I’m still recovering from Thanksgiving over here. Actually, I’m still recovering from a fabulous sisters weekend in Las Vegas full of insanely delicious meals immediately followed by two Thanksgiving meals–one on actual turkey day (still dreaming about that stuffing) and one at my parents two days later with turkey on. the. GRILL. My dad is an amazing griller. Can’t wait to share some of his recipes! With all this feasting, my body could definitely use a cleanse right now. But I’m going to hold out until January 2015. With the holiday season officially here, let’s be honest, there’s no way I’d stick to it with all the baking, cooking, and eating ahead of me. So my goals for the next month are to track what I’m eating, drink a lot of water, and exercise daily. Are you with me? Let’s do this!
First things first. Do you still have some Thanksgiving leftovers in the fridge? Why not turn them into something healthy and filling? This Thanksgiving Leftovers Salad with Mashed Potato Stuffing Cakes and Cranberry Vinaigrette does the trick. Does this situation look familiar?
Chop up some of that turkey. Combine the mashed potatoes and stuffing. Form them into cute little cakes and bake until crispy. They’re perfect salad toppers! Then, whip up a lovely vinaigrette with your leftover cranberry sauce. It’s a healthified Thanksgiving dinner! Time to eat up those leftovers so we can pave our way towards all the amazing holiday eats coming up this month.
- 1 cup stuffing
- ⅓ cup mashed potatoes
- salt and pepper
- 8 cups salad greens
- 10 oz turkey
- ¼ cup thinly sliced red onion
- ¼ cup pecans, finely chopped
- ⅓ cup dried cranberries
- ¼ cup crumbled feta cheese
- 1 clove garlic, roughly chopped
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard
- ¼ cup cranberry sauce
- 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
- 3 tbs water
- 1 tsp olive oil
- dash salt and pepper
- Heat oven to 375 degrees. Prepare the mashed potato stuffing cakes. In a large bowl, combine the stuffing and mashed potatoes. Add a dash of salt and pepper. Form into 12 mini cakes. Place on a lined baking sheet. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes until cakes are golden brown and crispy.
- While the mashed potato stuffing cakes are baking, prepare the dressing. Place all ingredients in a small bowl, mini food processor, bullet or blender. I use my Nutribullet. If using a bowl, whisk all ingredients together. If using a food processor, bullet, or blender, mix until the dressing reaches a smooth consistency.
- Prepare each salad by placing 2 cups of salad greens on each plate. Then add to each plate 2.5 oz of turkey and a ¼ portion of each: onion slices, pecans, and dried cranberries. Top each salad with 3 mashed potato stuffing cakes. Drizzle with 1 tablespoon of dressing. Sprinkle each salad with 1 tbs of feta cheese.
Hi! I'm Krista, a self-proclaimed vegetable lover who likes to put a creative spin on healthy cooking. Here you'll find a variety of lightened up recipes using fresh and wholesome ingredients! 
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