Reimagine your Thanksgiving meal with leftovers in mind

When it comes to Thanksgiving leftovers, there are two types of people — those who love leftovers (sometimes more than the feast itself), and those who are completely over them by Friday night.

OK, maybe it’s not that cut and dried. I admit to being in the latter camp more than the former, mostly because I haven’t done much to transform the leftovers into something new.

While there are few things better than a post-Thanksgiving turkey sandwich, I really only love it once or twice. After that, I crave different flavors and am ready to order Chinese food. But I worked hard on the “feast,” and am loath to waste one single bite. So, this year I am making a delicious Thanksgiving dinner with leftover dishes in mind.

In my family, leftovers are pretty predictable. Sweet potatoes, cranberry sauce and turkey stock can almost always be found in my fridge on day two — and day three, and day four. You get the idea. Not this year, though, because I have a two-step plan.

Step one: Create new and improved versions of these dishes so tons of leftovers are less likely.

Step two: Create completely new dishes out of the leftovers. I don’t want to recognize them, and I want them to taste new to everyone else, too.

Oh, and the transformation has to solve a mealtime dilemma. For instance, I always have houseguests over the weekend. What will I feed them for breakfast the next day? What can I use for meal prep that will work well with other leftovers? What can I make that will freeze well for the busy holiday weeks ahead?

Yep. I have a plan, and here it is.

My go-to sweet potato recipe has been a fairly standard mashed, casserole-like affair, sometimes with marshmallows, sometimes without. Everyone takes a little on their Thanksgiving plate, but I can’t seem to sell them as leftovers.

I blame the turkey sandwich. While regular mashed potatoes seem to pair well with it, sweet potatoes, for some reason, don’t. So, the tub with the orange mash keeps getting pushed farther and farther back in my packed fridge, forgotten about until sometime in January, when I do the post-holiday clean-out.

Not this year. First of all, I am switching to thick slices of sweet potatoes baked in a spiced maple and brown sugar syrup. The syrup soaks into the slices and candies the sweet potatoes, making them irresistible.

Step two for this recipe is so good that I want to make sure there are leftovers. It also solves the next morning’s “What’s for breakfast?” question. The answer is sweet potato pancakes.

Leftover candied sweet potatoes are blitzed together in a blender with eggs, milk and oil before being gently combined with dry ingredients and cooked on a hot griddle until golden and fluffy. Just top with maple syrup and a scattering of toasted pecans for a post-Thanksgiving brunch that just might be better than any turkey sandwich.

Cranberry sauce can be a problem. It’s the one dish most likely just to be poured out of a can because so few people really care about it or want to take the time to make it special.

That’s why I’m taking a totally different approach this year and roasting the cranberry sauce.

Cranberries are combined with sugar, orange zest and juice and roasted until they are concentrated in flavor and have turned a magnificent, transparent ruby red. While they are still piping hot from the oven, they are splashed with a little orange liqueur, which gives them an added punch of flavor.

It will be fun and unexpected to take a dish that’s often taken for granted and mix it up a little.

I know I will still have some left over, but it will not go to waste. I’ll be making good use of it to make what is now my (and will soon be your) favorite salad dressing.

It’s a variation on French dressing, and you’ll be pouring it over your turkey spinach salad, or citrus slices on arugula, or anything else that will stand still long enough for you to douse it with this sweet-tart vinaigrette.

If you’re not making your own turkey stock to use in gravy or stuffing, you should be. It’s an easy make-ahead ingredient that adds so much flavor and dimension to anything you use it in. I always make it a few days in advance, signaling the start of the serious Thanksgiving Day cooking process.

I know that making turkey soup with the leftover turkey meat and carcass is not a revolutionary idea, but this year, why not create a flavor profile with a Spanish flair?

All you’ll need for this hearty soup is a little Spanish chorizo (which is fully cooked, unlike the fresh, uncooked Mexican variety), leftover turkey stock and meat, chickpeas, smoked paprika and a few cloves of garlic to turn your turkey day feast into a celebration in a bowl.

It makes enough to feed a crowd, or to store in the freezer to enjoy when time is short during the rest of the holiday season.

I’ve given you two different recipes for stock: one to make ahead to use for the big meal, and another with a little splash of wine to make the day after with the turkey remnants.

This year you can look forward to not only a memorable Thanksgiving meal, but also memorable leftovers.

Serves 8 to 10.

Note: Homemade pumpkin pie spice is easy to make, and when made from fresh, quality spices, can make all the difference when it comes to flavor. Just whisk together 3 tablespoons ground cinnamon, 2 teaspoons ground ginger, 1 ½ teaspoons ground nutmeg, 1 teaspoon ground cloves and 1 teaspoon ground allspice. From Meredith Deeds.

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Generously coat a 3-quart baking dish with butter. Shingle the sweet potato slices in the baking dish.

Combine the butter, brown sugar, maple syrup and pumpkin pie seasoning into a medium saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil, stirring, until the butter has melted. Stop stirring and boil for 2 more minutes. Remove sauce from heat and stir in the vanilla extract.

Pour sauce over potatoes, cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and baste the potatoes with the sauce. Continue baking for another 30 minutes, basting after 15 minutes, until the sweet potatoes are tender and the liquid is slightly thickened. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.

Makes 15 pancakes.

If you don’t have enough leftover sweet potatoes for this recipe, feel free to supplement with canned pumpkin purée. When measuring the sweet potatoes, make sure to get just the potatoes, not the extra liquid. From Meredith Deeds.

