What’s the best thing about holiday meals? Some might say the family time (which is amazing) or the special treats you only enjoy a few times a year (which I also love).
To me, they’re not the only holiday magic. One of my favorite parts of our meals at Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter is the leftovers! Every year we try to come up with new ways to use them. This Holiday Leftovers Cottage Pie is at the top of our list of fun ways to jazz up the holiday extras!
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Why You’ll Love It
Creating this cottage pie lets you gather the most delicious parts of your holiday meal and bring them together in one comforting hug of dinner. Instead of reheating the same plate again, you’ll turn amazing extras into a meal that feels fresh, hearty, and exciting.
- Comfort Food To the Next Level: All those festive flavors at your holiday table make for an incredibly satisfying dinner, but it doesn’t stop there. Take that hearty, delicious meal and kick it up a notch by turning it into this flavorful cottage pie.
- Make the Most of Your Money: We’ve all heard the adage, “A penny saved is a penny earned”. Using your leftovers wisely is a great way to make that happen. When you turn your extra food into a new dish your family can’t wait to eat, you are making sure you get the most bang for your buck!
- Allergy-Friendly: The recipe for this Holiday Leftovers Cottage Pie is not only tasty and satisfying, it’s free from most top allergens. Making a dish that is free from gluten, dairy, eggs, and soy means that even more people will feel welcomed and loved around your table!
What You’ll Need
I love to keep things simple. You’re not going to need any specialty equipment or unusual ingredients for this dish. Everything you need is standard fare for holiday dinners and allergy-friendly pantries.
- Meat: At my house we serve both turkey and ham for the holidays. Why? Because that’s what we like. Some of us prefer ham, some turkey, and the rest like both. The great part of doing that means extra food to enjoy for days afterward. This recipe calls for both turkey and ham in the pie. If that’s not what you serve, check out the Smart Substitutions section below.
- Mashed Potatoes: Here’s the best news, cottage pie (pretty much the same thing as Shepherd’s pie, but with some other meat besides lamb) is topped with mashed potatoes. One of the most popular holiday side dishes is also mashed potatoes. You’ve probably got some extra spuds lying around your fridge in the days after your feast. Those will become the creamy crown on your tasty dinner.
- Dairy-Free Cheese: If your family routinely cooks for someone who is dairy-free, I’m confident you have dairy-free cheese at your house. Should you happen to run out, it’s something that can be easily found at just about any grocery store these days.
Smart Substitutions
Substitutions are par for the course when you live with food allergies. The key is to know how to make smart substitutions so that your food tastes just as good as the original. The most important thing to do is to make sure you know the purpose of the ingredient in the dish, and then choose an alternative based on that.
- Dairy: If you’re able to eat dairy, this dish will work just the same for you. Simply swap out equal amounts of regular cheese and milk for the dairy-free options in the recipe.
- Garlic: By using garlic oil instead of garlic cloves this recipe is low FODMAP and reflux-friendly. If you don’t need it to be either of those things, feel free to add 1-2 garlic cloves and use more butter in place of the garlic oil.
- Meat: I use turkey and ham in the cottage pie because that’s what we serve at Thanksgiving and Christmas. If your family serves prime rib, leg of lamb, or something else, feel free to use that meat instead. If you’re vegetarian, you can use more vegetables, canned beans, or lentils in place of the meat.
Enjoy Your Holiday Leftovers Cottage Pie
This comforting twist on your holiday favorites will win your family over and make them beg for leftovers! It’s the perfect way to turn your holiday extras into something new and exciting. Not only is it budget-smart, allergy-friendly, it’s full of the same comfort that makes the holiday dinner so special.
If you try this recipe, I’d love to see your creation! Snap a picture and tag me on Instagram @fearlessfaithfulmom.
Holiday Leftovers Cottage Pie
Ingredients
For the Filling
- 1 tbsp plant butter
- 1 tbsp garlic oil
- 18 oz roasted turkey chopped
- 7 oz baked ham chopped
- 3 1/2 oz carrot chopped
- 3 oz celery minced
- 3 1/2 oz chopped leeks green part only
- 1 oz cassava flour
- 800 ml chicken or turkey broth 3 1/3 cup
- 3 tbsp fresh herbs rosemary, sage, parsley, or thyme
- 60 ml lite coconut milk 1/4 cup
For the Topping
- 20 oz mashed potatoes 2 1/2 cups
- 1/2 cup dairy-free cheese shredded
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350*F. Take your leftover mashed potatoes out of the fridge to come to room temperature.
- Heat a pan over medium and add the butter and oil. Once hot, add your leeks and vegetables and cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring.
- Add the meat and cook for a minute more. Put your flour in the pan and stir to coat the meat and vegetables.
- Pour your broth into the pan, bring to a simmer, and cook for 8-10 minutes, until it is thickened. Stir occasionally to keep it from scorching.
- Remove from the heat and allow to cool for 5 minutes before stirring in the coconut milk. Transfer the filling to a 9x13 pan.
- Stir the cheese into mashed potatoes, then dollop across the top of the filling. Put in the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes, until fully hot.
