Everyone is in preparation and planning mode as we get closer to the holidays. The coming weeks are usually jammed with parties, get-togethers, family gatherings, festive meals and a string of celebrations.
Making memories over a festive meal with family and friends is the greatest way to celebrate the season. Whether you’re a novice cook, new to feeding a crowd, or a seasoned pro in the kitchen, Canadian Turkey can help you create show-stopping dishes and provide you with all the tips and techniques you need to create delicious and memorable meals.
This post is sponsored by Canadian Turkey, tips and recipes provided.
7 Ways To Make Turkey The Star Of Your Holiday Season
1. Save precious cooking time and have more fun entertaining by preparing a meal using a variety of turkey cuts instead of a whole turkey. You can customize your meal based on your guests’ preferences easily by serving more dark or more white turkey, and cut your cooking time in half or less.
2. Make turkey your own way! Experiment with different flavours, spice rubs, herbs, stuffings and glazes to create your own signature meal. Turkey pairs well with different flavor profiles so feel free to get creative.
3. Sub ground turkey into any of your favourite ground chicken, ground pork or ground beef recipes. Turkey is versatile, juicy and packed with flavor, making it a great entertaining go-to ingredient.
4. Get your guests involved by hosting a potluck. You provide the crowd pleasing main dish, like a whole roasted turkey, and then have your guests bring a selection of appetizers, salads and desserts. Guests love to contribute and this will help take the heat off of you!
5. Experiment with something other than a formal sit down. A buffet-style meal encourages snacking throughout the night, mingling while guests eat and chat, and allows for a more social and relaxed feel. Choose foods that taste great at room temperature, like a stuffed turkey breast or turkey casserole.
6. Use turkey sausage for lighter versions of traditional sausage rolls, mini flatbreads, crostini, pasta salad dishes and puff pastry appetizers. It’s a tasty way to cut calories while still packing a big flavor punch.
7. Consider building your party around a series of appetizers. There are many recipes that can be made ahead of time, like our Turkey, Cranberry and Goat Cheese Party Bites. Finger foods also mean using less dishes and cutlery, saving time when it comes to clean up.
Finding ways to plan ahead and make some of your dishes in advance can significantly cut down on your work while leaving you with more time to mingle with your guests and have fun! Download the Canadian Turkey Holiday Entertaining Guide for the best recipes and inspiration!
The “Make it Faster” Festive Carved Turkey recipe will cut your cooking time to less than half! This technique will help you get a gorgeous carved roast turkey on your table in less than two hours. Ask your butcher to break down your turkey into parts to create this fast and festive meal. If your go-to grocery store doesn’t have an in-house butcher, just buy a variety of cuts at the meat counter to create the same dish.
Turkey, Cranberry, Goat Cheese Party Bites
Serving a larger crowd? A classic roast turkey with all the trimmings will steal the show at any celebration. Try some of the crowd favourites at canadianturkey.ca, like our Apple, Sage and Shallot Stuffed Holiday Turkey or our Roasted Turkey with Cornbread Cranberry Stuffing. With a classic roast turkey as the centerpiece of your meal, you can feed a large number of people for a few dollars per person.
Look for recipes that can feed a crowd, be made ahead of time, go from the freezer to the oven, or that can be served as festive appetizers or starters. To get started, try the tasty Turkey, Cranberry and Goat Cheese Party Bites or Turkey Falafel Bites, two delicious appetizers that are perfect for your next holiday party or pot-luck. You can make the ingredients ahead of time and just put them together on the day you need them.
Turkey Falafel Bites
You’ll find all the recipes in the Entertaining Guide, but be sure to also visit canadianturkey.ca. The site is packed with tips, techniques and recipe inspiration for main dishes and appetizers, and a gold mine of ideas for your holiday leftovers.
The Year-Round Whole Turkey and Turkey Cuts HOW TOs and Turkey Basics videos will provide you with a library of step-by-step information that can help you make a turkey for the first time, or perfect all the details of your holiday meal if you’re an experienced cook.
Winner, Winner, Turkey Dinner!
In the spirit of the holidays Canadian Turkey is giving away a $75 Amazon e-gift Card to one lucky winner! Use the form below to enter, open to Canadian residents only over the age of 18yrs. Ends Dec 23 at 11:59pm est
WHOLE ROASTED TURKEY WITH CRANBERRY PEAR CHUTNEY sounds delicious and would be a good recipe to try. 🙂
Apple Honey Turkey Sausage Stuffing sounds really good!
I would try the WHOLE ROASTED TURKEY WITH CRANBERRY PEAR CHUTNEY
I would love to try the STUFFED TURKEY BREAST ROLL
Apple Honey Turkey Sausage Stuffing sounds yum!
WHOLE ROASTED TURKEY WITH CRANBERRY PEAR CHUTNEY
I’d like to try the Turkey, Cranberry and Goat Cheese Party Bites recipe.
I will be trying the CANADIAN TURKEY’S OWN QUICK MARINADES
I will be trying the Turkey Cheddar Spinach Dip recipe.
