This Vegetarian Meatloaf and Cranberry Thanksgiving Leftover Sandwich is the perfect way to use up your Thanksgiving leftovers! Loaded with lots of flavour, so easy and so delicious!
Oh my gosh I have been eating Thanksgiving Leftovers ALL week. I know, wait what? You see, in food blogger world we celebrate each holiday about 2-3 times. Once to test, twice to shoot, then the actual holiday. So I’ve been doing Thanksgiving. Not only is this umm, INCREDIBLE food wise, it means I have a ton of experience with this thanksgiving leftover sandwich.
Hello post Thanksgiving day lunch and dinner.
Here’s the main reason I love this sandwich – I don’t have to recook anything. I don’t need any more ingredients, except two slices of bread. I just assemble, heat and enjoy. If you have a toaster oven, you could easily skip the grilled pan sandwich method. If you don’t have goat cheese, use whatever cheese you desire. No sage or basil? Skip it, or use whatever green you have. If you’re using salad greens, add them in after the sandwich is toasted.
It’s just that simple.
All of the flavours in this Thanksgiving Leftover Sandwich come together so perfectly. The meatloaf and the cranberry sauce are meant for each other, and the tang of the cheese offsets the sweetness of the cranberry sauce.
The greens provide the perfect neutrality and their own subtle flavour. Of course, the vegan butter gives it that store bought sandwich taste we all love and that buttery toasted flavour too. You really can’t go wrong with this beauty.
P.S. Here are some of the items I used to make this recipe if you’d like to use them too:
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If you try this Vegetarian Meatloaf and Cranberry Thanksgiving Leftover Sandwich please let me know in the comment section below, or tag me on instagram with the hashtag #jessicainthekitchen ! For more exclusive recipes follow me on Instagram AND on Snapchat: jessinkitchen.
MORE THANKSGIVING RECIPES
Vegan Meatloaf
Ingredients
Vegetarian Meatloaf and Cranberry Thanksgiving Leftover Sandwich
- 2 slices whole wheat bread , or bread of choice
- 1/2 tablespoon vegan butter , optional
- 3 tablespoons cranberry sauce
- 1 slice vegan meatloaf
- 1 tablespoon soft vegan cheese , like a vegan goat cheese or soft vegan feta
- 1 slice vegan mozzarella cheese
- A few slices sage/basil
- 1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme
- chopped parsley
Instructions
Vegetarian Meatloaf and Cranberry Thanksgiving Leftover Sandwich
- Butter each outer side of each slide of bread with the vegan butter.
- Spread the inside of the slices with the cranberry, sauce.
Layering Process:
- Crumble the meatloaf and top cranberry sauce, then the cheese, then the sage/basil, thyme and parsley. Add second slice on top.
- In a pan over medium heat, add the sandwich. Heat through until slice is toasted and sandwich is warm. Flip and do the same for the second slice until sandwich is hot.
- Remove, slice in half or quarters and enjoy!
Notes
- TO MAKE IT GLUTEN FREE Just use gluten free bread! You can even make a gluten free cornbread loaf
Vegetarian Meatloaf and Cranberry Thanksgiving Leftover Sandwich
Ingredients
Vegetarian Meatloaf and Cranberry Thanksgiving Leftover Sandwich
- 2 slices whole wheat bread or bread of choice
- 1/2 tablespoon vegan butter optional
- 3 tablespoons cranberry sauce
- 1 slice vegan meatloaf
- 1 tablespoon soft vegan cheese like a vegan goat cheese or soft vegan feta
- 1 slice vegan mozzarella cheese
- A few slices sage/basil
- 1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme
- chopped parsley
Instructions
Vegetarian Meatloaf and Cranberry Thanksgiving Leftover Sandwich
- Butter each outer side of each slide of bread with the vegan butter.
- Spread the inside of the slices with the cranberry, sauce.
Layering Process:
- Crumble the meatloaf and top cranberry sauce, then the cheese, then the sage/basil, thyme and parsley. Add second slice on top.
- In a pan over medium heat, add the sandwich. Heat through until slice is toasted and sandwich is warm. Flip and do the same for the second slice until sandwich is hot.
- Remove, slice in half or quarters and enjoy!
Notes
- TO MAKE IT GLUTEN FREE Just use gluten free bread! You can even make a gluten free cornbread loaf
Nutrition
Vegetarian Meatloaf and Cranberry Thanksgiving Leftover Sandwich https://jessicainthekitchen.com/thanksgiving-leftover-sandwich/ November 22, 2016
This Vegan Caramel Sauce is made with just 3 all-natural ingredients! Homemade caramel sauce goes perfectly with ice cream, cheesecakes, apple crisp, and more .
Easy, creamy, thick, and dreamy. That’s the catchphrase for today’s recipe, which is Vegan Caramel Sauce! If you can’t tell through the screen, I’m very excited about this post.
Caramel sauce is one of those things that everybody needs in their life. You can put it in pretty much anything. Of course, vegan ice cream is the most common culprit, but coffee is a close second. Short of a slice of rich chocolate cake, can you think of a better thing to wake up with in the morning than caramel-infused caffeine?
Though I could rave forever about the addictive nature of this easy caramel sauce, it has other good qualities too. For starters, this recipe uses all-natural ingredients and is so incredibly easy to make. I’d venture to say you’ll definitely make it more than once after you try a taste!
All I can think to say to wrap this up is that salted caramel really is the best . So, make a batch, grab a spoon, and treat yourself!
