Thanksgiving Leftover Bites

I love Thanksgiving. And while I may have overlooked this holiday as a kid, now that I’m adult it’s probably one of my favorite holidays. I love cooking the big meal, I love having family and friends at my house, I love that the meal is a true labor of love. And oh, yeah, I love the leftovers. In fact I’ve been known to be a little stingy with the leftovers. One particular year one family member ate way more than his share of dinner and I may have muttered under my breath, “I was really hoping for leftovers”.

I have a Black Friday tradition, of making a gigantic Black Friday Sandwich and watching Love Actually while I do some online shopping. It’s not the holidays without my leftovers and I take my leftovers very seriously. Last year I had a bit more leftovers than my family was willing to eat. Rather than trash them, I decided to recreate them as an appetizer for our up coming holiday party. These Thanksgiving Leftover bites are like a little taste of Thanksgiving, incredibly simple and sure to be a hit at any holiday party.

Thanksgiving Leftover Bites

What you need:

• Leftover Turkey.
• Leftover Mashed Potatoes at least a cup (but if you have more it’s OK)
• Leftover Stuffing

Instructions:

1. Combine ingredients in a food processor. You want enough mashed potatoes to make them stick
2. Pulse until combined.
3. Roll into bite sized balls. If the balls will not stay together add more mashed potatoes.
4. Roll in flour.
5. Place in a row in a freezer safe container, if you are going to stack them on top of each other separate with wax or parchment paper.
6. Place in Freezer.

Instructions for when you are ready to serve:

1. In a pan (or use a deep fryer if you have one) heat 2-3 TBSP. oil (any oil will work I use EVOO because I always have it on hand).
2. Place bites in the pan and cook turning until they are brown on all sides and cooked all the way through.
3. Remove from pan and let sit on a plate with a paper towel to collect excess oil.

I serve these with cranberry mayonnaise which is really easy to make. I combine equal portions cranberry sauce and mayonnaise in a bowl and stir until combined.

Serve Thanksgiving leftover bites at a holiday party as the perfect appetizer and your friends and family will never know that these delicious bites were once your Thanksgiving leftovers. Or you can always fry some up anytime you are in the mood for some Thanksgiving leftovers.