla or plain Greek yogurt, and something crunchy like granola (apple and cinnamon rice cakes work too!).

RELATED: 17 Easy Ways to Make Your Thanksgiving Kids Table More Fun

14. Ultra Fudgy Sweet Potato Brownies

In this lightened up brownie recipe, the sweet potatoes add depth and moisture, making them doubly delicious. You’ll need sweet potato puree, peanut or almond butter, vanilla extract, flour, chocolate chips, sugar, cocoa powder, and baking soda. Bake for 20 minutes at 325.

15. Leftover Roast Turkey Pho

This Vietnamese soup recipe is all about the broth and is a nice change from traditional turkey soup. You’ll need four cups of turkey meat plus the whole turkey carcass. Add in onion, garlic, ginger, anise pods, chicken broth, and cinnamon sticks for a rich broth. Then use rice noodles, bean sprouts, basil, jalapeño, and hoisin sauce for a hearty meal.

16. Meatball Heroes from Leftover Stuffing

This meatball sandwich recipe will have you wishing you had even more leftover stuffing. Use any spare Thanksgiving rolls for a tasty Italian treat that’s surprisingly easy to make.

17. Cranberry Sauce Oatmeal Muffins

The recipe calls for mixing flour, rolled oats, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together. You’ll also need cranberry sauce and vanilla yogurt.

18. Two-Ingredient Sweet Potato Tater Tots

The kids will love these tater tots, and you’ll love how easy the recipe is. Serve with ketchup or try this chipotle mayonnaise.

19. Turkey Corn Chowder

Here’s a recipe that takes care of all the leftover turkey, corn, and potatoes. Throw in a big slice of bread left over from Thanksgiving, and you have yourself a very filling meal.

20. Thanksgiving Leftovers Stromboli

Whether you like leftovers or not, you’ll love this irresistible Stromboli recipe. Serve with leftover gravy. Delicious!

21. Pumpkin Pie Milkshakes

Create a delectable pumpkin pie milkshake with this recipe by blending vanilla ice cream, milk, and pumpkin pie spice until smooth. Then add pie chunks and blend some more. Pour into glasses and top with whipped cream and cinnamon. Serve immediately.

22. Turkey Hash with Sunny-Side-Up Eggs

The 23 Best Thanksgiving Leftover Recipes on the Web (22)

Via Delish

This is the ultimate day-after-Thanksgiving breakfast. This recipe is super easy to make. You’ll need potatoes, onions, garlic, fresh thyme, leftover turkey for the hash. Then throw all the cooked ingredients on a plate and top with eggs sunny-side-up.

23. Turkey and Leeks Shepard Pie

What better recipe than a Shepard’s Pie (which was originally created to use up leftovers). For this hearty recipe, you’ll need turkey, sage, white wine, chicken broth, peas—or leftover green beans would work, too—leeks, and mashed potatoes.

UP NEXT: The Easiest Mini Pumpkin Pies You’ll Ever Make

The 23 Best Thanksgiving Leftover Recipes on the Web (2024)

FAQs

What is a creative way to eat Thanksgiving leftovers? ›

Instead, try turning your leftovers into a casserole, like our turkey divan, our chicken stuffing casserole, or our turkey pot pie; a soup, like our turkey noodle soup, our leftover turkey & wild rice soup, or our homemade turkey stock (made from your turkey carcass); or something lighter or more flavorful than before, ...

What ratio of Americans like leftovers better than the Thanksgiving meal itself? ›

A next-day Thanksgiving sandwich tastes better than the freshly served dinner, according to 66 percent of 2,000 U.S. residents surveyed by research group OnePoll in mid-November.

Are the leftovers the best part of Thanksgiving? ›

Out of 2,000 U.S. residents surveyed who celebrate Thanksgiving, 70% said they believe leftovers taste better than their original meal served on Thanksgiving day, according to survey results from Stasher. More than half of the same participants said their Thanksgiving holiday would be ruined if there were no leftovers.

