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Share your favourite leftovers recipe to win a signed River Cottage book

(60 Posts)
LucyGransnet (GNHQ) Fri 16-Oct-15 12:29:04

We've got two signed copies of Hugh Fearnley Whittingstall's new book Love Your Leftovers to give away, and all you need to do to enter the draw is let us know your favourite recipes and tips for using up leftover food and scraps.

And if you need some inspiration, take a look at some of the delicious recipes from the book... Leave yours below by 30 October for a chance to win.

toria100 Tue 20-Oct-15 13:41:03

My family all love the chicken pie I make with leftovers from a roast chicken. It doesn't really matter if you have a little or a lot left over it just makes a bigger or smaller pie.
I fry 1 onion in rapeseed oil, then add some crushed garlic, some parsley or fresh herbs from the garden ( but dried will do) and a bay leaf ,broken in half , chop a carrot and add, then a celery stick, then the chicken and some ham or bacon if I have it and some mushrooms. ( the veg can vary depending what you have. It might be a leek.)
Then I crumble a chicken stock cube and add some milk to cover the veg and chicken in the frying pan, let it cook gently for about 20 minutes . I then add a tablespoon of corn flour to an inch of cold milk in a mug, mix and then stir into the mixture of milk and veg/chicken in the frying pan to thicken. Continue cooking for another 3-5 minutes. Take out the bay leaf.
I then make short crust pastry with 12 oz. plain flour and 3oz baking margarine and 3oz lard . Grease a pie dish, line with two thirds of the pastry , fill with mixture, top with the rest of the pastry and bake in a hot oven 180 c fan for 45 minutes.
Can feed four adults for two more meals, hot once cold the next.

Leah50 Tue 20-Oct-15 12:50:13

I make a Cheese & Onion Bread & Butter Pudding.
Spread stale buttered sliced bread with mustard, layer with fried onions and grated or sliced old bits of cheese, Pour over beaten eggs & milk, cream , or plain yogurt, (whatever you've got).
Bake as for a sweet bread & butter pudding, it puffs up like a souffle and tastes delicious.

nonnanna Tue 20-Oct-15 12:35:37

ctussaud What a brilliant, tasty idea. I shall save mozzarella liquid next time. I always use the water cauliflower was cooked in to make into the sauce for cauliflower cheese, with the addition of skimmed milk powder.
Potato, parsnip or carrot peelings, lightly coated in/sprayed with oil and seasoned then roasted in the oven make a great change from crisps. Handy for pre dinner 'nibbles' when entertaining. They keep quite well in a tin - not sure how long for as we've always finished them within a couple of days!

philatel Tue 20-Oct-15 12:24:30

All my leftovers go into a stir fry with a couple of chillies to flavour - yum yum. So quick and easy to do.

susanjessejames Tue 20-Oct-15 12:23:04

My favourite recipe ws lemon and yoghurt pudding, it was very good - definitely going to become a regular for us

Trinity Tue 20-Oct-15 12:01:46

When peeling an orange I always save the peel in the fridge and then grate it into other dishes to add a tangy flavour. My favourite is to put it with sage and pork/turkey mince for home made burgers with a zing! delicious.

ctussaud Tue 20-Oct-15 11:53:41

I never throw away the liquid which mozzarella arrives in, but save it in a jam jar in the fridge and use in my next cheese sauce instead of some of the milk.

bumblebee Tue 20-Oct-15 11:53:02

Oooh .. so many scrumptious suggestions!! I'll try to share a few totally different ones:-
1) Leftover pieces of pie crust --> brush them with butter, sprinkle them with cinnamon and sugar, and bake them in the oven for some crispy cookies. Or cut them into pretty shapes with a sharp knife and use them to decorate the top of the pie.
2) Leftover rice or rissotto --> mix the rice or risotto with some beaten eggs, maybe other seasonings or grated parmesan, and form it into a ball. Poke your finger down into it, making a hole, stick in cheese (mozzarella cube is perfect), and patch up the hole. Then roll the 'arancini' in breadcrumbs and pan fry them.
3) Leftover anything --> make a skillet hash. Be it meats or veggies, add fresh potatoes and let things get a good crisp. Crack an egg on top and it'll be easy to forget one is on day 2 on what was their original meal!

smile

Buddie Mon 19-Oct-15 13:20:17

Leftovers from the roast generally get made into curry, rissotto or shepherd's pie or its equivalent but this is the family favourite for the chicken - so much so that it gets served up on Boxing Day using turkey instead.

Roughly 2oz diced cooked chicken, 1 sliced cooked carrot, 2 sliced mushrooms, 2 rashers streaky bacon, chopped, per person.

Fry the bacon for 2 minutes then add the mushrooms, stirring until they change colour. Add the cooked chicken and carrots and half pint chicken stock (made from boiling the carcass) thickened with two teapoons cornflour.
Cook until the sauce thickens then turn everything into a ovenproof dish. Top with a cobbler topping made from 4oz SR flour and 2oz block baking fat mixed to a crumb and formed into scone-like dough with water. Roll out and use the smallest biscuit cutter to cut into rings. Arrange on top of mixture and place in the oven on Mark 6, 200degC for 15-20 minutes until golden brown and crisp.

Although I generally use cooked carrots any cooked root vegetables or even peas and beans can be added. The carrots just add more colour to the finished dish. Indeed, if I know I am going to be making this dish next day I cook a double portion to save doing it on the day.

pfcpompeysarah Sun 18-Oct-15 22:14:59

I don't think you can beat a good frittata for using up the leftovers in your fridge, its quick and easy to make and you can use most things, and more importantly it tastes lovely!

