Week 49- Burns Supper Leftovers

The great chieftain o' the puddin' race- dressed for battle!

The 25th January has come round again and Burns Night is upon us. We will be raising a glass to toast the Baird, and piping in the haggis this Saturday night.

This is as much in remembrance of my teenage years, growing up in the village of Alloway in Ayrshire, as it is a celebration of his poetry.

Smoked salmon starter

As last year ( see blog entry 'Here's tae us' ), we will be dining in Caledonian style with a Scottish seafood starter, (mussels or Orkney crab or smoked salmon with rye or soda bread), the main attraction- haggis, neeps and tatties, then a pudding of whisky cake with cream. All of these recipes are on the blog or in the cloud above.

Whisky cake

Soda bread

Scottish mussels

Rye bread

However, for this year's Burns blog, as you already have the recipes for the event itself,  I thought I would look at creative ways to use up the leftovers from the feast- so I'm making spiced clapshot soup with haggis samosas, followed by a haggis hash with crispy ham and eggs, and whisky cake pieces with cranachan topping.

The clapshot soup uses up the leftover root veg from your meal. I roast mine prior to 'bashing' for the 'neeps'- but if your leftovers are already bashed, that's even simpler.

Veg ready for the soup

I fry the root veg in a tablespoon of curry paste or powder and add 1 litre of strong stock (chicken is best but vegetable is OK if you're cooking veggie). Simmer for a short while (the veg is already cooked after all, you just want the flavours to mingle.) Blitz and serve with the samosas.

Spiced clapshot soup with haggis samosas

For the samosas, I use spring roll wrappers from the Chinese supermarket, but filo pastry is fine too.

Fold the square of pastry in half lengthways, put a  large teaspoon of haggis in the bottom right hand corner, fold over, then back on itself, and again, until you have a neatly wrapped triangle.
Brush the triangles with a little melted butter or Flora and a sprinkling of black onion seeds if you have them.

Place on a greased baking tray and bake at 200 degrees for 10 minutes or so until golden.

You could make spring rolls if you prefer using the technique below.

Fold over top corner

Fold in sides and roll

Any remaining haggis is delicious combined with leftover mashed potato and fried in a little vegetable oil to make patties. The flavour is like a hash.
Top with some crispy grilled Prosciuttio and a poached or fried egg.

Haggis hash with poached egg and ham

For dessert, I took some of my leftover whisky marmalade cake, cut out rounds and topped with ice cream (I used creme brulee flavour and it went well) and some toasted oats, with extra whipped cream and whisky/honey syrup.

To toast the oats, melt 100 g of butter in a frying pan, add some rolled oats and stir through until the oats begin to turn golden, add a drizzle of honey or golden syrup and as soon as it bubbles, pour over the ice cream.

Cranachan topping toasting in the pan

Whisky cake pieces with cranachan topping

Anyway, enjoy your haggis on the 25th- boiled, steamed or lightly grilled!

Lightly grilled haggis!

Slainte!

Week 45- Beyond Boxing Day

So, Christmas has been and gone. The over-shopping that preceded the Big Day- and the overeating that characterized it- have given away to the over-full fridge, bursting with leftovers.

Boxing Day uses up loads of these- we always have cold cuts, baked jacket potatoes and salads the day after Christmas- but what to do with all the rest?



It's not just a question of avoiding waste- it's also about having a variety of dishes and menus to tempt the tastebuds after so many rich flavours.

Did your Christmas dinner leftovers look something like this?

If so, I have some menu ideas to use things up economically - and also tastily too.

I'm guessing you've got plenty of turkey, cold roast potatoes, parsnips, sprouts, cranberry sauce, bread sauce, gravy, mincemeat, cream, cheeses from the cheeseboard and enough chocolates to bury a brontosaurus.

So- how about clear turkey broth with turkey and bacon ravioli followed by Bubble and Squeak cakes with a poached egg and crispy bacon and mince pies 4 different ways ( served with creme fraiche.)

There's also cranberry and wensleydale scones and chocolate wonton parcels for snacks ( it is still the festive season after all).

Chow Phan

The first thing to do - if you haven't done it already- is to strip every last bit of meat from your turkey carcass. I save the best bits of breast and drumsticks for Boxing Day cold cuts, and put the rest of the turkey meat back in the fridge for making Chow Phan (recipe in the cloud at the top of the page) and Turkey and Ham Pie (recipe coming soon. This uses up bread sauce too.) You can freeze this cooked meat in a sealed container if you prefer, as long as it was well -cooked, cooled and refrigerated soon after cooling.

