If you’re like me, you go a little overboard with your Thanksgiving meal and end up with tons of leftovers… This Turkey Shepherd’s Pot Pie is the perfect way to turn your Thanksgiving leftovers into something new and delicious!
When it comes to Thanksgiving dinner, I tend to go a little crazy. It’s my favorite meal of the year so I end up making double of everything. Yes, that means two brined turkeys, two dishes of mashed potatoes, two gravy boats… you get the drift. It’s no surprise that, without fail, I always end up with enough left over to feed an army. I have a few tricks up my sleeves for using up Thanksgiving leftovers in more interesting ways, and this Turkey Shepherd’s Pot Pie is my plan this year.
My Aunt made a mean Shepherd’s Pie when I was a kid, and my family always looked forward to it at our regular Sunday night dinners, so the idea of marrying Shepherd’s Pie with Thanksgiving dinner seemed like a no-brainer to me. After cooking for days on end and needing (and truly deserving) a break, you have to try this delectable dish that perfectly puts to use all of your holiday leftovers!
How to Make Turkey Shepherd’s Pot Pie
- Sauté the veggies: Preheat oven to 400 F, then heat 1 tablespoon of butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Cook the onions for 4 minutes or until translucent. Add the celery, carrots and thyme and cook for an additional 3 minutes.
- Make the roux: Melt 3 tablespoons of butter into the sautéed vegetables and sprinkle 3 tablespoons of flour over them. Stir to make a roux. Cook for 1-2 minutes, stirring to coat the vegetables. Add the milk, broth, chopped turkey and peas and simmer over low to medium heat for 10-12 minutes or until thick and creamy. Add salt to taste. You’ll know the sauce is thick enough when it coats the back of a wooden spoon.
- Assemble the Shepherd’s Pie: Place the turkey mixture in an 8 x 8 inch baking dish or divide among four 10 oz ramekins. Evenly top the mixture with mashed potatoes and sprinkle cheddar cheese on top to cover. Bake for about 25 minutes (10 minutes for ramekins) or until warmed through and cheese begins to brown.
Recipe Tip
To freeze: Cover and freeze after assembling the shepherd’s pie. Make sure everything has cooled down before you put in the freezer. When ready to eat, you can defrost then bake as instructed, or bake from frozen and add 10-15 minutes to the cooking time.
Recipes for Thanksgiving Leftovers
If you’re the one who takes on the Thanksgiving meal every year, you understand. It’s part pain and part pleasure, but even with the agony that can at times come with preparing this annual feast, at least it all has a purpose – family togetherness and full bellies! And now you’ve got recipes for your leftovers have a life of their own. Let me know what you think in the comments or tag me on Instagram if you make this. Happy Thanksgiving!
Leftover Thanksgiving Turkey Shepherd’s Pot Pie
Ingredients
- 4 tablepoons unsalted butter
- 1 small onion, diced
- 2 stalks of celery, diced
- 2 carrots, peeled and diced
- 1 teaspoon fresh thyme (or ½ teaspoon dried thyme)
- 3 tablespoons all purpose flour
- 1 cup milk
- 2 cups or 1-14 oz can low sodium chicken or turkey broth
- 2 cups leftover turkey meat, chopped into ½ inch pieces
- 1 cup frozen peas
- kosher salt to taste
- 2 cups leftover mashed potatoes
- 1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 F.
- Heat 1 tbsp of butter in a saucepan over medium heat and cook the onions for 4 minutes or until translucent.
- Add the celery, carrots and thyme and cook for an additional 3 minutes.
- Add the milk, broth, chopped turkey and peas and simmer over low to medium heat for 10-12 minutes or until thick and creamy. Add salt to taste.
- Divide the mixture among 4 10 oz ramekins or one 8 x 8 inch baking dish.*
- Evenly top each filled ramekin with mashed potatoes and sprinkle 2 tbsp of cheddar cheese on top to cover.
- Place ramekins on a baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes until warmed through and cheese has melted (25 minutes for an 8 x 8 inch dish).
- Serve.
- * Cover and freeze after this step. Defrost and bake as directed in step 7.
[…] Turkey Shepherd’s Pot Pie – […]
[…] Turkey Shepherds Pot Pie – Cook a diced onion until translucent in melted butter. Add celery, carrots and thyme and cook for 3 minutes. Melt 3 tablespoons of butter into the vegetables and sprinkle 3 tablespoons of flour over the mixture, stir and cook for 2 minutes. Add milk, turkey broth, chopped leftover turkey and peas and simmer for 10 minutes. Place the mixture in a baking dish, top with mashed potato, sprinkle with cheese and bake for 10 minutes. […]
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I made some slight modifications. Didn’t have celery and added corn and used ground turkey. My 2 yr. old ate twice as much as me and my husband. He ate the same size serving as us, then proceeded to eat my entire portion. I don’t blame him. It was delicious! Needless to say, we are putting this into heavy rotation.
Another hit for the whole family. I always tweak recipes a bit, and I did half cauliflower and half potatoes then left off the cheese. Definitely making this again!
Just made this for dinner and it was a hit with the whole family. Looking forward to making it again.
Remember to use gluten free flour for the roux or else it isn’t gluten free…
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I haven’t made this particular recipe from Weelicious, but I make vegan Shepherd’s pies and pot pies frequently. Just replace the dairy milk with your favorite alternative milk-I always use unsweetened regular almond milk.
Instead of butter, sub one of the many available butter alternatives (I like Earth Balance). For the cheese, omit entirely, or use a non-dairy cheese, such as soy or almond cheese. To make vegan, you can replace the meat broth with veggie broth, and change the turkey for a root veggie (like sweet potato or turnip) or a soy meat alternative. My kids love this type of casserole and as per Catherine’s instructions, if you make it in a ramekin, it is even more appealing to the kids; just the right size for them.
How would you make this without using dairy products?
ummm. yummy. good recipe 🙂
Added 🙂
freezing directions?
thanks 🙂
[…] What would Weelicious do? Whip up some Turkey Shepherd’s Pot Pie or Potato Turkey Balls. These both look […]
A friend just made it by adding a layer of sweet potatoes/yams before she added the mashed potatoes on top…delicious!
This looks so delicious!!
Yes, I love how you’ve left your notes in this one. Obviously VERY busy prepping for the holiday weekend! Happy (American) Thanksgiving.
So funny! I always have my husband proof the recipes before I post them because he doesn’t really cook, so if he doesn’t understand a step I add or change something. Good eyes compared to my exhausted Thanksgiving ones 😉
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