Happy Thanksgiving! I hope that you all are enjoying a day filled with good food, friends, and family. Before I dive into the kitchen I wanted to share with you a quick recipe for one of our favorite sandwiches- the nutty bird.

A local coffee shop serves this sandwich year round and I like it so much that I have a hard time ordering anything else off the menu. With a fridge full of leftover turkey, I thought I would try making a nutty bird with real slices of meat rather than thin deli style slices. The resulting sandwich was so satisfying, that I found myself wishing I had cooked a bigger turkey!

Dark pumpernickel bread forms the base of a nutty bird sandwich. From there, you spread a thin layer of whipped cream cheese on the top slice and a thin layer of mayonnaise on the bottom. Cranberry sauce is spread onto the bread and then thick slices of turkey breast settle into the sauce. A sprinkle of sunflower seeds add a salty crunch, providing the ‘nutty’ part of the name, while crisp lettuce and a thin slice of white cheddar cheese round out the filling.

Each sandwich has the taste bud pleasing combination of savory, salty, and sweet flavors while hearty slices of turkey give a satisfying heft to the texture. If you are staring at a fridge filled with leftover turkey, find a loaf of pumpernickel bread and enjoy a week of killer sandwiches that may just evoke leftover envy around the office.

Nutty Bird Sandwich (Printable Recipe)
Makes 1 Sandwich

Ingredients:
2 Slices of Dark Pumpernickel Bread
1.5 oz Sliced Turkey Breast
2 Lettuce Leaves
2 Tablespoons Cranberry Sauce
2 Tablespoons Whipped Cream Cheese
1 Tablespoon Mayonnaise
1 Tablespoon Sunflower Seeds
1 Slice White Cheddar Cheese (or Provolone or Havarti)

Directions:
Spread whipped cream cheese on top of one slice of bread. Spread mayonnaise on top of the second slice of bread. Spread cranberry sauce on top of the cream cheese, and sprinkle the sunflower seeds onto the cranberry sauce. Layer the turkey, lettuce, and cheddar cheese on top of the cranberry sauce, and place the second slice of bread, mayonnaise side down on top of the cheese. Enjoy!