Take the carcass, break it up into bits and put it, any drumstick bones, skin etc into a slow cooker or large saucepan. Add two bay leaves, a handful of parsley or a teaspoon of dried herbs, a chopped onion, a sprig of rosemary and a teaspoon each of salt and pepper. Pour over 2 litres of cold water and either leave to simmer in the saucepan for a couple of hours or in the slow cooker for 8 hours or so.

Making stock

When this is complete, strain the liquid from the bones and keep it warm. Let the carcass cool for a few minutes, then carefully pick through what is in the sieve, taking off every last little bit of soft meat. I ended up with a good 150g or so in a pot.

(This soft meat is perfect for making into filling for ravioli- just blitz with some cooked bacon, garlic and soft cheese et voila!). However, if you are going to all the trouble of making this deep, rich turkey broth from scratch, you can treat yourself to some shop bought ravioli to float in it, as the Italian fresh ones are really very good. (Still make the filling and freeze it for another time however.)

Turkey broth with ravioli

Taste the broth and adjust the seasoning- you can make it richer by adding some leftover turkey gravy to the mix.
Bring a pan of salted water to the boil and cook the ravioli with a handful of frozen peas and a sliced spring onion if you have it.

Bubble and Squeak cakes

Ladle the broth into bowls, spoon in some drained ravioli and peas/onions- scrumptious and the perfect antidote to lots of roast meat and sauces.



Bubble and Squeak has featured often on the blog- as it is such a delicious and cheap way of using up vegetables. No apologies for featuring it again- this time made from mashed potato, parsnips, sprouts and a bit of spinach (leek or cabbage or kale would be good too). Mix everything together in a bowl and season well. Take a potato masher and squish everything together some more. Wet your hands and shape the mixture into patties. Fry in vegetable oil until golden and crispy on each side. (Keep warm).

Meanwhile, grill some bacon, pancetta or prosciuttio until really crispy. Drain on kitchen paper.

Poach an egg in boiling salted water for 2  minutes or so and lay on top of the Bubble and Squeak cake, topped with some bacon. Mmmm...

Bubble and Squeak with poached egg and bacon

I've had posh versions of this in restaurants too.

Posh Bubble and Squeak

For pudding, take some of that jar of mincemeat that you have in the larder or fridge, and some spring roll wrappers or vol aux vent cases from the freezer. (Avid blog followers are likely to have these lurking somewhere - or at the very least some filo pastry.)
Experiment with wrapping up the mincemeat different ways- spring roll style, samosas, cigars, parcels or mille-feuilles. For instructions, see the cloud at the top of the page or copy the illustrations here.

Mincemeat vol aux vents

Roll up your mincemeat cigars

Mince pie variations

Serve with creme fraiche or ice cream.

Mincemeat cigars

Mincemeat mille feuilles

Now for some treats- firstly chocolate wontons.

I was given lots of chocolates this year for Christmas- colleagues, family, friends. Thank you all. They will be eaten judiciously over the lean months between now and the summer. (Actually, probably not particulary lean if I'm scoffing chocs.)

But what to do with the cheap and cheerful 'After Dinner Mints' I bought to grace the Christmas table myself ?

Here is an idea from Donna Hay.

Take a wonton wrapper or square of filo pastry, brush the edges with water. Slice a  mint chocolate square in half, or place a whole round mint on the wonton. Fold over to encase the chocolate, brush with melted butter or Flora and bake in a medium oven (180 degrees), until the wonton starts to slightly brown. The chocolate will be melted inside and yummy. Like a sweet spring roll.

Chocolate wontons

Finally, what to do with all the leftover bits from the cheese board.

Firstly put all your bits of hard cheese into the goblet of your food processor and blitz. (I had cheddar and wensleydale with cranberries- but any 'speciality' cheddars, red leicesters,  parmesan bits etc will do fine.)

You need about 100g- but if you have more, freeze it once grated.

Take 200g of self raising flour, 50 g of rolled oats, 2 tsp baking powder, 75g of marge, 1 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp pepper and blitz in the same goblet of the food processor (no need to wash it). Mix the cheese back in with 2-3 tablespoons of yoghurt and a good dessertspoon of mustard. As the dough comes together, add some milk if you need to. You need a soft dough that can be easily rolled- so not too sticky or wet. (These make quite a dense scone- leave out the oats if you prefer something daintier)

Turn out on a floured board, shape into a round about 3 cm thick and cut out scone shapes. Place on a greased baking tray, brush with milk and sprinkle with fleur de sel or sea salt and bake at 190 degrees until just golden on top.

Brush scones with milk

Serve spread with cream cheese (leftover Boursin, Dolce Latte,  Le roule, etc) or cranberry sauce.

Wensleydale scones

Another Christmas done and dusted- time for a well earned cup of tea!

If I can get past all these Santas!

