Cooking Cove: Leftovers – a savory second time around
By Barbara Beltrami
Concerning leftovers, there are two groups of people — those who love them and those who don’t. The former can stand in the shadows cast by the refrigerator light in the middle of the night and gnaw on a drumstick, grab a fork and twirl cold leftover spaghetti right out of the container, or hack off a slab of ham or roast beef, grab the jar of mayonnaise and a couple of slices of bread and cure their insomnia with a sandwich.
The latter are those like me, who with the best of intentions, carefully scrape every last morsel into a container, stash it in the fridge where it gets rotated to the back and ends up growing a bluish-green furry topping. However, I must concede that there are some leftovers that I think successfully lend themselves to recycling, particularly ham, chicken and pasta.
Leftover Chicken Egg Rolls
YIELD: Makes 16 egg rolls
INGREDIENTS:
Nonstick cooking spray
16 egg roll wrappers
2 cups grated carrots
1 cup grated cabbage
1/3 cup minced cubanelle pepper
1/3 cup chopped scallions
1 garlic clove, minced
2 cups minced cooked chicken breasts/thighs
1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon cornstarch
1 tablespoon water
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon vegetable or peanut oil
1 teaspoon brown sugar
Freshly ground white pepper to taste
DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 400 F. Generously coat bottom and sides of a large skillet and a baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray; cover wrappers with a damp towel. In a large skillet, stir fry the carrots, cabbage, pepper, scallions, garlic and chicken until veggies begin to soften, about 3 to 5 minutes. In a small pot combine cornstarch, water, soy sauce, oil, brown sugar and white pepper until smooth; add to chicken veggie mixture; cook about 2 minutes, just until sauce is thickened. Place wrapper on flat surface; scoop 1/3 cup of mixture onto part of wrapper closest to you; tightly fold in sides of wrapper and roll toward the edge farthest away from you. Gently lift egg roll and place seam side down on baking sheet; repeat procedure for remaining egg rolls. Spray top of each egg roll with nonstick coking spray. Bake, turning egg rolls once, until they are golden and crispy, about 10 to 15 minutes. Serve hot with soy sauce and sauteed baby bok choy.
Leftover Ham and Veggies Quiche
YIELD: Makes 4 to 6 servings
INGREDIENTS:
One 9” pie crust
1 cup minced cooked ham
1 cup shredded hard cheese (cheddar, Swiss, Gouda, etc.)
2 cups cooked veggies (Brussels sprouts, spinach, kale, broccoli, etc)
1 onion, thinly sliced
4 eggs
2 cups half and half
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 400 F. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Line pie dish or quiche pan with crust; crimp edges (make the edges as high as possible). Evenly distribute ham, cheese, veggies and onions over crust. In a medium bowl vigorously beat together the eggs, half and half, salt and pepper and nutmeg, then pour mixture into crust. Place quiche on prepared baking sheet; bake until a knife inserted near edge comes out clean and top is golden, about 25 to 30 minutes; remove to wire rack and let sit at least 5 minutes. Serve hot, warm or at room temperature with soup.
Leftover Pasta Frittata
YIELD: Makes 4 to 6 servings
INGREDIENTS:
4 eggs
2-3 ounces freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 pound cooked pasta with marinara sauce (preferably spaghetti or linguine, coarsely chopped)
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup julienned fresh basil leaves
DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 400 F. In a large bowl beat eggs, then stir in cheese, salt and pepper and pasta. Heat oil in a 10” ovenproof nonstick skillet over medium heat; pour egg and pasta mixture into pan and gently pulling edges toward center as egg solidifies, cook about 5 minutes, until all but a little of the mixture remains runny and frittata is crisp on bottom; place in oven for 3 to 5 minutes until completely cooked, then slide onto heated plate. Sprinkle with basil. Serve hot or warm with a crisp green salad.
