Healthy Meals To Make With Your Christmas Dinner Leftovers

3 min read

Stuck for ideas on how to make the most of those leftovers? We show you how to make healthy meals with your Christmas dinner leftovers

With Christmas done and dusted and the festive exhaustion slowly setting in, you’d be forgiven for drawing a blank when it comes to being creative with your Christmas dinner leftovers. But as we need to be cutting back on waste and eating sustainably going into the new year, throwing away leftover food is now a thing of the past as we show you how to make healthy meals with your Christmas dinner leftovers.

Turkey curry

This leftover turkey curry recipe from Easy Peasy Foodie is a great way to utilize all that leftover meat, and beats stale turkey barm cakes anyday! Perfect for a boxing day buffet.

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 25 minutes

Serves 4 people

Calories 308kcal per serving

Ingredients

·        1 tablespoon olive oil

·         1 medium onion sliced

·        1 red pepper sliced

·         1 green pepper sliced

·         1 teaspoon chilli flakes

·         3 cloves garlic crushed or grated

·         3 cm ginger grated

·        3 teaspoons garam masala spice

·         2 teaspoons turmeric optional

·         500 g leftover cooked turkey shredded or cubed

·         350 ml passata (or chopped tinned tomatoes)

·        200 ml coconut milk

·         Salt and pepper to taste

Method

  1. Place the oil, onions and peppers in a wide, deep pan and cook over a gentle heat with the lid on for around 5 minutes, or until softened but not brown.

2.  Add the chilli, garlic, ginger, garam masala and turmeric and fry gently for 2 more minutes (add a very small splash of water from the kettle if it starts to get too dry.)

3.  Add the turkey, passata, coconut milk, salt and pepper and bring to the boil. Turn down low and simmer for 10 minutes until the sauce has thickened slightly and the turkey is piping hot all the way through.

4.  Serve with rice and/or naans and all your favourite curry accompaniments

Turkey and vegetable pie

Another stonker of a recipe from Easy Peasy Foodie, this turkey and vegetable pie is the perfect winter warmer brimming with all the good stuff and is a great way to use up that leftover veg.


Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 40 minutes

Serves 6 people

Calories 557kcal

Ingredients

·        1 onion sliced

·         300 g leftover cooked turkey (or other meat) roughly chopped

·         400 g mix of leftover cooked vegetables (chopped if large)

·         400 ml leftover gravy

·         100 ml cream

Method

1.  Preheat your oven to 220C / 200C fan / gas mark 7 / 425F.

2. Peel and slice an onion and put in a deep, wide pan with a drizzle of olive oil. Cook with a lid on for 5 minutes until soft but not brown, stirring occasionally.

3.  Add the chopped turkey and vegetables and fry over a medium heat for 2 minutes.

4.  Add the leftover gravy and cream and bring to the boil. Turn the heat down and simmer for 5 minutes.

5.  While the pie filling is simmering, remove your pastry from the fridge and roll out to 3cm (1 inch) bigger than your tin all the way round.

6.  Tip the filling into your tin and carefully place your pastry on top. Cut a couple of small holes in the middle to allow the steam to escape.

7.  To achieve a glaze on top of your pie, crack an egg into a cup and beat with a fork. Using a pastry brush, paint the egg wash onto your pastry.

8.  Put your pie in the preheated oven and cook for 20 minutes or until golden and bubbling. Serve on its own or with mash and / or green vegetables for a more substantial meal.

Chunky vegetable soup

If the previous recipes were a little too heavy, this one's perfect for you. Ideal for a light lunch, chuck in all your leftover veg to create this delicious dish.

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Total Time 35 minutes

Serves 1 person

Calories 271kcal

Ingredients

·         150g peeled and roughly chopped butternut squash

·         150g  potatoes chopped into chunks

·         50g finely chopped carrot

·         Leftover sprouts chopped into chunks

·         1 small chopped onion

·         1 clove of garlic finely chopped (or garlic paste works just as well)

·         400g chopped tinned tomatoes

·         250ml vegetable stock

·         1 tsp coconut oil

·         55g jar or carton of passata

Method

1.  In a large pan, heat the coconut oil and throw in the onions.

2.  Cook them for a minute or so until they become soft, but not brown.

3.  Add all of the other ingredients to the pan, except for the passata.

4.  Turn the heat down to moderate/low and simmer for 30 – 40 mins.

5.  Once the vegetables have softened, stir in the tin of chopped tomatoes or passata and it’s ready to serve. Simple!


Jenny Shaw

A content and copywriter who loves the written word in all it's forms, Jenny is passionate about writing informative and factual blog posts, helping you achieve your goals.