MamaCaz Sun 18-Oct-15 18:58:32

Pie - so many things are delicious when wrapped in lovely pastry. Any leftover stew, chilli con carne, bean casserole, beef / chicken / vegetables and gravy all get this treatment smile

CF22586 Sun 18-Oct-15 16:36:38

yummy soups

Aurelia Sun 18-Oct-15 14:48:26

With meal planning and careful shopping, I don't really have much left over food. But what there is I use to make soups, stir frys or pasta sauce.

To the soups I usually add small pasta shapes such as conchigliette, or small dumplings to make it more filling.
I also add veg such as mushrooms or broad beans to a basic carbonara pasta to use them up.

If you have the time to make pastry, then small amounts of meat/gravy/sauce/veg can be made into tasty pies, chicken and leek is a favourite here.

A great winter dish of course is cottage pie, a real comfort dish in which all sorts of left overs can be hidden smile wine

Funkyferret Sat 17-Oct-15 20:59:18

Any left over veg in this house is popped in the freezer until I have enough to make a soup. Anything goes, and it's created some really interesting concoctions. I just add water and a stock cube, simmer for a while and blend it

Clairemike Sat 17-Oct-15 18:24:52

I just put anything in an omlette I have left over

rosequartz Sat 17-Oct-15 17:41:19

I have a large tub of yogurt in the fridge which I keep ignoring, so I'm going to try making the lemon and yogurt pudding cake.

rosequartz Sat 17-Oct-15 17:35:11

If there is chicken or other meat left over we have a stir-fry - it is usually on a Tuesday when there are a few mushrooms, peppers, the odd courgette, thinly sliced carrot, shredded cabbage or any other veg left over in the veg drawer in the fridge. Sometimes we buy make blush Nasi Goreng paste and stir that in, or a good shake of 7 spice powder, sometimes with rice (freshly cooked as I don't like using leftover rice) or noodles.
One of our favourite dinners.

I forgot to add the chopped onion and garlic!

rosequartz Sat 17-Oct-15 17:34:10

Apart from bubble and squeak with cold meat and leftover gravy? (Monday's staple).

If there is chicken or other meat left over we have a stir-fry - it is usually on a Tuesday when there are a few mushrooms, peppers, the odd courgette, thinly sliced carrot, shredded cabbage or any other veg left over in the veg drawer in the fridge. Sometimes we buy make blush Nasi Goreng paste and stir that in, or a good shake of 7 spice powder, sometimes with rice (freshly cooked as I don't like using leftover rice) or noodles.
One of our favourite dinners.

whenim64 Sat 17-Oct-15 17:13:21

Roast dinner soup. Blend leftover meat, roasties, mash, carrots, greens, a little stuffing, gravy and add water or stock to fill to the limit in the blender, season if necessary. Makes a lovely soup with lots of flavour.

Anya Sat 17-Oct-15 16:53:20

This is one the GC love and they don't realise there's cabbage in it.

To use up that leftover mash and that stray onion and that quarter of cabbage and any scraps of cheese in the fridge, and don't be too fussy about quantities.

Slice and steam (or boil) the cabbage and onion (together is fine)
Mash it all together with leftover potatoes, and some butter and milk.
Slice a tin of corned beef, put in the bottom of an oven-proof dish.
Spoon the mashed stuff on top.
Grate leftover cheese and spread lavishly on top.
Pop in oven till cheese is golden and bubbly.

Serve with leftover beetroot.

danistoller Sat 17-Oct-15 15:32:47

I love making fishcakes with leftover mashed potato. Just mix the potato with tinned tuna or smoked mackerel and add some spring onions and pepper. Shape into cakes and chill until ready to cook. Roll the cakes in some flour, dip into beaten egg then roll in breadcrumbs and fry in oil until brown and crispy. Serve with slice of lemon and/or horseradish sauce and a nice crisp salad. Simple!

Nonnie Sat 17-Oct-15 11:22:17

Exactly what I was thinking Nina! When our DSs were small we had 'Daddy dustbin' for anything they didn't finish and now we have 'Grandad dustbin'! Because Grandad 'helped' the 18 month old he now thinks he should eat off everyone else's plate! He is happy to share his own too.

Indinana Sat 17-Oct-15 10:29:49

My favourite leftover pork recipe:

Chop about 8oz cold cooked pork very finely (in a processer is best)
Gently fry about a teaspoon of finely chopped onion in 3/4 oz of margarine or butter until soft.
Stir in 1oz flour, and add around 5 fl oz of stock. Heat, stirring, until smooth and thick.
Add the chopped pork and half a teaspoon of dried sage (or try other herbs of your choice) and salt and pepper to taste.
Stir well and turn out into a bowl to cool.
When cold roll into balls and coat with egg and breadcrumbs. Fry in hot oil till golden brown and crisp, and drain on kitchen paper.

For the more calorie conscious, the egg and crumb can be omitted, and the pork balls can be brushed with a little olive oil and baked on a baking tray lined with greaseproof paper for around 30-40 minutes at Gas Mk 5 / 375° F / 190° C.

ninathenana Sat 17-Oct-15 10:24:26

Left overs ???

#exitsroomscratchinghead

tsharp Sat 17-Oct-15 09:29:51

I use left over bread to make bread pudding.