Leftovers - Retro Food For Modern Times

13
Oct
2019

Use By: Roast Vegetable Bubble and Squeak

categories: England, Great Name, Leftovers, Roast Vegetables, Use By

What can you do with a load of leftover roast veggies? Make one of the best-named dishes ever – Bubble and Squeak! Bubble and Squeak is a British recipe which is traditionally made from the leftovers from the traditional Sunday roast. It is supposedly called Bubble and Squeak due to the noises made during the cooking process. I think this last bit may be apocryphal. My Bubble and Squeak neither bubbled or squeaked. It was totally delicious though!

So what’s it all about Alfie? Given the Britishness of this dish, feel free to use your best Michael Caine cockney voice as you read that too!

Well, get your leftovers – I had some Ottlolenghi Harissa Potatoes and some Brussels Sprouts. You can use pretty much whatever veg you have as long as you have one that can be mashed up. Mashed potato will also work a treat in this.

Mash up your veggies and add a beaten egg. The rest is up to you. Add some of your chopped up leftover roast if you like, throw in some herbs or some cheese. Add some chill or a dollop of mustard. Be as fancy or as simple as you like. I kept these pretty simple, just the veggies and egg because the potatoes already had some harissa and spice seasoning.

When you are ready, pan fry your Bubble and Squeaks to make delicious patties. These are delicious as a side dish, make a great vegetarian burger patty or are good just by themselves.

Topped Bubble and Squeak

My favourite way to eat Bubble and Squeak is to pan-fry the little cakes until they are all crispy and brown on the outside and then top them with all sorts of delish things. These are one of my go-to’s for lunch (or breakfast) when I am working from home.

Breakfast Bubbles

No, I’m not talking about champagne although, having just come back from Europe where a glass of sparkling is de rigueur with your brekkie I’m totally on board with bubbles in the AM. Hmm…if you had some sparkling wine with your breakfast Bubble and Sqeak I guess that’s double bubble!

Bubble and Squeak with an egg makes a for a super breakfast. You could pan fry some bacon as you heat the bubble and squeak if you wanted to have some meat but I like to have mine just with egg. Grilled cheese on top of your B&S is another delicious breakfast option.

Lunchtime Squeaks

Come lunchtime, I like to top my Bubble and Squeak with some chilli labneh and pickled red cabbage or hummus and tomato salsa as per the top picture.

I love the combination of the crispy roast veggies, the creaminess of the yoghurt and the bite of pickle!

Bubble and Squeak can become quite addictive and now I routinely cook extra veg just so I can have them over the next few days!

Here’s a recipe but feel free to experiment as you wish with herbs, condiments etc. My version does not include cheese in the mix but, if you were going to add it, you could play around with different types. Having said that, now I desperately want to have Bubble and Squeak with some blue cheese crumbled through it!!!

Tell me, what is your favourite way of using up roasted veg?

Have a great week!

30
Dec
2017

This Paté is a Turkey!

categories: 1970's food, 1970's recipes, A-Zof Cooking, Holidays, Leftovers, Recipe Fail

Welcome to the end of the world. Or at the very least the end of The A-Z of Cooking (1977).

Prepare to feel robbed.

Dear A-Z of Cooking,

Look…listen…over the past few years we’ve had joy, we’ve had fun, we’ve had seasons in the sun.

There’ve been many good times.

Remember the Mushroom Cakes?

And the Brioche?

The Profiteroles? They were awesome!

Okay, so it wasn’t always smooth sailing. There were downs with those ups.

There was this:

Still one of the scariest pictures I have ever seen in the pages of a cookbook.

And lets not forget this delightful looking salad:

Or this suggestion for punishing people who drop in without notice:

But on the whole, it’s been good times.

And this is how you end it? With a Turkey Paté that looked like cat food until I slapped a few sage leaves and pomegranate seeds on top? And, I might add, tasted of nothing?

And whilst we’re at it…right from the start you promised me an A-Z.

So…ummm…why are we done after Yesterday’s Leftovers?

Where’s my Z, you dick?

And a really bad turkey paté.

And no Z.

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19
Jun
2016

Potted Cheese – Delicious Food, Impossible Ingredients

categories: Cheese, Leftovers, Starters, Wine

Hey there people of the internet!

Take a look at this super delicious snack plate. Good at any time – but my favourite? A snack plate, a sunny Sunday afternoon,sitting on my balcony with a good book and a cheeky glass of wine = heaven!

The star of this particular snack plate is some potted cheese. .

Which sadly relies on two ingredients that may as well be unicorn’s tears and dragon’s blood for the times they have ever been available in this kitchen. Just one of them is nigh on a miracle and as for both, you had better go outside and look up because that moon out there will be bluer than Tobias Funke!

So what are these two magical, nigh on mythical substances?

Leftover cheese
Leftover wine

Whoever has them? No one I want as a friend!

My cheeses were the remnants….actually it even pains me to say that. The cheeses were items from a cheese platter (probably the previous weeks snacking plate) that I had just not got around to eating yet. And I cheated and opened a bottle of wine to make this.

I used a goat’s cheese, a blue cheese, a pecorino pepato and some cheddar. You can use any cheese you have.

First up, place all your bits of cheese into a food processor and whiz it up! Then add in your flavourings – I added port, a splash of red wine, Worchestershire sauce, cayenne pepper and then, because it was a little dry after the first whiz through, a little more port and a bit of cream. My recipe is based on a classic one by Jane Grigson but you can play with the flavourings to suit your palate and your mix of cheese.

