It’s time to put your Thanksgiving turkey (or chicken) leftovers to good use in this Baked Tortellini with Turkey, Butternut Squash & Chard recipe.
Let’s set the scene for the day after Thanksgiving. Now that the festivities are over, you’re likely lying on the couch, sweatpants on, rockin’ the bedhead , surrounded by magazines you’ve been hoping to read for months. (Unless you’re one of those ambitious Black Friday shoppers, which I am definitely not.) You did enough cooking the day before to last you a year and now you don’t want to make anything that requires hours of effort or pounds of butter. So, let’s put those turkey leftovers to good use!
If I had to choose my favorite Thanksgiving turkey leftover recipes, it would be a close call between this baked tortellini casserole and my family’s all-time favorite Light Turkey & Corn Chowder. And don’t feel that these recipes need to be relegated to Thanksgiving weekend. They can be made any day of the year with leftover cooked chicken.
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If you’re worried about your family’s reaction to this baked pasta dish, since it’s packed with veggies that are typically shunned by the younger set, let me tell you that my boys went back for three (!!!) helpings. They had no idea that there was any butternut squash mixed into the sauce and one of them chose to simply pick around the Swiss chard. That boy will eat salad until the cows come home, but if you cook the greens, he’s out.
The baked tortellini recipe:
This recipe is dead simple to put together. And with only eight ingredients, there’s very little prep involved, particularly if you buy pre-cubed butternut squash at the grocery store.
As far as the tortellini goes, you can use white, green or orange cheese tortellini, or a combination of all three. The more colorful the better!
As good as the tortellini/turkey/squash combo is, it’s the topping that adds something really special. Chop some pecans, then toss them with minced fresh sage and grated Parmesan cheese. Sprinkle on top of the casserole before baking. Crunchy, toasty and a little salty. Perfection!
Other recipes with leftover turkey:
Light Turkey (or Chicken) & Corn Chowder
Leftover Turkey (or Chicken) & Potato Pizza
Leftover Turkey Lasagna Rolls with Sun Dried Tomatoes & Spinach
If you make this recipe, I’d love to see it on Instagram! Just use the hashtag #COOKINCANUCK and I’ll be sure to find it.
Baked Tortellini with Turkey, Butternut Squash & Chard Recipe
This Baked Tortellini casserole is a fantastic way to use up leftover turkey or chicken. 335 calories and 9 Weight Watchers Freestyle SP
Ingredients
- 2 cups butternut squash cubes (about 1/2 inch cubes)
- 16 oz. cheese tortellini
- 3 cups tomato sauce, divided
- 3 cups chopped turkey (white & dark meat)
- 2 1/2 cups Swiss chard (strips cut crosswise)
- 1/2 cup coarsely grated Parmesan cheese
- 3 tbsp chopped fresh sage
- 1/2 cup chopped pecans
Topping
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Bring a large saucepan of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the butternut squash cubes and cook until tender when pierced with a fork, about 10 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the squash to a bowl and mash with the back of a fork. Set aside.
Add the tortellini to the boiling water and cook for 2 minutes less than directed by package instructions. Drain the tortellini and transfer to a large bowl.
To the tortellini, add 1 cup tomato sauce, mashed butternut squash, turkey (or chicken) and chard. Stir to combine.
Spread ¾ cup tomato sauce on the bottom of a 9- by 12-inch (or 9- by 13 inch) baking dish.
Transfer half or the tortellini mixture to the baking dish and spread evenly. Top with ¾ cup tomato sauce.
Transfer the remaining tortellini mixture to the baking dish, spreading evenly. Spread remaining ¾ cup tomato sauce over top.
Sprinkle the topping evenly on top of the tortellini. Bake, uncovered, until the cheese is melted and the casserole is heated through, about 30 minutes. Serve.
The topping:
In a medium bowl, stir together the Parmesan cheese, sage and pecans.
Recipe Notes
Weight Watchers Points: 9 (Freestyle SmartPoints), 9 (Old SmartPoints), 9 (Points+), 7 (Old Points)
The post was originally published on November 25th, 2011. Photos and the recipe have been updated.
Disclosure: This post contains links to my Amazon affiliate page. Any revenue made from sales through these links helps to support this blog. Thank you!
