This creamy and delicious Cranberry Orange Turkey Salad is what you need to keep post-holiday meals exciting!
When your holiday leftovers have lost their shine, why not turn them into a new mouthwatering meal?
My family was fortunate enough to have an abundance of leftovers this Thanksgiving. The first two rounds of leftovers were good, but after that everyone was ready for a change. However, we still had half of a delicious turkey sitting in the fridge and there was no way it was going to go to waste! So, instead of forcing the family to make two more meals out of it, I decided to make a flavorful new meal out of our holiday leftovers. Voila! Cranberry Orange Turkey Salad! Yes, it was made up of the same leftovers we were eating before, however they were presented in a new way! Sometimes a little imagination and a slight change can go a long way. Ingenuity is the way of a farmgirl; nothing goes to waste.
To be honest, I wasn’t expecting this recipe to turn out quite as well as it did. I ended up liking it so well that I decided to swap my original day three recipe from my 12 Days of Healthy Holiday Recipes for this one. I have featured those recipes on my Instagram page as well. There you can find a video of me making this recipe.
Previous 12 Days of Healthy Holiday Recipes Posts
For this recipe, I only use ingredients that I have on hand after our holiday feast. This turkey salad features fresh cranberries and orange zest from our cranberry sauce, pecans from our pecan pie, celery from our stuffing, and turkey… from our turkey. You can add any other holiday additions that you have and think would make this dish amazing!
This is also a wonderful meal to make after your holiday feasts because you can mix up a batch and have meals ready to go when you are busy putting up or taking down your Christmas decorations. Sometimes simple, nourishing meals are a saving grace during these hectic times. A delicious and well-rounded meal can be something that anchors you.
Trim Healthy Mama S
This is Trim Healthy Mama friendly and is an S meal. This means it is low glycemic, full of healthy fats, and low in carbohydrates.
In this recipe I use the Gentle Sweet from Trim Healthy Mama. I use their products on a daily basis and would highly recommend them. You can find those ingredients here.
I use the Gentle Sweet to balance out the tartness of the cranberries. However, that addition is completely optional. You could also substitute another sweetener if you prefer.
I hope this recipe inspires you to think outside the box and make the most of your holiday leftovers. I would love to hear if you try the recipe and what holiday additions you try! Merry Christmas!
Cranberry Orange Turkey Salad
This creamy and delicious Cranberry Orange Turkey Salad is what you need to keep post-holiday meals exciting!
Ingredients
- 16 cups shredded leftover turkey
- salt and pepper, to taste
- 1 cup mayonnaise (I use homemade mayo to avoid soybean oil and unwanted preservatives.)
- 1 cup Greek or 24 hour cultured yogurt
- zest of 1 large orange
- 3 cups fresh or frozen cranberries, thaw slightly if frozen
- 1 Tablespoon THM Gentle Sweet Blend, optional
- 2 cups thinly sliced celery
- 2 cups chopped pecans, I like to soak and dehydrate mine
Instructions
- To a large mixing bowl, add your shredded turkey and season to taste with salt and pepper. Set aside.
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, yogurt, and zest. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
- Add the liquid mixture to the turkey and stir to coat the meat.
- In a food processor, pulse together the cranberries and Gentle Sweet until the cranberries are roughly chopped and coated with sweetener.
- Add the cranberries, celery, and pecans to the turkey and stir to combine. Taste and season to your liking.
Leave a Reply