I like the sound of the Classic Homemade Turkey Noodle Soup
The ADOBO-STYLE SLOW COOKER TURKEY ROAST sounds amazing!
Classic homemade turkey noodle soup.
I would try the WHOLE ROASTED TURKEY WITH CRANBERRY PEAR CHUTNEY
I would love to try the HONEY APPLE TURKEY SAUSAGE SAVOURY TARTLETS
I will be trying the .. Stuffed Turkey Breast Roll
I will be trying the Whole Roasted Turkey with Cranberry Pear Chutney
would love to try the APPLE HONEY TURKEY SAUSAGE STUFFING
I would like to try the APPLE HONEY TURKEY SAUSAGE STUFFING recipe.
I’d love to try the “Orange-Cracked Black Pepper Cranberry Sauce”.
I want to try out the turkey, cranberry and goat cheese party bites.
I would love to try the apple honey turkey sausage stuffing
I like to try the Instant Pot Herbed Turkey Breast and Gravy
We’ll be roasting a whole turkey, with all the fixings!
I’d try the Whole Roasted Turkey with Cranberry Pear Chutney.
Definitely the Honey Apple Turkey Sausage Savoury Tartlets!
Desi Roast Turkey With Lahori Chargha Masala And Green Chutney sounds like a different kind of dish I’d try
I think I’ll try the Turkey Cheddar Spinach Dip.
The TURKEY CHEDDAR SPINACH DIP sounds decadent!
Their One Pot Apple Honey Turkey Sausage Rice Pilaf would be the perfect lunch! Also, the leftovers would be delicious. Thanks for the super giveaway opportunity and Merry Christmas to you and your family.
I would try the WHOLE ROASTED TURKEY WITH CRANBERRY PEAR CHUTNEY
The TURKEY CHEDDAR SPINACH DIP sounds delicious.
I would like to try the Turkey Cheddar spinach dip
I will be trying the Turkey Cheddar spinach dip for my family.
Ive always wanted to step up my cranberries. Love the ORANGE-CRACKED BLACK PEPPER CRANBERRY SAUCE recipe offered on the Canadian Turkey web site
I’ll be trying the APPLE BUTTER AND THYME GLAZED ROAST TURKEY
I really want to try the TURKEY CHEDDAR SPINACH DIP. It looks and sounds so good.
The Spicy Peanut Quick turkey Marinade is exactly something Id try!
I’d like to try the Stuffed Turkey Breast Roll
I am ready to try the SLOW COOKER TURKEY BLACK BEAN CHILI
Orange-Cracked Black Pepper Cranberry Sauce. thanks
After thew holidays we will make Classic Homemade Turkey Noodle Soup.
The turkey cheddar spinach dip looks delicious!
The turkey meatballs looks good, will give it a try.
I would love to try the Honey Apple Turkey Sausage Savoury Tartlets! Happy Holidays!
the whole roasted turkey with cranberry and pear chutney
I will be enjoying the Classic Homemade Turkey Noodle Soup, can never have enough of it on these cold nights.
I willbe trying the Thai Coconut Turkey Soup
I would love to try the MINI MASALA TURKEY POT PIES
I like to try the Honey Apple Turkey Sausage Savoury Tartlets
The Adobo-Style Slow Cooker Turkey Roast looks good.
I’ll be trying the Sun-dried tomato and balsamic marinade for turkey.
I plan to try the Honey Apple Turkey Sausage Savoury Tartlets!
I am going to try the Mediterranean Turkey Sausage Pasta the recipe looks so easy and will be easy to reheat
I will try ROASTED GRAPE, SHALLOT AND THYME TURKEY.
I’ll be trying the One-Pot Cranberry Chipotle Sausage Rice Pilaf
The Adobo-Style Slow Cooker Turkey Roast looks really good.
I’d like to try the Adobo-Style Slow Cooker Turkey Roast
We will be trying the Desi Roast Turkey With Lahori Chargha Masala And Green Chutney recipe this year for our roast turkey.
Mediterranean turkey sausage pasta
I would love to try the STUFFED TURKEY BREAST ROLL
I think I would like to try the Apple Honey Turkey Sausage Stuffing
I would like to try the Turkey, Cranberry and Goat Cheese Party Bites!
The turkey cranberry party bites look great!
Wow, this looks really good…ONE-POT APPLE HONEY TURKEY SAUSAGE RICE PILAF
my family would enjoy the Apple Honey Turkey Sausage Stuffing
I think I will be trying the Apple Honey Turkey Sausage Stuffing ….it sounds like a meal in a pan to me!!
I would like to try the STUFFED TURKEY BREAST ROLL.
Apple Honey Turkey Sausage Stuffing
I’ll try Apple Honey Turkey Sausage Stuffing
I’m going to try the TURKEY, CRANBERRY AND GOAT CHEESE PARTY BITES
WHOLE ROASTED TURKEY WITH CRANBERRY PEAR CHUTNEY
I will try the One-Pot Apple Honey Turkey Sausage Rice Pilaf
I want to try making the WHOLE ROASTED TURKEY WITH CRANBERRY PEAR CHUTNEY.
