Let’s be real and all agree that our favorite part of Thanksgiving is the leftover turkey, cranberries, mashed sweet potatoes, pecan pie, etc. etc. No one can deny a leftover turkey sandwich on Black Friday is better than any other sandwich eaten the other 364 days of the year. I have a couple theories as to why, so bear with me.

My first theory is nostalgia. We long for the days when we actually had a Thanksgiving break. When Christmas didn’t start until Thanksgiving was over. When you just had the weekend to savor the sweet bliss of no stress… that’s what a left over turkey sandwich represents and that’s why to this day I look forward to the day AFTER Thanksgiving.

My second theory is a little more straight forward. The sandwich is so good, because the ingredients are SO GOOD. No other time of year did my grandfather smoke a turkey overnight, or my mother even make cranberry sauce. For these reasons a Thanksgiving leftover Turkey Sandwich is just the best thing ever.

All that being said, I have upped my sandwich game since my adolescent years and I bring you the Elevated Left-Over Turkey Sandwich. This sammy brings in all the best flavor profiles, and textures that make a great sandwich.

We start with the sweet and savory flavor profile by smearing the cranberries on one slice of multigrain bread then adding a thick turkey slice stack. Next the arugula tossed in a citrus mayo adds a spicy tang and a little crunch. And because it just makes everything more delicious we put an avocado on it. Not only is this sandwich beautiful, it’s incredible. So cheers to slaving away over the stove for hours, cause this sandwich is gunna be dank.