Don't eat boring leftovers! Instead use those leftovers to make an epic Thanksgiving Turkey quesadilla and chow down! And the best news is that you can have these iconic holiday flavors all year long if you'd like! Simple to make, and such a crowd pleaser, this is the ultimate way to use up that leftover cranberry sauce that always seems to get pushed to the back of the fridge until it's finally thrown away a week later. Don't pretend like this doesn't happen at your house!
Leftovers. What the heck do you do with them all? I like to throw them together in a turkey sweet potato egg bake, or you guessed it, make quesadillas. Why quesadillas? Well for one, Dave loves them, and two, they are one of the easiest ways to transform leftovers without much extra work. Take this turkey quesadilla, I just layered cheese, cranberry sauce, turkey, sweet potatoes and arugula on a gluten free flour tortilla, and 5 minutes later, Dave was raving about how awesome I am. 🙂 I only invested about 5 minutes at the stove and about 2 minutes to grate cheese and suddenly I'm the world's best girlfriend! If only every meal could be this simple!
When I was chatting with Dave about how I would make this for him all the time if we just had more leftovers, I realized this is exactly what my meal plans provide for people. You cook all your main food on Sunday night and then repurpose it throughout the week into new and inventive meals! This way it never feels like “leftovers' but instead like a brand new meal that your loved ones will rave about.
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It's no wonder I felt so comfortable throwing this all together in a quesadilla and calling it dinner! Anytime I can save time while still providing a healthy, wholesome meal, I'm a happy girl. If you are anything like me, meal planning will not only save you time, but it will also save you money and a whole lot of headaches! If you are interested in learning more, check out more on my meal plans here!
Turkey Quesadilla Leftover Goodness
Ok back to all that leftover Thanksgiving goodness. I promised you could make this anytime of the year, and I'm going to keep that promise. I've been testing the recipes I want to make for Thanksgiving this year and came up with a pretty simple cranberry sauce. Fresh cranberries, maple syrup, a pink lady apple, stevia and a shake of cinnamon. Super simple and easy to make (about 10 minutes total). I'll include the instructions in the directions below. But really, any cranberry sauce would be great here (I might judge you a little if you use that canned stuff though – so sweet!!). Nothing fancy here!
Everything else we had on hand from meal prep earlier this week. Pulled turkey, sweet potatoes (you could also make this quick apple sweet potato hash and use the leftovers here -delish) and something green. Since I've been studying for my nutritional coaching certification, I've really been looking for ways to add something green to our meals. This way I know we have the best chance of getting all of our required vitamins and minerals. And when you stuff veggies in with all these other bold flavors, there is much less push back from people who don't love veggies (ahem Dave).
Looking for a delicious moist turkey recipe? Make sure to check out this easy slow cooker herb turkey.
Thanksgiving Turkey Quesadilla
Ingredients
Simple Cranberry Sauce
- 1/2 bag fresh cranberries
- 1 medium pink lady apple - peeled and chopped
- 2 tbs maple syrup
- 2 packet stevia
- 1 tsp. cinnamon
Turkey Quesadilla
- 4 gluten free flour tortillas
- 1/2 - 3/4 cups cheese - or So Delicious Dairy Free Cheese
- 1/2 cups simple cranberry sauce
- 1 cup. shredded turkey meat
- 1 cup chopped cooked sweet potatoes
- 3-4 handfuls arugula - or spinach
Instructions
Simple Cranberry Sauce
- In a small pot(with a lid) add all the ingredients and bring to slight boil (over medium heat). Once boiling (or almost boiling) turn down the heat to medium low and cook 5 minutes. Remove from heat and blend with immersion blender or carefully transfer to a blender and blend until smooth.
Turkey Quesadilla
- Grate the cheese and set up an assembly station.
- Preheat a large pan over medium to medium low heat. Spray pan with coconut oil or other non-stick spray. Add 1 tortilla and cover the entire quesadilla in 1/4 of the cheese.
- Add about 1/4 of the cranberry sauce, turkey, sweet potato and arugula to one half of the tortilla. Fold the quesadilla over and cook for 2 minutes. Flip carefully and cook another 2 minutes.
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What about you?
- How do you like to eat your Thanksgiving leftovers?
- What's the craziest combination you've put in a quesadilla?
- What are dish are you most excited to eat for Thanksgiving?
Alayna
Totally inspired! I had thought about doing sandwiches with the leftover cranberry sauce but quesedillas are a much more unique idea!
I am co-hosting the #HomeMattersParty link party this month and would love to have you stop by for a visit. The door opens for the next party tonight at midnight! http://alaynascreations.co/blog/