I definitely want to try the ONE-POT CRANBERRY CHIPOTLE SAUSAGE RICE PILAF. 🙂
I would love to try the STUFFED TURKEY BREAST ROLL
ORANGE-CRACKED BLACK PEPPER CRANBERRY SAUCE
I want to try the apple honey turkey sausage stuffing!
I’ll be trying the turkey cheddar spinach dip for sure!
I would love to try the stuffed turkey breast roll–yum!
I will be trying the TARI WALA TURKEY
APPLE HONEY TURKEY SAUSAGE STUFFING
I’ll be trying the Turkey Cheddar Spinach Dip over the holidays.
Classic homemade turkey noodle soup.
The holiday nut stuffing looks AMAZING! Well, minus the mushrooms, ewww.
Whole Roasted Turkey with Cranberry Pear Chutney!
I like and would try the holiday nut stuffing, I love mushrooms!!
ORANGE-CRACKED BLACK PEPPER CRANBERRY SAUCE
This looks amazing ! Id love to try it
I think the turkey chedder spinach dip will be great.
I think I would try the Turkey, Cranberry and Goat Cheese Party Bites. They look delish!
The Lemon Rosemary Roasted Turkey looks really good. The more I look at all the recipes, the more I wonder why we only eat Turkey on special occasions… so silly!
I’d like to try the slow cooker turkey black bean chili
STUFFED TURKEY BREAST ROLL looks delicious!
I’m going to try the Turkey, Cranberry and Goat Cheese Party Bites~
I will be trying the Turkey, Cranberry and Goat Cheese Party Bites.
I will be trying the HONEY APPLE TURKEY SAUSAGE SAVOURY TARTLETS
The Tandori turkey legs and wings sound good.
I will be trying the Adobo-Style Slow Cooker Turkey Roast.
The Turkey Cheddar Spinach Dip sounds delicious!
I want to try turkey sausage stuffing.
I would love to try the turkey cheddar spinach dip!
Spicy peanut marinade. That is what I would try.
I would like to try the ONE-POT APPLE HONEY TURKEY SAUSAGE RICE PILAF recipe.
I would love to try the STUFFED TURKEY BREAST ROLL
I’ll be trying the Turkey, Cranberry and Goat Cheese Party Bites.
I would love to try the Honey Apple Turkey Sausage Savoury Tartlets!
I also don’t think my tweet linked properly today, so just in case, here it is:
https://twitter.com/JaylynneParsons/status/1073085356642164736
I would love to try the HONEY APPLE TURKEY SAUSAGE SAVOURY TARTLETS
Those Turkey cranberry goat cheese bites look delicious! They are definitely on my list!
I want to try the SPANISH-STYLE TURKEY RICE PILAF
The Turkey, Cranberry and Goat Cheese Party Bites
I will be trying the Whole Roasted Turkey with Cranberry Pear Chutney.
I like the night mode which prevents bright light blinding during the night and when waking up in the morning.
we will be trying the Honey Apple Turkey Sausage Savoury Tartlets!
I”d love to make the Classic Homemade Turkey Noodle Soup.
there are some great recipes, but this one sounds interesting TURKEY CHEDDAR SPINACH DIP
I think I’ll try the APPLE HONEY TURKEY SAUSAGE STUFFING
I would like to try the APPLE HONEY TURKEY SAUSAGE STUFFING
I think I need to make the ORANGE-CRACKED BLACK PEPPER CRANBERRY SAUCE! Sounds yummy!
Having a variety of flavors for turkeys is an excellent way of making a meal interesting, so I’m going to try Canadian Turkey’s “Own Quick Marinades”. Honey-Lemon-Rosemary sounds interesting, but I’m tempted to try all of them.
Roasted a whole turkey
Ill be trying the cranberry sauce
Turkey cheddar spinach dip.
The Holiday Nut Stuffing would be great for Christmas!
I’d like to serve a unique kind of appetizer over the holidays & I think the mini masala turkey pot pies would be just the thing!
I will be trying the ROASTING A WHOLE TURKEY recipe
I will be trying the Mini Masala Turkey Pot Pies!
I will be trying WHOLE ROASTED TURKEY WITH CRANBERRY PEAR CHUTNEY
I would like to try the Turkey Cheddar Spinach Dip.
WHOLE ROASTED TURKEY WITH CRANBERRY PEAR CHUTNEY
https://www.canadianturkey.ca/recipes/one-pot-saucy-turkey-meatballs/
Everyone would like these meatballs anytime!
https://www.canadianturkey.ca/recipes/one-pot-saucy-turkey-meatballs/
Everyone would love these meatballs!
The Turkey, Cranberry and Goat Cheese Party Bites look like they would be the perfect appetizer!
I would like to try the turkey sausage and seafood chowder
I’m going to try the Turkey Cheddar Spinach Dip
We will be roasting a WHOLE turkey for families to enjoy…
I want to be trying the Oven Roasted Whole Turkey and Mixed Vegetables recipe for the holidays.