10 Ways To Use Up All Those Thanksgiving Leftovers

So you hosted a kick-a** Thanksgiving dinner like the awesome host you knew you could be, but November has ended, the Christmas and Hanukkah season has begun and you have a fridge full of leftovers. You begged your relatives to take those pies and mashed potatoes home but you just can’t seem to get rid of all that turkey! This is the boat that all our generous dinner hosts seem to find themselves in the week following the food-filled holiday, but it seems like such a shame to throw perfectly good food in the garbage. Luckily, there are a lot of chefs out there who have the same problem and have come up with a list of delicious and easy ways to use up all your leftovers, especially the turkey. So if you’re having trouble fitting anything into your post-Thanksgiving filled fridge, make some room with these recipe ideas:

1. Turkey & Bacon Panini with Chipotle Mayo

This easy to make sandwich makes a perfect lunch meal that the whole family will love!

2. Turkey Pot Pie

A spin on the classic chicken pot pie that is perfect for these cold winter days

3. Open Faced Turkey Sandwich

Also a classic, and my favorite, this sandwich uses up more than just turkey. Pile on mashed potatoes, stuffing, turkey, gravy and whatever else you may like. 

4. Turkey Salad

A healthy way to use up those leftovers!

5. Turkey Vegetable Soup

Another recipe perfect for the holiday season!

6. Cheddar Turkey Casserole

Turkey, pasta, and veggies in a cheesy sauce? Yes please!

7. Club-style Turkey Enchiladas

This creative and delicious dish involves bacon, swiss, and left over turkey-yum!

8. Turkey Fettuccine 

For pasta lovers, this is a perfect way to use up leftovers in a simple but delicious way

9. Turkey Focaccia Club

This Panera-esque sandwich is amazing not just for turkey leftovers, but any day of the year

10. Turkey Ramen

Chef Edward Lee’s signature blend of Southern and Asian flavors is sure to win the approval of your family this holiday season.

ONCEKids Publishing is run by literacy advocate and Mompreneur Eileen Wacker.  Click here to find her acclaimed books

Your Guide to Planning a Stress-Free Thanksgiving Dinner

Thanksgiving is the perfect time to relax, watch football, eat till you (almost) feel sick, and just be thankful for what you have- that is if you aren’t hosting Thanksgiving. If you have ever hosted Thanksgiving dinner at your house before you probably know that the experience can be the opposite of relaxing. And if it is your first year hosting the festivities at your house I imagine you are probably already stressing out over the guest list, menu, decorations and everything else that goes into planning a food-abundant party. 

Thankfully (pun completely intended), Meg Galvin from SparkPeople Blogger has created a “Stress-free Thanksgiving Planning Guide” complete with weekly preparation steps to help Thanksgiving dinner hosts enjoy the holiday as much as their guests do. She advices beginning planning three weeks prior to the holiday, so if you haven’t already begun doing so than you should get on that ASAP! 

Here is what you should have already done:

1. Make a guest list of family and friends you wish to include

2. Send invitations and ask people what they plan to/can bring 

3. Once you know how many people will be attending, take an inventory of all the china, glassware, serving dishes, and silverware you own (don’t worry about everything matching!)

4. Choose your decor; including napkins, candles, tablecloths, and fall related decorations.

What you should start doing this week:

1. Finalize your menu

2. Shop for all non-perishable items

3. Pick your turkey (fresh versus frozen)

4. Make and freeze a meal for yourself for the Wednesday before Thanksgiving

Meg’s Turkey tips:

If you plan on buying a frozen turkey, get it now. Avoid buying any turkey over 15 pounds because the bigger the turkey, the older it is*

What to do the week of Thanksgiving:

1. If you bought a frozen turkey, thaw it out. Make sure there is room in your refrigerator and use a large pan to catch any juice that escape as it thaws. For every four pounds the turkey weighs, allow 1 day of thaw time.

2. Clear out or eat any leftovers to make plenty of room in the fridge

3. 2 days ahead: make any desserts and clean the house

4. The day before: 

-Prepare side dishes that can be held over night

-Pick up any last minute items such as rolls or ice

-Figure out how long you’re going to need to cook your turkey for

-Set out all serving dishes and utensils 

-Chill beverages

5. The day of:

-Clean bathrooms

-5 hours before: rinse and pat turkey dry, put the bird in the oven, and run the dishwasher

-3 hours before: begin to assemble side dishes and set up the carving board

-2 hours before: set up dessert table 

-1 hour before: set up beverage table, check turkey

-30 minutes before: bake rolls and make gravy

-15 minutes before: carve your turkey

Then give yourself a pat on the back because you just prepared and cooked an awesome Thanksgiving meal and now it is time to enjoy yourself with your food and guests! Worry about the mess later…

ONCEKids Publishing is run by literacy advocate and Mompreneur Eileen Wacker.  Click here to find her acclaimed books

Delicious and Creative Ways to Use Up All That Leftover Thanksgiving Turkey

Thanksgiving is over and all the guests have left with full stomachs and smiles on their faces (hopefully!)- but now you have a fridge filled with leftovers- pie, stuffing, cranberry sauce, the works. And probably what you'll have the most to finish up? All of that turkey. And the catch? You have a limited time to eat it before it goes bad! It would be a shame to waste, but honestly there are only so many turkey sandwiches one can eat. So that raises the question many hosts face each year, what to do with all that extra food?