Directions

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and pumpkin pie spice until combined. Set aside.

In a blender, add the leftover sweet potatoes, brown sugar, egg, oil and whole milk to a blender and blend on high for 45 seconds until combined.

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir gently to combine. The batter is very thick and will have a few lumps. (If you prefer thinner pancakes, add a little more milk.)

Heat a griddle or large skillet over medium heat. Coat the hot griddle with a little oil. Pour about ⅓ cup batter onto griddle or skillet, using the back of the ladle to help spread the pancake batter. Repeat to cook as many at one time as you can, leaving space for each pancake to spread. Cook until edges are set and first side is golden brown, about 2 to 3 minutes. Flip pancakes and cook until pancakes are cooked through, 1 to 2 minutes.

Repeat with remaining batter, serving the pancakes immediately as they are done. Or place a platter on the rack of a warm oven, reserving pancakes to serve when all have finished cooking.

Serve with butter, maple syrup and toasted pecans, as desired.

Serves 6 to 8.

Roasting the cranberries concentrates their flavor and transforms them into transparent, jewel-like sweet-tart bites that will be the perfect foil to the other Thanksgiving flavors. From Meredith Deeds.

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Combine the cranberries, sugar, orange zest and juice in a 9- by 13-inch glass or ceramic baking dish. Roast for 15 minutes, stir, and continue roasting for another 15 to 20 minutes, until the cranberries have softened and the juices are starting to thicken. Remove the dish from the oven and immediately stir in the orange liqueur. Let the dish cool to room temperature. Serve at room temperature or chilled. The sauce will keep for up to 1 week in the refrigerator.

Makes about 1 ⅔ cups.

Perfectly balanced with the sweet, tart flavors of cranberry sauce, this dressing would be wonderful over a spinach or citrus salad. From Meredith Deeds.

Directions

Combine cranberry sauce, vinegar, ketchup, garlic, Worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper in a blender. Pulse until puréed. With the blender running, drizzle in the oil. Taste for seasoning. If it’s too thick, thin it out with a little water.

Makes about 12 cups.

Roasting the turkey wings makes this golden-brown stock deeply flavorful. Perfect to use for your turkey gravy, stuffing or any other Thanksgiving Day needs. It also makes a lovely soup stock, if you have enough left over. From Meredith Deeds.

Directions

Preheat the oven to 475 degrees. Place turkey wings on a large, rimmed sheet pan, brush with oil, and season with salt and pepper. Roast the wings, flipping once or twice, until deeply golden brown, about 30 to 40 minutes.

Remove the turkey wings from the oven and transfer them to a large stockpot, along with carrots, onions, celery, parsley, thyme and bay leaves. Cover with water (at least 16 cups) and bring to a boil over medium-high heat.

Meanwhile, carefully pour 1 cup of water onto the hot sheet pan and, using a wooden spoon or spatula, scrape up any browned bits. Add the drippings to the stockpot as well.

When the stock comes to a boil, immediately reduce the heat to low and simmer, skimming fat or foam that rises to the surface, until the wings are nearly falling apart and the liquid is a golden brown, about 2 ½ to 3 hours, continuing to skim surface as necessary.

Using tongs, remove the wings and set them aside in a bowl. (You can either discard them or pick the meat off to save for another use.) Then strain the stock through a large mesh strainer into a large bowl or container. Discard solids.

Cool stock slightly, about 20 minutes. Spoon fat from surface.

If not using immediately, cool to room temperature, transfer to resealable airtight containers and refrigerate for up to 2 days or freeze for up to 3 months.

Makes about 12 cups.

This is a lighter stock, using the leftover Thanksgiving turkey carcass. It’s made with a little white wine, which gives it a slightly different, more complex flavor, perfect for soup and light stews. From Meredith Deeds.

Directions

Bring turkey carcass, onion, carrots, celery, garlic, wine, bay leaf, parsley, thyme, peppercorns, salt and 16 cups water to boil in large stockpot over medium-high heat, skimming fat or foam that rises to the surface. Reduce heat to low and simmer, uncovered, for 2 ½ hours, continuing to skim surface as necessary.

Strain stock through large-mesh strainer into large bowl or container. Discard solids. Cool stock slightly, about 20 minutes. Spoon fat from surface.

If not using immediately, cool to room temperature, transfer to resealable airtight containers and refrigerate for up to 2 days or freeze for up to 3 months.

Serves 6.

Quick and easy, this hearty soup will turn your Thanksgiving leftovers into a deliciously brothy bowl of Spanish flavors. If you can’t find, or don’t want to use, Spanish chorizo, you can substitute any fully cooked sausage, like andouille or even kielbasa. From Meredith Deeds.

Directions

In a large Dutch oven or saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the chorizo and cook, stirring, for 1 minute, or until just beginning to brown. Use a slotted spoon to transfer to a bowl.

Add the onion and carrots to the same pot and cook, stirring, over medium heat until softened, about 4 to 6 minutes. Add the garlic, smoked paprika, pepper flakes, salt and pepper and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds to 1 minute or until fragrant. Be careful not to burn the spices. Add the stock, chickpeas and browned chorizo and cook for 20 minutes. Add the turkey, sherry vinegar and parsley and cook for another 3 or 4 minutes, until hot. Taste for seasoning, adding a little more salt, pepper and/or vinegar, if necessary. Remove from heat and serve hot.

Meredith Deeds is a cookbook author and food writer from Edina. Reach her at meredithdeeds@gmail.com. Follow her on Instagram ­at @meredithdeeds.