Turn Those Thanksgiving Leftovers into Black Friday Turkey Sandwiches

If you do Thanksgiving right, this fall holiday doesn’t have to be just a one day affair. After a glorious meal filled with turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, and green beans galore, you’ll likely get to relive the magic for days to come in the form of leftovers — sweet, sweet leftovers. One of the most popular Black Friday dishes? The beloved thanksgiving leftover sandwich.
This may just be the best way to make use of your post turkey-day bounty. Looking forward to a leftover sandwich is also a good way to remember that you don’t have to stuff yourself to the brim during the main meal!
We know how tricky it is to mindfully indulge when you’re surrounded by rich comfort foods, tasty libations, and fall-flavored dessert spreads. So knowing that you get to enjoy leftovers can help you eat moderately and help you achieve healthy balance during the holiday months.
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How to Make the Best Leftover Turkey Sandwich
Our go-to leftover turkey sandwich recipe features all the Thanksgiving dinner classics you know and love. But you can also make it just how you’d like. Not into cranberry sauce? Just skip it! Managed to clear out all the stuffing? No problem! The beauty of this sandwich is that you can customize it based on your preferences and the leftovers you were able to scoop up.
And instead of filling up on another heaping plate of food after an indulgent holiday meal, you’ll get some built-in portion control by sandwiching your leftovers between two slices of bread. We chose whole-grain bread, which is packed with more nutrients than refined, white bread.
Plus, by building your sandwich around lean turkey meat, you can count on plenty of muscle-building protein to help you recover after yesterday’s turkey trot or your first post-Thanksgiving workout. (May we suggest a gentle yoga flow?)
This sandwich demonstrates that you don’t need a huge scoop of stuffing or mashed potatoes — or a giant serving of sugar-laden cranberry sauce — to enjoy all the best Thanksgiving flavors. A little schmear goes a long way.

Black Friday Turkey Sandwiches
Ingredients
- 2 oz goat cheese
- 2 Tbsp. No Sugar Added Cranberry Sauce see separate recipe
- 8 slices sprouted whole grain bread toasted
- 1 cup raw baby spinach
- 8 oz sliced turkey breast skinless
- 3/4 cup Vegan stuffing at room temperature; see separate recipe
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 325 F.
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In a small bowl, mix together the goat cheese and cranberry sauce until thoroughly combined.
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Smear 8 slices toasted bread with cranberry and cheese spread.
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Arrange baby spinach leaves atop the cranberry spread.
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Top 4 slices of bread with turkey, evenly dividing the turkey among sandwiches.
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Spread stuffing equally atop the turkey and top the 4 prepared open sandwiches with the 4 remaining slices of cranberry- goat cheese toast.
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Place the sandwiches in the oven for about 5-8 minutes, or until warm.
Recipe Notes
The Nutrition Facts box below provides estimated nutritional information for this recipe.
Photography by Meghan Hensley