Luckily for us, a lot of chefs have also considered this dilemma. So I've put together a delicious list of ways you can use up those leftovers without throwing them away (or getting sick of turkey!). I've also included links to easy and reliable recipes below each suggestion to help you get started on your turkey-eating-marathon! 

1. Turkey Soup

This is number one on my list because I've actually done this before and if you haven't, trust me, you're missing out! Turkey soup is both delicious and a perfect opener to the winter/holiday season. And you can use more than just your leftover turkey for this recipe; throw in your leftover potatoes, sweet potatoes, green beans, peas, and more to top off a perfect, hearty lunch or dinnertime treat!

Click here to see a recipe for homemade turkey soup:

http://www.bettycrocker.com/recipes/homemade-turkey-soup/4fdb9be4-b375-4d3e-960a-f83c46a160ce

2. Turkey Chili

Another yummy wintertime meal! When it's cold outside, there is nothing like a nice bowl of hot chili. There are tons of chili recipes out there featuring turkey, so I'm confident you'll be able to find one that appeals to you. Chili is both easy to make and popular, so you should have no problem finding people to share it with!

Click here to see a Turkey Chili Recipe: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-specials/turkey-chili-recipe/index.html

3. Turkey Pot Pie

This recipe can combine multiple of our frequent Thanksgiving leftovers- almost all of them really! If cooked your dessert pies from scratch, then you can use your left over pie crust

to start- and if baking is not your style and you were one of many of us who chose a nice, store-bought pie- that's okay too! It's easy enough to find pre-made pie crust to use. Then the rest is easy! FIll it up with all your Thanksgiving favorites- turkey, peas, corn, gravy, carrots, celery, and more. Heat up some mashed potatoes for your side and you've got yourself an amazing meal that won't remind you that you're still working on those leftovers. 

Click here to see an easy-to-make Turkey Pot Pie recipe: http://www.pillsbury.com/recipes/classic-turkey-pot-pie/222c3cef-31cc-4936-abfd-cc72611c16c4

4. The Thanksgiving Sandwich

There are all different names for this food item depending on where you go, but I just

refer to it as the Thanksgiving Sandwich. It is one of my personal favorites- and not just during the Thanksgiving season! This idea is definitely the easiest one to make, but trust me it is just as delicious as the rest. Just take a piece of bread, and after toasting it, put on your desired amount of turkey. Then here comes the good part, load it up with as many leftovers as you want! Starting with the basics; stuffing, mashed potatoes, and gravy, then top it off with whatever else you like (cranberry sauce, peas, corn, ect). But like many southern treats, this is not a meal for our low calorie lovers! But hey, it's the holidays- so whose really counting calories anyway? 


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Hosting Your First Thanksgiving Without All the Stress

Thanksgiving dinner is one of the most celebrated and looked forward to holidays in America- unless you are in charge of preparing this years dinner that is. Anyone who has been in charge of preparing a meal that size for a group of people knows that it can turn a fun, relaxing holiday into a hair-pulling, stress-filled dinner. Luckily, there are a lot of techniques to help even the rookies of Thanksgiving prepare a delicious meal, host an awesome party, and actually have fun at the same time. 

1. Remember that even your grandma hosted her first thanksgiving once

Don't put too much pressure on yourself to make sure every single thing is absolutely perfect- it won't be. But that's okay. There is no sense stressing yourself out because your turkey doesn't look exactly like Aunt Betty's or Grandma's, they have had a lot of years of practice to get it that way. 

2. Since you're the host, you get to call the shots

As much of a burden of responsibility it may initially seem, it is also kind of a relief. A relief because this year, you get to set the pace and tone of how you want Thanksgiving to be. Do you want it to be fancy? Have people dress up. Rather keep it casual? That's fine too. You can decide what time you want people to show up and how many should come. You can decide if you'd rather leave out the cherry pie this year and replace it with chocolate. Getting to make these kinds of decisions can actually be kind of fun if you let it!

3. Don't forget the message of Thanksgiving

Even through all the stress, remember that Thanksgiving is supposed to be a time for everyone to relax and spend time together (and pig out), and just because you're hosting it doesn't mean you are an exception! So don't let the little things bother you and freak out if everything doesn't t go perfectly. Relax! Even if the pie burns or Uncle Frank drinks too much again.

4. Accept help

Understand that this is your first time hosting such an important holiday dinner and it's going to be a lot to handle. So when people come into the kitchen and are asking you if you need any help, don't be afraid to say yes! 

5. Do everything in advance

The key ingredient to having a stress-free Thanksgiving dinner party is not to save anything for the last minute. If you start planning really far in advance and have a set schedule of when things need to be done by, this will take a huge weight off your shoulders and help things to go along smoothly. Have menu planned and grocery shopping completed by the weekend before- by Wednesday every super market will be a war zone that you want to avoid at all costs. The day before Thanksgiving, prepare are much of the food as you can, set the table and any decorations you wish to have, and decide on your outfit. 

On Thanksgiving day, figure out what time you need to roast the turkey, boil the potatoes, and lay out any appetizers or snacks. Make sure you empty the dishwasher before the party starts. Don't forget to squeeze a shower at some point between all of that and you're all set to host your first Thanksgiving dinner!


To learn more about Modern Moms and The Mom Code, please visit ONCEKids Publishing website, Facebook and Twitter