Thriving With Leftovers

One of the most common questions I receive between November and January is, what to do with leftovers from holiday meals.

Although this is second nature to me, I am well aware of the anxiety it brings upon others. It also pains me to think of anything at all being thrown away. 

That said, I am thrilled when there are leftovers in the fridge! It makes me happy knowing that there is food in the fridge, and I may not have to make anything for a couple of days. Or that I can utilize the leftovers for fun and unexpected meals or snacks. 

But here’s the deal, I open the fridge and when I see a half a turkey, bowl of mashed potatoes, roasted veggies, sweet potatoes, gravy, and a pan of stuffing my mind spins with ideas. I see grilled cheese using any rolls that are left over, brie from the charcuterie board we had before dinner, a layer of cranberry and turkey to round things off. Serve it with a salad with any greens and veggies left. Or! Or…take all of the leftover roasted veggies and puree them into a soup and serve it with a salad. You can see where my brain turns into a bouncing super ball. 

When my husband opens the fridge, there is an audible sigh at the thought of eating leftover turkey dinner. Our brains are not the same. 

Let’s circle back to what the leftovers may look like.

Depending on the holiday being celebrated, there is likely a protein such as turkey or some sort of roasted poultry or even fowl like goose or duck. There may be tofurkey, barely wellington, roast beef, or gefilte fish. It’s sort of a plug and play moving forward. 

Grab your protein of choice, any leftover veggies and make a frittata using the recipe below. They are great for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. And not so surprisingly, if you let a frittata cool and cut it into small pieces, it makes for a great long run snack.

One of my favorite go to ideas for leftovers is incorporating them into waffles or even pancakes. Sounds odd, yes? Think of it like chicken and waffles. 

Rough chop protein and veggies and put them in a bowl with a spoon of gravy and add it to your waffle batter. You’ll be happy you did so.

As far as waffles and pancakes are concerned, Kodiak and Bob’s Red Mill have great traditional mixes, gluten free and those with lots of protein. You can’t go wrong. Simply add a mix of your favorite leftovers to each waffle or pancake. Think of it like making chocolate chip pancakes, but with a fun mix of your leftovers instead. Pancakes with cranberry sauce are divine, and there is something unexpected about the undeniable goodness of a crispy waffle filled with turkey, stuffing and hot gravy on top.

Mashed potatoes are easily turned into potato soup and how wonderful would gefilte fish fritters be? Obviously, we could go on and on, and will happily answer any questions thrown at us in the comments of the article. 

Let’s hear what nuggets Stephanie has to add.

I love leftovers too. Maybe even more so than the original meal itself. As Kelly mentioned, you can be so creative with leftovers and I find the combination of flavors and textures so good. Additionally, I think you can get more nutrients out of leftover meals simply because we tend to combine more things together. Another quick way to enjoy leftovers is to literally warm them up in a cast iron skillet, all together, and serve over greens like a warm salad. It’s one of my favorite ways to enjoy Thanksgiving leftovers. It’s like a nutrient loaded salad, and it tastes so good! We didn’t mention leftover desserts yet, so let me tell you one of my favorite things about leftover pie- it’s a great breakfast! It’s probably not a great breakfast for everyday, but when you combine pumpkin pie with a big scoop of plain full-fat yogurt, and drizzle with runny almond butter, it’s actually not a bad option for breakfast. And, a good way to enjoy leftover pie. The blender can also come in handy here too- and not just for making soup. Pumpkin, sweet potatoes, and squash can be easily blended into a smoothie, along with frozen banana, milk/non-dairy milk, greens, and cinnamon/nutmeg for a season flavored drink. 

From a nutrition standpoint, the holidays can be a little polarizing. On one hand, many meals feature a protein, such as turkey, paired with roasted vegetables, vegetable forward sides, and salads. Which is a great way to eat! Conversely, holiday meals can feature a lot of energy-laden foods and too many snacks, appetizers, and sweets. How do you navigate this? First of all, it’s important not to restrict and go into a holiday meal starving. That does two things- first, it makes you so hungry that when you do get to finally eat, you make poor choices and over consume, and second, it suppresses your metabolism. Neither of which are good. Thanksgiving is a good (poor!) example of fasting all morning and then eating a large meal mid-day. It’s one of the worst things to do, nutrition wise, and usually doesn’t leave you feeling great. Instead, eat a good breakfast, get some fresh air, and treat the Thanksgiving meal as a normal meal- not an opportunity to eat until you are stuffed. And now, you know what to do with your leftovers!

I could write a whole chapter on navigating the holidays, but I’ll keep it brief. Remember that food is part of the celebration, not the celebration itself. You can still be festive and enjoy time spent with friends and family without having the entire day revolve around food. That’s important to remember as we enter the holiday season, which can be anxiety-ridden for many. Additionally, be kind to yourself and know that it’s ok if your days aren’t perfect. If you eat differently for a couple days or overindulge, it’s ok! Just get back on track as soon as you can. Nothing bad will happen. And, allowing yourself to truly enjoy family, friends, food and community is the best way to spend your holidays. 

Now, onto the recipes!

Frittata

Preheat oven to 400

6 large eggs
1/3 cup milk or milk alternative
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup grated cheese *vegan or dairy
2 cups leftovers of your choice *think turkey/stuffing/veggies, or tofurkey/stuffing, or salmon/greens
1 tbsp butter
1 tsp fresh herbs, for garnish *if your leftovers already have herbs added, this is easily omitted

Preheat the oven to 400F. 

Whisk eggs, dairy and salt until you get a smooth and even texture. Set aside.

Rough chop the leftovers you will be using as garnish and set aside. Melt butter and coat the sides of the baking dish with it. Add the rough chopped leftovers evenly to the bottom of the pan. Pour the egg mixture over the chopped leftovers. Sprinkle the cheese on top. Using a fork, distribute the cheese around a little to incorporate it into the eggs. Bake for 15 to 17 minutes, or until the edges are set and the top is lightly browned.

Mashed Potato Soup

3 cups mashed potatoes
¼ cup olive oil
1 tsp salt
Pinch of red pepper flakes
1 qt chicken or veggie stock

Add mashed potatoes, salt, olive oil, and pepper to the blender. 

Heat stock to a boil.

Carefully add half of the stock to the blender, making sure the lid is securely on.

Blend on medium speed until fully incorporated. Add the remaining stock to achieve a soup consistency. 

Taste and adjust seasoning as needed. I usually garnish with any leftover crispy onions, herbs or greens from the night before. This is a great way to make potato soup and the work of peeling potatoes is already done. I love adding a teaspoon of turmeric, a handful of stuffing and a big spoon of gravy and pureeing all together. It sounds funny, but all of these items add a really beautiful warmness that is like a big hug.