Almost every Thanksgiving table is filled with more food than family and guests can eat at one meal. It’s easy to get carried away when cooking for a gathering on Thanksgiving Day. Once you clear the table and fill your refrigerator with a multitude of small bowls of leftover turkey, stuffing, an assortment of vegetables, and possibly even some fruit, you need to find a way to use up all of those items. A leftover casserole is the solution. It allows you to clear out the refrigerator with one simple dish.
Leftover Thanksgiving Casserole
You will need a 13X9X2 baking dish to layer your casserole in. Spray the pan with a non-stick cooking spray and begin the layering process. Below is a list of possible items to include in your casserole and the suggested method of layering. The good thing about this casserole is that it can easily be adjusted and adapted to your specific assortment of leftovers.
Your first layer should be the leftover stuffing. This provides a shell for the remainder of the casserole items to be placed in. The next layer should be the leftover mashed potatoes. Adding gravy over the potatoes is optional, but it will help moisten the casserole. Adding green beans or broccoli would be the nest step. If you have some onion rings left over from the green bean casserole, sprinkle them on top of this casserole. At this point you can place the casserole in a 350 degree oven and bake for approximately 30 minutes.
If you have some leftover sweet potato casserole, you can add it as the top layer of your leftover casserole. You can use whatever vegetables you had for Thanksgiving Day. Green peas, corn, or various other vegetables can be placed on top of the mashed potatoes if you didn’t have green beans or broccoli. Cornbread can be crumbled on top of the casserole as the final layer. Once you remove the casserole from the oven, allow it to cool, and sprinkle leftover cranberries on top for added color and a burst of flavor. If you don’t have cranberries to use as a garnish on top, you can use leftover cooked apples or sprinkle some raisins on top of the casserole.
