Leftover Turkey Stars in This Dish

Have you noticed all the movies named after holidays out there? New Year’s Eve, Ground Hog Day, Valentine’s Day and even A Christmas Story come to mind-- but what about Thanksgiving?

The star of this show would always be turkey, with a supporting cast of dressing, mashed potatoes and pumpkin pie, of course. But let’s face it; you’re only as good as your last role, so it’s important for turkey to reinvent itself the next time it’s featured at the table. Might I suggest using any leftovers from your turkey "premiere" in a deliciously simple Turkey Cheese Strata? It’s a great, family-friendly dish of comfort food that will feed a crowd—brunch, lunch or dinner. Who knows? It may even become a "classic" that’s a requested "re-run" featured on your post-Thanksgiving menu year after year.

The great thing I love about this recipe is you probably have all the ingredients on hand already, so no special shopping is required. Grab the cooked turkey, butter, Cheddar cheese, eggs, milk, cooked bacon and frozen onion and pepper stir-fry blend. If you want, you could even cut up your own mix of onions and peppers, but I love to keep this blend on hand in my freezer for fajitas or chili.

Cover the bottom and sides of a 13x9-inch glass baking dish with 1 tablespoon of butter.

Cut 12 slices of white bread into cubes (about 8 cups total). It’s up to you if you leave the crusts on or off.

Place half of this in the bottom of the prepared baking dish.

Chop approximately 3 cups of cooked turkey before spreading over the bread cubes.

Thaw a package of frozen onion and pepper stir-fry mix --patting with paper towels to dry -- before adding to above dish.

Sprinkle with 2 cups of shredded Cheddar cheese.

Top with remaining bread cubes.

Melt 4 tablespoons butter and drizzle over bread cubes.

Crack 6 eggs into a bowl and add 2 cups of milk. Whisk until combined.

Slowly and evenly pour the egg mixture over the prepared ingredients.

Sprinkle with 6 slices of cooked, chopped bacon and let stand at least 30 minutes. At this point, you could cover the dish and refrigerate overnight if you wish to prep the dish ahead of time. Just let it rest at room temperature for 30 minutes before baking.

Place in a preheated 350°F oven and bake 50 minutes. Top with remaining 1 cup of cheese.

Bake an additional 10 to 15 minutes (until golden brown and a knife inserted in the center comes out clean). Let stand 15 minutes before cutting and serving.

As the famous movie quote says, "I’m ready for my close-up…"

If you’re looking for a use for your leftover turkey, look no further than this Turkey Cheese Strata. Make sure to come back and rate and review the recipe.

Come back in a few days when Alex will share a holiday baking project perfect to do with the kids.

Emily is paid to write for the Land O’Lakes Recipe Buzz® Blog.