Week 11- Cooking for a Crowd

Whether you cook for large numbers regularly, or just occasionally- it's always worth having some recipes at the ready so you can rustle up a meal for a crowd without too much stress- or expense.

I found myself cooking for ten last week- ranging in age from under 8 to over 80! And with as much variation in tastes in food too.

I decided to go for the following menu- 'Bubbles and Nibbles' to start, pasta bake and tarte a l'indienne (chicken curry tart) with salads for the two mains, and a choice of spiced apple cake, jelly or chocolate eclairs for pudding.

Many of these recipes have featured before on the blog- because entertaining the hordes might not be the best time to experiment with something new. Stick with what you know.

When I say 'Bubbles and Nibbles'- I'm talking about canny canapes which can be washed down with loads of sparkling wine or water- and make an impressive start to the meal. They can mostly be prepared in advance - with just a few hot ones to add interest- and people can pick and choose what they like.
We had blinis with onuga caviar and creme fraiche and dill, spring rolls, mini croques-messieurs, red pepper hummus with vegetable sticks and sausages and cheese and pineapple on sticks (put together carefully by the children at the feast.

Cheese and pineapple hedgehog

Spring rolls toasting in the oven

Blinis

Mini croques toasties

I filled up the table with salads- green salad, tabbouleh, rice salad, garlic bread - and brought out the centre pieces: penne pasta tray bake with mozzarella and meatballs and a chicken curry tart  (tarte a l'indienne)- just click on the cloud at the top of the blog or use the search option for any of these recipes.

When you need to feed a lot of people- pasta is definitely your best friend. 

Boil 500g of penne pasta in a large pan until tender. Drain and pour into the largest gratin or baking dish you have. Mix in one carton of chopped tomatoes (I used one with oregano and olives added) and a jar of passata. For the meatballs, mix 500g of minced steak with some seasoning sauce (soy or Worcester or Maggi), the crust of a loaf made into breadcrumbs (I always have some in the freezer ready) and a finely chopped spring onion. Knead together until you have a good 'meatloaf' texture and then wet your hands and roll the meat into walnut sized balls. Fry in a dry pan- they will release fat of their own accord. Press them into the pasta randomly. Do the same with a tub of mozzarella balls. Then  sprinkle 200g of grated cheddar or gruyere/emmental over the surface. Bake in a moderate oven (170 degrees) for 10-15 minutes until the surface is golden but the pasta is still tender.

The chicken curry tart is just as simple. I made the pastry shell the day before- baked blind. 

First take a carton of chicken curry ready meal- korma is best. Separate the chicken meat from the sauce and distribute it evenly over the base of the tart. Mix the sauce with 4 beaten eggs and a splash of milk and pour into the tart shell.

Carefully bake at 170 degrees for about an hour until set and firm and golden on the top.

Do this well in advance of your party - as it is nicest served at room temperature with the salads.

Both of these dishes are really good as vegetarian options- just forget about the meatballs ( or add mushrooms instead) and use a vegetable korma rather than a chicken one for the tart. In fact, I think it could be better that way.

And so to pudding.

For the children  (who had been on a visit to the zoo the day before) we had Nile Crocodile infested jelly and ice cream- and for the adults we had spiced apple cake with cream or chocolate eclairs (not homemade this time!) in case neither of the options appealed.

The jelly is just lemon jelly poured over jelly sweets and set overnight in the fridge.

The apple cake is made from 2 dessert apples, finely chopped, 125g of butter, 125g of self raising flour, 125g of demerara sugar, 2 eggs and 50g of cinnamon sugar (caster sugar mixed with equal parts cinnamon and mixed spice powder.) Grease and line a 20 cm cake tin. Beat the butter and sugar together until pale. Add 2 beaten eggs, the flour, half the spiced sugar and the apples. Loosen the mixture with a splash of milk if it seems too stiff. Pour into the cake tin and sprinkle the remainder of the spiced sugar over the top. Bake at 170 degrees for 35- 40 minutes or so, until the top is risen and golden and a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean.

Allow to cool in the tin before taking out and then serve warmed up (the next day) with some cream.

The feast was well received - and large amounts consumed. However, there was still enough to see us in leftover meals for the next few days.

The pasta did another two meals- as it reheats well, and can be bulked out with some french bread or garlic toasts. The tart and salads did another meal- and the salads made up lunchboxes too.

The hummus made part of a tapas-y style meze meal- with cheese and pate, parma ham and melon:

Check out the lovely Scottish slate serving tray- one of the perks of entertaining is that sometimes people give you lovely presents in appreciation, as in this case!

All in all, this frugal feasting (16  or more meals) works out at just £1.50 per head per meal (not counting the bubbly!)

But then who counts bubbly when you're having fun?