Christmas, the season of good cheer and gluttony. After all the hard work in the run-up to
Christmas, this little housewife doesn’t believe in lifting a finger beyond
defrosting, re-heating or vaguely assembling ingredients in the days between
Christmas and New Year. If she could get
away with it, she would see the inside of the supermarket for the duration
either!
With a bit of forethought, planning and some advanced
prepping and cooking, you can join me in my well-earned holiday.
In no particular order, here are my leftover superstars:
A Boxing Day tradition, this is a lovely lunch before
taking off for an afternoon at the beach blowing off the cobwebs and topping-up
the mermaid blood. This requires nothing
more than chopping up the leftover cooked veg from Christmas Day in a little
turkey, goose or duck fat – it’s Christmas, push the boat out!
Sausage and turkey
pie with sage and onion stuffing
This is a lovely way to use up some of the leftover
turkey and stuffing. True, you will need
to skin the sausages and roll out the pastry, but the results will be worth
this bit of effort – trust me!
Golden turkey and
vegetable soup
All this beauty requires is a bit of leisurely peeling
and chopping of root vegetables and then you just pop the casserole in the oven
for the magic to happen. This is a lovely
welcome-home after a long cold walk.
Brussels sprouts
with bacon and Stilton
This is an absolute superstar of a dish and it requires
no more than peeling and slicing some sprouts, chopping up some cooked ham,
forking a bit of Stilton and stirring in a pot of cheese sauce.
I make it to use up leftovers, or as a stand-alone meal, but it would make a lovely side-dish to any meal.
Broccoli, leek and
Stilton gratin
This is another simple assembly job if you have leftover
cooked broccoli. If not, 10 minutes
boiling won’t be too arduous and can be done ahead of time. It’ll be worth that bit of effort!
Turkey Tettrazini
Strictly speaking this doesn’t come under my assembly-
line Christmas rules, but if you make and freeze the sauce and the pasta before
Christmas then all it needs are some cleaned, sliced mushrooms and the leftover
turkey stirring in.
Turkey and Ham Pie
Again, this doesn’t fit the assembly-line ethos, but you
can make and freeze the sauce ahead of time to save doing it on the day. I’d still be inclined to make the mashed
potato on the day though, potato doesn’t do terribly well in the freezer.
Quiche Lorraine
Aside from rolling out the pastry, this is simplicity
itself and a lovely way to use up a bit of cooked ham. If you have some Stilton to spare, fork a bit
of that in as well – it’ll be worth the sacrifice!
Chicken tortilla
soup
This is such a treat at Christmas, after all the rich
food this is a lovely fresh soup and makes a complete contrast, it’ll be well
worth the bit of extra effort required.
Stilton stuffed
chicken breasts
This only falls under the leftover category if you have
leftover Stilton, but if you do then it’s a lovely way to use some up.
Pan haggerty
This is a very calorie-laden dish, but a lovely way to
use up some cooked ham – and it is Christmas after all!
Salmon Pasta Bake
Again, this is a sauce that you can make ahead of time
and stash in the freezer ready for when you need it. It’s a lovely way to use up some smoked
salmon, or cooked salmon.
From my home to yours, Merry Christmas!
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