Katrina @ Warm Vanilla Sugar says
Great idea to use up turkey making it completely different!
carrian says
Lovely recipe, colors, and photo! Annnnnd, I happen to have all of the ingredients just waiting to be used!
Traci says
Great idea for leftover turkey! Definetely going to try it. My family gets sick of leftover turkey sandwiches quickly. 🙂
Lydia (The Perfect Pantry) says
I always have a bag of fresh tortellini in the fridge. It has saved my life more than once! I love making cold salads in the summer and bulking up mac and cheese variations in the winter. This recipe is definitely going into my rotation.
Jen at The Three Little Piglets says
That would be perfect except that I’ve already eaten all the leftovers!! Hope you had a lovely holiday!
Steve @ the black peppercorn says
Being a Canadian, I had already celebrated my Thanksgiving weeks earlier as well. This looks great and an excellent use of leftover turkey. I put up a recipe for leftover turkey on my site today as well. Canucks think alike I guess!
Chris @ TheKeenanCookbook says
Oh man this looks good! Wish I had caught up on my RSS box before food shopping – we are planning a casserole with the last of our turkey. But man does this look good. We love the flavor and texture of butternut squash.
Hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving! I used your turkey herb butter to season my brined bird – it came out fantastic. 🙂
Simply Tia says
I’m gonna have to try this really soon!
Belinda @zomppa says
Love how seasonal and beautiful these are! Hope you had a lovely Thankgiving!
Alison @ Ingredients, Inc. says
This looks amazing! Wow!
Maria says
Perfect way to use up those leftovers!
Miss @ Miss in the Kitchen says
Looks so filling and delicious.
Julie M. says
This looks amazing Dara! I have to say, one of my favorite aspects of Thanksgiving is enjoying the leftovers after the fact.
Sandy says
This is the tastiest way to use leftovers that I have seen. I wish I had some leftovers, turkey sandwiches are the best part!
I guess that is a very small price to pay for having so many family members together for a great day. Hope your holiday was just as nice!
bridget {bake at 350} says
That looks so, so good!!!
Dara says
I loooove chard! What a fabulous recipe – taking advantage of yummy late fall produce. Plus, tortellini are delicious.
Sommer@ASpicyPerspective says
Yep, turkey and swiss sounds like a GREAT idea. Such PRETTY leftovers. 🙂
Lori @ RecipeGirl says
Love this idea for a baked casserole. Butternut squash and swiss chard are two of my favorite things!
Jeanette says
Like this unique way of using up leftover turkey – wish we still had some so I could give this a try…will have to keep it for next year.
Liz says
Mmmmm…I love when the turkey leftover dishes are almost as fabulous as the turkey dinner! This looks amazing!
Diane {Created by Diane} says
sounds great, love leftover dishes 🙂
Magic of Spice says
What a great combination of flavors…beautiful dish!
Marina {Yummy Mummy} says
These are literally all my favorite ingredients in one beautiful baked dish! Definitely making this!
Marla says
Love all the squash you have been using 🙂
marla says
Love this recipe! Will be linking back to this in my upcoming post 🙂
Megan {Country Cleaver} says
How did I just see this on Pinterest NOW?!?! I’ve been missing out and this looks scrumptious Dara!
Dara (Cookin' Canuck) says
Thanks, Megan! It’s one I make every year with our turkey leftovers.
Lola says
Well,I’m afraid I don’t have all the ingredients at home. No tortellini : ( Can you suggest a substitute? maybe egg noodles or penne pasta? THANKS
Dara says
Yes, you could certainly substitute a plain (non-filled) pasta, but it won’t be quite the same because you’ll be missing the taste of the filling. Ravioli would be a good substitute for the tortellini.
Lola says
hmmmm, same problem with ravioli (don’t stock it- it’s also filled, no?) I think there are enough yummy ingredients that it’ll be good with plain pasta. THANKS
Agness of Run Agness Run says
This is a very appetizing dish with a bunch of awesome ingredients, Dara. I especially loved the topping part. Is it possible to also add Cheddar cheese in addition to Parmesan?
Simone D says
We had some leftover chicken from our Friday night dinner, so I made this on Saturday. So dang good! My kids barely noticed the butternut squash and everyone loved the flavor.