If you’re like me, you have some extra cranberry sauce from Christmas that you’re wondering what to do with. Well, here’s an easy recipe for a cranberry cream cheese spread that goes great on bagels. It makes a nice breakfast during and after the holidays! And I’ll also tell you how to make a bagel sandwich with this spread– a sandwich that also uses leftover turkey…just the thing for a quick, easy lunch! My inspiration for this cream cheese spread came from a recipe over at My Kitchen Addiction. I used a little more cranberry sauce and added a few more ingredients–fresh chopped cranberries and finely chopped pecans– to give the spread a little more color and texture. It’s really good on bagels, especially toasted bagels! I used whole wheat bagels, but use whatever bagels you like best. The recipe makes a little more than 1 cup of spread.
CRANBERRY–PECAN CREAM CHEESE SPREAD
- 1 (8-ounce) block of cream cheese, softened
- 2 Tablespoons cranberry sauce (I used Ocean Spray® Whole Berry Cranberry Sauce)
- 1 Tablespoon honey
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
- 2 Tablespoons finely chopped fresh cranberries (or if you want a sweeter taste, chop up dried cranberries)
- 2 Tablespoons finely chopped pecans
In a small bowl, combine softened cream cheese, cranberry sauce and honey, blending well. Add in cinnamon and ginger and blend well, then stir in the chopped cranberries and pecans. Serve immediately on toasted bagels or bread…or muffins, too. If not using right away, store in an airtight container in your refrigerator for up to a week.
I also made a yummy-tasting sandwich with this spread and here’s the recipe for that, too…
TURKEY–CRANBERRY SANDWICH
- Cranberry-Pecan Cream Cheese Spread (see recipe above)
- A bagel of your choice, toasted or untoasted
- 1 Tablespoon cranberry sauce
- Lettuce leaves or fresh baby spinach leaves (I used lettuce leaves from an organic packaged mix)
Slice bagel in half (unless it’s pre-sliced) and spread both sides of bagel with desired amount of cream cheese (toast bagel first if desired). Put as little or as much cream cheese on as you want. On one bagel slice, place 4-5 thin slices of turkey on top of cream cheese (you can use less slices if turkey is sliced thicker). Spread the Tablespoon of cranberry sauce on top of the turkey slices. On the other bagel slice, place desired amount of lettuce over the cream cheese. Place this bagel slice over the turkey bagel slice and voila…you have just created a yummy holiday sandwich!
That’s so festive looking!
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looks delicious – I just froze the last of my cranberry sauce and look forward to using it in this wonderful spread some time in january! Thanks!
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You’re welcome, Lizzi! 🙂
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Wow…. this sounds AMAZING. Wish I found this before the holidays… is it Fall again, yet?!
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Yes, this will be a great recipe for next fall! 🙂
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