Notes on Ingredients
I wanted to keep my vegan caramel sauce somewhat neutral so that you could alter it to your liking – feel free to experiment with add-ins if you feel inspired. For now, though, here are the 3 main ingredients that you’ll need:
- Sugar: Use the all-natural sugar of your choice. That can be coconut sugar , cane sugar, organic brown sugar, sucanat, date sugar, etc.
- Coconut Milk: This helps to get the caramel thick and creamy, while keeping it vegan. There are a million amazing things to say about coconut milk but I’ll stick to one for right now: perfect heavy cream substitute.
- Sea Salt: A pinch of this helps to elevate the sweet effect of the first two ingredients.
How to Make Vegan Caramel Sauce
Making vegan caramel sauce requires a lot of stirring… and (im)patient waiting… but it’s not difficult at all. It takes about 25 minutes total, and then you can put it in the fridge to set. That is, after you try some, just to see if it’s up to your standards. 😉
Here’s the step-by-step guide:
Heat a Pot Over Medium-High Heat: Add the sugar and stir it around the pot for about 1 minute to heat it through. Add the coconut milk and and sea salt stir to combine.
Bring to a Boil: Reduce your mixture to a simmer at low-medium heat, and let it simmer for about 15 minutes (until caramel has thickened), stirring occasionally. It should be sticking to the back of your spatula or spoon.
Remove the Pot From Heat: Allow it to cool slightly for 10 minutes then transfer the caramel sauce to a jar with a lid. Cover the jar and place it in fridge to cool further for at least two hours.
To Use: Simply remove it from the fridge, and pour it over anything you want. I use this for holiday pancakes, and over ice cream and cakes. Enjoy!!
Tips for Success
Caramel sauce is almost too simply made for its own good. Once you start making it, it tends to become a household staple because it can be incorporated into so many things!
Here are some tips that will help you prepare some of the best caramel sauce you’ve ever tasted:
- For Salted Caramel: You can stir in up to ¾ teaspoon extra sea salt before you remove the pot from the stove if you want salted caramel.
- Should My Caramel Sauce Look Thin? It’s okay if it does. The sauce WILL thicken up much more upon cooling, and also upon placing it in the fridge, even if it doesn’t look very thick after removing it from the stove.
- Wash Your Pots/Utensils: The sugar/caramel can stick to the pan if you let it sit there for too long, so I recommend washing it pretty soon after you finish cooking, or filling it with water to sit in the sink.
- Can I Halve this Recipe? You can easily half this recipe, or even double it!
- Coconut Milk vs Coconut Water: Ensure that you’re using all coconut milk and not coconut water, or else the sauce will not thicken up as much, and it will separate while cooling.
- Possible Add-Ins: You could add vanilla extract, or scrape a vanilla bean for heightened flavor. You could also add ground lavender, or even use fleur de sel instead of sea salt. That last one sounds divine!
Serving Suggestions
There are about a million ways to enjoy caramel sauce, and they’re all delicious. It can be used as fruit dip, or drizzled over pancakes or vegan ice cream… you can even stir it into your coffee or oatmeal!
I also like to add it to the batter in this Pumpkin Muffin recipe and this Banana Bread recipe, for a swirl of sweetness. Oh! And you can also use it in this Salted Pretzel Caramel Bark , too. The possibilities are truly endless!
How to Store Leftovers
Refrigerate your caramel in a jar – or some other kind of airtight container – for 7 days. Mine always disappears long before then, and I imagine yours will too!
Can I Freeze Caramel Sauce?
Yes. You can freeze this caramel sauce for a month or so in a tightly-sealed jar, or airtight container.
Ingredients
Vegan Caramel Sauce
- 3/4 cup coconut or cane or brown sugar
- 1 cup full fat coconut milk , from the can – the thick white part
- 1/4 teaspoon coarse sea salt
Instructions
Vegan Caramel Sauce
- Heat a pot over medium high heat.
- Add the sugar and stir around the pot for about 1 minute to heat through.
- Add the coconut milk and and sea salt stir to combine.
- Bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer at low medium heat and let simmer for about 15 minutes, until caramel has thickened, stirring occasionally. It should be sticking to the back of your spatula or spoon.
- You can stir in up to ¾ teaspoon extra sea salt at this point if you want salted caramel.
- Remove pan from heat. Allow to cool slightly for 10 minutes then transfer to a jar with a lid.
- Cover jar, and place in fridge to cool further for at least two hours. The sauce WILL thicken up much more upon cooling and also upon placing in the fridge, even if it doesn’t look very thick after removing from the stove.
- To use, simply remove from fridge and pour over anything you want. I use this for holiday pancakes, Salted Caramel Pretzel Bark and over ice cream and cakes. Enjoy!!
Notes
- For Salted Caramel: You can stir in up to ¾ teaspoon extra sea salt before you remove the pot from the stove if you want salted caramel.
- Should My Caramel Sauce Look Thin? It’s okay if it does. The sauce WILL thicken up much more upon cooling, and also upon placing it in the fridge, even if it doesn’t look very thick after removing it from the stove.
- Wash Your Pots/Utensils: The sugar/caramel can stick to the pan if you let it sit there for too long, so I recommend washing it pretty soon after you finish cooking, or filling it with water to sit in the sink.
- Can I Halve this Recipe? You can easily half this recipe, or even double it!
- Coconut Milk vs Coconut Water: Ensure that you’re using all coconut milk and not coconut water, or else the sauce will not thicken up as much, and it will separate while cooling.
- Possible Add-Ins: You could add vanilla extract, or scrape a vanilla bean for heightened flavor. You could also add ground lavender, or even use fleur de sel instead of sea salt. That last one sounds divine!
- Storage: Refrigerate your caramel in a jar – or some other kind of airtight container – for 7 days. You can also freeze this caramel sauce for a month or so.
