Our family usually hosts Thanksgiving, and I know exactly how hard it is to make enough food for a big group--and it’s especially hard to time all the dishes to be ready at once. So why would I deliberately overshoot and put the effort in to make more food than we need?
I overshoot because, in my family, the menu the day after Thanksgiving is just as big of a deal as the Thanksgiving dinner itself! And with a perfect leftover casserole already prepared and ready to heat up there is no cooking to be done for a day or two after the holiday.
I always use the turkey carcass for Homemade Bone Broth, then use that broth and some leftover turkey to make a Creamy Turkey and Wild Rice Soup. But I make sure to put together our favorite leftover dish first: Thanksgiving Casserole.
You can visualize Thanksgiving casserole as the entire Thanksgiving dinner table tossed into one baking dish together. It’s a family tradition taken from my husband’s family. I remember how surprised I was when we had the leftover casserole the first time: It was so good!
We simply layer our leftover potatoes, stuffing, turkey, and gravy into a big casserole dish as we clean up from dinner. Any additional leftovers can be included too, such as green beans, carrots, brussels sprouts, or cranberries. It’s really important not to skimp on the gravy--be generous. I always make sure I have some extra gravy on hand for the casserole.
Cover your casserole and store in the refrigerator until you’re ready to reheat and enjoy it. It can be kept this way for several days.
Thanksgiving casserole breathes new life into otherwise-lackluster leftovers, and I’m not exaggerating when I say that it’s the favorite Thanksgiving dish of most of my family. Give this simple recipe a try this year, and let us know how you loved it!