Once you have whizzed it all up , pop it into a pot:

The next step is optional but traditionally the pot was then sealed with a layer of clarified butter:

Why Potted Cheese?

The idea behind potted cheese is simple. Back in the day when refrigeration was not as it is today, cheese was far more perishable than now. Potting your ends of cheese prolonged it’s life – I’m guessing the booze helped to preserve it whilst the clarified butter seal stopped bacteria getting in.

Nowadays, it is done more because it tastes delicious than for the preserving factor.

What Can You Do With Potted Cheese?

OMG, so much. Have it on crackers with a glass of wine! Quick, easy, delicious.

Replace regular cheese in a grilled cheese sandwich! Here is my salami, potted cheese, red onion and tomato version. With a pickle to add some sharpness.

So much oozy goodness!

I haven’t made these next lot but I think potted cheese would be delicious used in the following ways:

Replace sour cream in a baked potato. Or add it to chips and gravy for a take on a poutine.
Saute some bacon or steam some broccoli (or do both), cook up some pasta, top with potted cheese and stir through the bacon or broccoli
Fill celery sticks, add a topping of chopped walnuts
Replace crackers on a snack plate with slices of apple or pear
Heat up a dollop, add some more cream if necesary and use as a mornay or gratin sauce over anything you want to mornay or gratin
Spread it on bread, make up a savory custard and you have a super strata to go!

[yumprint-recipe id=’67’]So, it’s Sunday and whilst not balcony sitting weather at all, I’ve got the fire going and Hollow City, the second book of Miss Peregrine’s Peculiar Children good to go, so excuse me, I have a potted cheese snack plate to prepare! Dammit! Speaking of YA literature just made me realise I should have saved this for when The Cursed Child, the new Harry Potter comes out. I could have filled it with Harry Potter of cheese gags! Stay tuned for the re-post!

Have a fab week!

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06
Jan
2016

REPOST – Two Ways With Leftover Chicken

categories: A Moveable Feast, Avocado, Chicken, Chipotle, Leftovers, Lunch, Starters, Vol Au Vent

Happy New Year!

I hope the festivities were wonderful and the champagne was flowing freely!!! The only downside to all the partying is that invariably you end up with a fridge full of leftovers. This year we were inundated with leftover chicken so, if you ever find yourself in the same situation, here are two ways to use it up.

My first leftover chicken recipe uses one of my favourite retro ingredients, the vol au vent shell. (Sorry Glenda, still store-bought!)

And it’s simples – mix up a white sauce add some tarragon, stir in your chicken, fill your vol au vent cups, sprinkle on some cheese and in a couple of minutes you have a super cute little appetizer with which to kick off your next party!

My Chicken and Tarragon Vol Au Vents are based on a recipe I found in a Feast Magazine but can also be found here.

My next take on leftover chicken is a more modern Chicken, Avocado and Chipotle Tortilla which you can serve two ways.

I got this recipe from A Moveable Feast by Katy Holder where it was originally conceived of as a wrap. I made one of these and took it to work (yes, sadly I worked between Christmas and New Year). It was tasty but I am not a fan of the taste of cooked avocado and even putting the wrap into the sandwich press was enough to turn the taste from delicious to awful. If you like cooked avocado, or you want this all to yourself, this could be just the thing for you!

If however, like me you do not like the taste of cooked avocado, or you want to share the deliciousness, turn it into a “pizza”

Heat the tortilla until crispy, sprinkle the chicken, avocado and the chipotle salsa over the top, cut into slices and serve immediately to your guests as an appetizer. (Or eat it all by yourself! I won’t judge you.

Print

Chicken, Avocado & Chipotle Tortillas

Print Recipe

Two delicious ways with chicken tortillas

Author: Taryn Fryer
Yield: 1 1x

Ingredients

Scale

1 tortilla
1/4 cup chopped leftover chicken
1/4 avocado, roughly chopped
1 small tomato, chopped
1/4 red onion, finely chopped
1/4–1/2 chipotle chilli in adobo sauce (or to taste)
1 sprig of coriander (cilantro), finely chopped
1 tsp lime juice
Salt and Pepper
Toothpick

Cook Mode Prevent your screen from going dark

Instructions

At least one hour before serving, make your salsa.
Discard the seeds from the tomato, mix with the onion, chilli, coriander and lime juice. Season to taste.
Set aside to allow the flavours to blend.
Just before serving, drain the salsa, neither of these recipes needs soggy tortilla!

For The Pizza

Heat the tortilla under the grill until it gets crispy.
Once the tortilla is crispy, take it out of the oven and top with the chicken, avocado and salsa.
Cut into slices and serve immediately.
Perfect with an ice cold beer!

For the Wrap

Warm the tortilla according to packet instructions, to soften.
Spread a line of chicken, a line of avocado and a line of salsa in the middle of the tortilla, leaving a 2 cm gap on all sides.
Fold in the bottom, rotate 90* and fold over one side then the other.
Tuck the remaining side of tortilla, securing with a toothpick.
Place into your sandwich press or under your grill and heat until the outside of the tortilla is golden and crispy.
Don’t forget to remove the toothpick before eating!

I wish you all the very best for 2016 and may it be the year all your dreams come true! Thank you for reading and commenting and being a part of my teeny corner of the internet. It’s a New Year – Let’s make it wonderful!

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Category: Leftovers

Topped Bubble and Squeak

Breakfast Bubbles

Lunchtime Squeaks

Why Potted Cheese?

What Can You Do With Potted Cheese?

Chicken, Avocado & Chipotle Tortillas

Ingredients

Instructions

For The Pizza

For the Wrap