How do you deal with leftovers on Thanksgiving? ›

The answer is simple: leftovers can be kept in the refrigerator for three to four days. This means you have until the Monday after Thanksgiving to eat all those delicious leftovers or place them in the freezer to enjoy later. If you store leftovers in the freezer, they will be of best quality within 2-6 months.

What are the 10 creative ways to use leftovers? ›

10 Creative Ways To Repurpose Leftovers
  • Frittata. Combine leftover vegetables, meats or cheeses with beaten eggs, and cook them in a skillet to make a delicious frittata. ...
  • Stir-Fry. ...
  • Casserole. ...
  • Pizza. ...
  • Soup or Stew. ...
  • Quesadilla or Wrap. ...
  • Salad. ...
  • Stuffed Peppers.

Which president refused to celebrate Thanksgiving? ›

While Thanksgiving technically isn't a religious holiday, the “giving thanks” part of it struck Jefferson as being far too religious for his tastes. As our nation's third president, he stirred controversy by refusing to recognize Thanksgiving.

What food was present at the first Thanksgiving but is rarely eaten now? ›

Fish and Shellfish

Culinary historians believe that much of the Thanksgiving meal consisted of seafood, which is often absent from today's menus.

What is America's least favorite dish at Thanksgiving and what percentage? ›

"For the third year in a row, cranberry sauce takes first place as the most disliked traditional Thanksgiving food. Over 31% of respondents, 82 million American adults, do not want cranberry sauce for their Thanksgiving dinner.

What is the most unpopular Thanksgiving food? ›

The Most Disliked Traditional Thanksgiving Foods
  • Ham — 25.57%
  • Coleslaw — 25.57%
  • Pumpkin Pie — 24.28%
  • Mashed Potatoes — 18.66%
  • Macaroni and Cheese — 17.47%
  • Carrots — 16.98%
  • Apple Pie — 16.29%
  • Corn — 15.50%
Nov 21, 2023

What is the least favorite side dish for Thanksgiving? ›

And the least favorite side dish for Americans on Thanksgiving is -- green bean casserole. 31.4 percent of people surveyed do not like it.

What is the number one side dish at Thanksgiving? ›

Mashed potatoes are a traditional Thanksgiving side dish for a reason, and we definitely look forward to serving up this delicious dish every November.

What are the symptoms of food poisoning on Thanksgiving Day? ›

Symptoms of food poisoning often include diarrhea, vomiting, upset stomach, or nausea. Call your healthcare provider if you have severe symptoms such as: Diarrhea and a fever higher than 102°F. Diarrhea for more than three days that is not improving.

What percentage of people prefer Thanksgiving leftovers? ›

Apparently I'm in the minority, as this poll reported that 80 percent of Americans prefer the leftover version.

Why do Thanksgiving leftovers taste better? ›

The flavor compounds – the herbs, the spices, the reactions that take place during cooking, sort of cool back and depending on how you have cooled and refrigerated your food, actually get back into the food and get trapped into the starches and the proteins.

How long are Thanksgiving leftovers good for? ›

What are some guidelines for storing leftovers? The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service recommends throwing out refrigerated leftovers after three to four days. If foods are kept in the freezer, they can usually still be consumed for three to four months.

What to do with leftovers you don't like? ›

Get creative in the kitchen. Leftover vegetables are easily combined or baked into new dishes. Reinvent grains and meats into fried rice, hash, scrambles, and soups.

What foods make great leftovers? ›

  • Meatloaf. Though meatloaf is often restricted to the weeknight dinner table, it is a powerhouse leftover. ...
  • Lasagna. Sure, there's nothing better than lasagna coming out of the oven hot with bubbling cheese. ...
  • Pulled Pork. ...
  • Beef Stew. ...
  • Chili. ...
  • Frittatas, Quiches and Tarts.

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