20 Nov Repurpose Your Thanksgiving Leftovers Into Healthy Meals
Cooking is an especially valuable skill for anyone who cares about feeding his or her friends and family good, healthy meals.
Once you learn how to make a few recipes, you can save money, eat better and healthier, and most certainly have fun. Some of the recipes can take a lot of time, but some can be made quickly just by using some of Thanksgiving’s leftovers.
If you are feeling a bit resourceful, stay with us in the next couple of paragraphs and read how you can repurpose the food that’s left from your Thanksgiving dinner.
Curried Lentils and Carrots
Use the carrots with lentils and get a fantastically flavored dish that will go perfectly with your next meal.
If you don’t have carrots, you can use other leftover steamed vegetables and create your own side dish.
Ingredients:
Carrots (1cup) left from your Thanksgiving dinner;
2 tablespoons unsalted butter;
2 cups cooked lentils;
1 tablespoon curry powder ;
1 teaspoon brown sugar ;
Zest of lemon juice.
Directions:
Put the carrots in a pan and add the butter. Melt it with the carrots, and then add in the lentils with the curry powder. Cook for a few more minutes.
In the end, add the brown sugar, salt and pepper to taste, and lemon juice. Congratulations, you’ve cooked your side dish and you can now serve it immediately with almost any cut of meat.
Mashed Potatoes Casserole
Have a lot of mashed potatoes leftover?
Not to worry! With this recipe, you will have your veggies, carbs, and protein all stacked together, which makes the perfect casserole!
Ingredients:
Leftover Mashed Potatoes;
2 ⁄3 cup heavy cream;
4 tablespoons unsalted butter ;
Salt and pepper ;
5 cups of spinach;
2 cups grated mozzarella or cheddar cheese;
1 medium white onion, sliced.
Directions:
Mix the mashed potatoes with cream and butter and season them with salt and pepper.
Chop the spinach and cook it for a few minutes. Then add it to the mashed potatoes along with the grated cheese.
Add the sliced onions and let them cook down. Butter or oil a large casserole dish and spread in the mashed potato mixture and top with the onions.
Bake the casserole until the potatoes are browned around the edges and the cheese is melting, for about 15-20 minutes. Let cool briefly before serving.
Shredded Turkey Hash
Breakfast is said to be the most important meal of the day, and a hearty hash with an egg is one of the tastiest meals you can wake up to!
Since you will already have shredded turkey leftovers ready from your Thanksgiving dinner, this meal is quick and simple.
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons olive oil ;
2 medium russet potatoes, scrubbed and chopped into cubes;
Salt and pepper ;
1 cup shredded turkey;
2 large eggs.
In a large pot, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add potatoes and a pinch of salt. Cook the potatoes until lightly browned, stirring occasionally, for about 10 minutes. Then, add shredded turkey and continue to cook until potatoes are crispy but tender on the inside.
Remove the hash to a plate and crack two eggs into the pan. There should be enough oil in the pan to cook the eggs, but if your pan is dry, add another drizzle of oil. Cook the eggs as you like. Divide hash between two plates and top with eggs.
Donate Your Thanksgiving Leftovers
After Thanksgiving is over, a lot of families are left with large amounts of leftover food. It is important not to forget that there are people out there who aren’t as lucky and aren’t surrounded by the deserved love, family, and one of the most basic needs, a nice meal.
In 2019, 35.2 million people lived in food-insecure households. So, why not use your Thanksgiving leftovers and make someone’s day better?
You can differently consider donating your leftover meals. Here are a few suggestions:
- You can donate to your local food pantry;
- Find and check-up with your local food bank to see whether they would accept leftovers;
- Find a non-profit charity that accepts food donations;
- Volunteer to the homeless shelter and donate some food;
- See if there are any local restaurants that have a donating policy so that you can give them the food and they’ll give it to the ones in need;
- Contact your local Red Cross and see if they accept food donations in a form of Thanksgiving leftovers.
Making something nice for someone else is part of the Thanksgiving spirit. So don’t hesitate to use your privileges and help someone in need.
Wrapping Things Up
Cooking with leftovers shouldn’t be looked at as boring and not tasty. In fact, cooking with leftovers can be really creative, especially if you love figuring out new ways in which you can make your food more delicious.
If you want to add that deliciousness to your meals, try cooking them with a healthy cup of Bone Broth by Design. Or you can choose the vegan version, Green Broth by Design. Not only will your meals be tastier, but your body will also enjoy all of the nutritious values and health benefits.
And if you think that you don’t have a gift at cooking, you can always opt-in for donating your holiday leftovers to the people that living in food-insecure households.
