This morning I am sitting in bed with Dolly sleeping at my feet, trying to recover from the "holy-moliness" of putting on last night's epic dinner. I'm finally taking a moment to watch the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, which my husband thoughtfully recorded for me since I was in kitchen all day and didn't have a moment to enjoy this favorite Thanksgiving tradition of mine.

Even though I am still recovering, I wanted to use today's post to share a few thoughts/ideas on what to do in the wake of the Thanksgiving Day aftermath. Today is Black Friday, so I know that most are out and about hitting the stores. In addition to all of the shopping happening today, those of you who hosted Thanksgiving last night are probably looking at all of the leftovers in your refrigerators and wondering what the heck to do with all of this food?!? While I have no special wisdom to impart when it comes to finding the best "door buster deals," I do have a few suggestions on how to make the most out of your Thanksgiving leftovers.

Thanksgiving Bites

This is a really easy way to use up leftovers that's easy to assemble for a crowd. Start by placing leftover turkey on top of a Rosemary or Toasted Onion 34 Degree Crisp, then add a spoonful of stuffing, followed by a dollop of cranberry relish and garnish with fresh chopped parsley to create delicious Thanksgiving Leftover Bites. These bites taste great warm or cold and are an instant crowd-pleaser.

Rotisserie Chicken Noodle Soup - Sub Turkey!

Make a big pot of my Rotisserie Chicken Noodle Soup, but sub Thanksgiving Turkey for the Rotisserie Chicken. This is a great way to use up a variety of ingredients you probably still have on hand- Broth/Stock, Celery, Carrots, Herbs and of course all of that leftover Thanksgiving turkey!

Thanksgiving Dinner Roll Paninis

There really is nothing better than a thanksgiving sandwich. This year I am breaking out my grill pan to create thanksgiving panini sandwiches using the leftover dinner rolls. Here is what I will be using:

Leftover dinner rolls
Turkey
Stuffing
Cranberry Relish
Brie or Provolone Cheese
Herbs (Thyme, Rosemary, Sage)
Butter

Instructions:

Heat your grill pan on Medium/High Heat with 2 Tbs Butter
Slice your rolls in half and brush lightly with melted butter
Place cheese and herbs on each roll half and allow time for the cheese to melt on the grill pan
Then add turkey, cranberry relish and stuffing to sandwich halves
Assemble both sides together
Place metal grill top over sandwich and allow it to cook for approx. 1min
Flip sandwich and press metal grill top onto sandwich again for an additional minute.
Remove sandwich from heat and serve

My Thanksgiving Dinner party was a big success. I would have to say that the highlight was when my mom surprised me with an impromptu ceremony and officially passed off the family carving knife. Having my entire family here for my first Thanksgiving dinner made all of the work leading up to this day completely worthwhile. For all of you who cooked the big dinner last night, I hope you are sitting at home with your feet up enjoying delicious leftovers. You have certainly earned a day of relaxation!