This is the best turkey pesto sandwich recipe! It's full of flavour and made with turkey breast, pesto, sun dried tomatoes and mozzarella cheese. This sandwich is a great way to use up turkey leftovers and you will love how easy it is to make.
Table of Contents
Why you will love this recipe:
- This healthy turkey pesto sandwich tastes so good! The combination of melty cheese, roasted turkey, sun-dried tomatoes, and savoury pesto sauce combines perfectly to give it the most amazing flavour.
- It's so quick and easy to make and is a great way to use up leftover turkey from Christmas dinner or Thanksgiving dinner.
- No matter what your dietary needs I've included both dairy free and gluten free options for making this sandwich.
- You can use any type of pesto that you like to make this sandwich or panini - I love using my easy vegan walnut pesto to make it.
Ingredient notes:
- Turkey breast - you can either use home cooked turkey breast or store bought deli turkey breast meat, whichever you have on hand. This is a great way to use up turkey leftovers from Christmas or Thanksgiving.
- Pesto - pesto gives this sandwich such a unique flavour. You can either use store bought pesto or homemade pesto such as homemade walnut pesto, or parsley pesto.
- Sun-dried tomatoes - the flavour of sun-dried tomatoes and pesto blend perfectly together to give this sandwich a delicious, mediterranean flavour. I recommend using sun dried tomatoes in oil for this recipe.
- Mayonnaise - to add even more flavour and moisture to this panini. You can either use your favourite store bought mayo or homemade mayo.
- Mozzarella cheese - mozzarella cheese melts to give this sandwich the most delicious taste. You can swap the mozzarella cheese for any other cheese that you like including gouda, Swiss cheese, havarti, goat cheese, provolone cheese etc. If you are dairy you can use a dairy free cheese instead.
- Bread - you can use any type of bread that you prefer to make this grilled cheese sandwich including rye bread, sourdough bread, whole wheat bread, ciabatta bread or even gluten-free bread.
How to make (step-by-step):
Step one:
First, heat a large griddle or skillet over low-medium heat and add the butter or coconut oil to the pan and allow it to melt.
Step two:
Next, place the two slices of bread, side by side on a cutting board or plate. Spread half of the mayonnaise onto each piece of bread followed by half of the pesto onto each slice of bread.
Step three:
Then, on one piece of bread, add the sliced cheese, chopped sun dried tomatoes and sliced turkey. Then top with the other piece of bread.
Step four:
Lastly, transfer the sandwich to the hot griddle or skillet and toast the sandwich in the pan until golden brown and the cheese begins to melt, about 3-4 minutes per side. Place a lid on top of the pan while cooking to speed up melting the cheese.
Top Tips:
- Instead of a skillet, pan, or griddle you could make this sandwich in a sandwich maker or panini press. This would make it even easier to prepare and you don't need to use any oil if you do it this way.
- If you prefer a cold sandwich feel free to skip the heating or grilling steps and just eat the sandwich after you assemble it.
Recipe variations and add ins:
- You can use any type of bread that you like to make this sandwich - a few options include sourdough bread, sourdough, rye, or ciabatta.
- Feel fry to use a different type of cheese in this sandwich - other options include provolone cheese, Swiss cheese, goat cheese, gouda cheese etc.
- To make this sandwich dairy free, use a dairy free cheese or vegan cheese and a dairy free walnut pesto.
- You can use any type of pesto that you like for this sandwich including both homemade pesto or store bought pesto.
- You can use either sliced deli turkey meat for this sandwich or leftover cooked turkey meat - this is a great sandwich to make with any turkey leftovers that you have after Thanksgiving or Christmas meals.
- To make this sandwich gluten free: use gluten-free bread or a gluten-free bun.
- Feel free to add other ingredients to this sandwich including sliced avocado, cooked bacon or spinach.
How to serve:
This sandwich is delicious served on its own as is, but you could also pair it with other side dishes. A few of my favorite ways to serve this sandwich include:
- Serve it with your favorite soup such as baby tomato soup, dairy free cream of mushroom soup, butternut squash and red pepper soup or instant pot creamy cauliflower soup.
- Pair it with a kale apple salad or low sugar coleslaw.
- Serve it with air fryer frozen French fries, southern roasted potatoes or air fryer sweet potato fries.
Frequently asked questions:
There are many condiments that go well on a turkey sandwich including cranberry sauce, pesto, mayonnaise, and bbq sauce. Other sandwich toppings that pair well with turkey include avocado, lettuce, tomato, cheese, bacon, and sun dried tomatoes.
Pesto pairs well with many types of cheeses including parmesan cheese, mozzarella cheese, provolone cheese, Swiss cheese, goat cheese, gouda cheese and even dairy free cheese.
Other recipes you will love:
- Pesto pasta salad with tuna
- Walnut pesto without dairy
- Citrus arugula pesto
- Pesto pasta with veggies
- Parsley pesto
- Chicken omelette
- Healthy cranberry sauce
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Recipe
Turkey Pesto Sandwich
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoon unsalted butter or coconut oil (omit if using a sandwich maker)
- 2 slices bread (any type of bread that you like)
- 1/4 cup pesto (store bought or homemade)
- 2 tablespoon mayonnaise (store bought or homemade)
- 100 grams sliced turkey breast (~4 slices)
- 6 slices mozzarella cheese (or other cheese of choice)
- 5 sun dried tomatoes, chopped (use sun dried tomatoes in oil)
Instructions
- Heat a large griddle or skillet over low-medium heat and add the butter or coconut oil to the pan to allow it to melt.
- Place the two slices of bread, side by side on a cutting board or plate. Spread half of the mayonnaise onto each piece of bread followed by half of the pesto onto each slice of bread.
- Onto one piece of bread, add the sliced cheese, chopped sun dried tomatoes and sliced turkey. Then top with the other piece of bread.
- Transfer the sandwich to the griddle or skillet and toast the sandwich in the pan until golden brown and the cheese begins to melt, about 3-4 minutes per side. Place a lid on top of the pan while cooking to speed up the cheese melting.
Notes
- This sandwich can also be made in a sandwich maker or panini press. If making it this way you can omit the oil from the recipe.
- You can use any type of bread that you like to make this sandwich.
- You can use any type of cheese that you like for this recipe.
- Nutritional values are an estimate and will vary depending on the exact ingredients you use.
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