De Ma Cuisine

Leftovers Archive

Friday

27

November 2015

0

COMMENTS

Potato Pancakes

Written by , Posted in Appetizers, Breakfast, Brunch, Cheese, Condiments, Dinner, Eggs, Gluten Free, Herbs, Holiday, Kid-Friendly, Leftovers, Lunch, Main Dishes, One Dish Dinners, Potatoes, Quick and Easy, Sides, Vegetables, Vegetarian

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It’s finally arrived. The day of my favorite meal: Thanksgiving. I don’t know if it’s favorite because it only happens once a year though. If I could only have one meal for the rest of my life, I don’t know that it would be this one… Then again, maybe it would.

It’s just the perfect mix of flavors, textures, and since it’s most often eaten surrounded by loved ones, it’s such a winner.

My perfect Thanksgiving plate includes: Turkey, dressing, green beans, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, rolls, and gravy to pour over almost everything. It’s a feast for sure. There’s always more than we need. Part of the fun of a meal like this is getting creative with the leftovers.

Today, I’m tacking the mashed potatoes. I usually just make a big pot of soup and call it good. But, here’s a way to use those potatoes, and maybe a few other dishes from dinner, in a non-soupy way.

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I combined the potatoes with some sautéed veggies (the possibilities are pretty limitless here: sweet potatoes, carrots, winter squash, mushrooms, peas, corn, bell peppers, garlic, greens, chile peppers, cauliflower, broccoli, summer squash…), spices, cheese, flour, baking powder, and an egg (to hold it all together).

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Then I dropped them onto a hot skillet with a bit of olive oil. Easy. Almost done.

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They didn’t need long to cook, just a few minutes per side.

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I topped each one with a dollop of yogurt with fresh herbs mixed in. The perfect little treat for a lazy, relaxing holiday lunch.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Potato Pancakes

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 33 minutes

Total Time: 48 minutes

Yield: 4

Serving Size: 4-5 pancakes per person

Potato Pancakes

Ingredients

  • 1 T olive oil
  • 1-2 C veggies (could be carrots, peas, mushrooms, sweet potatoes, winter squash, corn, garlic, greens, bell peppers, chile peppers, cauliflower, broccoli, summer squash), chopped, if needed
  • to taste salt
  • 1/4 C plain yogurt or silken tofu
  • 1 T fresh herbs (dill, parsley, basil, chives)
  • to taste salt
  • pinch cayenne
  • squeeze of lemon or splash of white vinegar
  • 1/4 C All Purpose flour (or gluten free)
  • 1 t baking powder
  • 2-3 C mashed potatoes (could also add green bean casserole or dressing/stuffing)
  • to taste salt
  • 1/4 t paprika
  • pinch cayenne (optional)
  • 1 T olive oil
  • 1/4 C cheese, grated or cut into small cubes
  • 1 egg
  • 1-2 T olive oil, for frying

Instructions

  1. Heat skillet. Add 1 T olive oil. Sauté veggies with salt over medium-low heat for about 10-15 minutes, or until all veggies are tender, stirring occasionally.
  2. Combine yogurt or silken tofu through lemon or vinegar. Taste for salt. Set aside.
  3. Combine flour and baking powder.
  4. Combine sautéed veggies with mashed potatoes through cheese. Stir gently. Taste and adjust seasoning if desired. Stir in flour mixture, then stir in egg.
  5. Wipe out veggie skillet. Heat and add 1 T olive oil. When oil is hot, drop and flatten (slightly) 2T pancake batter. Cook over medium-low heat for about 3 minutes per side, working in batches until all batter has been used, adding more oil as needed. Place finished pancakes on a baking sheet lined with a cooling rack in the oven (set at the lowest temperature to keep them hot).
  6. Serve pancakes topped with a dollop of herbed yogurt.
http://www.de-ma-cuisine.com/potato-pancakes/

Thursday

10

September 2015

0

COMMENTS

Veggie Pot Pie

Written by , Posted in Baking, Dairy-Free, Dinner, Eggs, Gluten Free, Herbs, Leftovers, Legumes, Lentils, Main Dishes, One Dish Dinners, Potatoes, Potlucks, Vegan, Vegetables, Vegetarian

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Pot pie is one of my favorite foods. I think I say that a lot though. So many foods are favorites that I’m starting to lose track. I guess it depends on the season. Pot pie is one of those dishes that I don’t make all that often during the hot summer months. But, when it finally cools down, it’s all that I want to eat (that and soup, always soup). But, this pot pie can be enjoyed any time of the year, because the veggies can be changed up to suit whatever you’ve got on hand.

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This is a great dish to clean out the produce drawers. That’s what it felt like today. I used mushrooms (great for adding a deep, rich flavor), summer squash (but winter squash would be great here too), carrots, turnips (don’t add too many, otherwise they may overwhelm), eggplant, potatoes, radishes (doesn’t matter what kind), onion, chile pepper, garlic chives, and garlic… It’s at least one of everything that I had on hand, minus the lettuce and tomatoes that I’ll save for another time.

I also added lentils, or you could add tofu if you’d like. They would take the place of the meat in a Chicken Pot Pie, Beef Pot Pie, or Lobster Pot Pie.

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Since there were so many veggies, they took a while to cook. Once they were tender, I added some veggie stock whisked with some all purpose flour (or you could whisk the stock with some cornstarch for a gluten-free version). Once it came to a boil it began to reduce down and thicken, resulting in a nice rich gravy.

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At this point, you could just top the oven-proof skillet with pie crust and pop it into the oven. But, today I wanted to do some individual pot pies, so I greased some ramekins and filled them with the hot filling.

If you’re making this ahead of time, the filling can be cooled at this point and then refrigerated or frozen. To use it, defrost in the fridge for a day, then either heat it up first, or pour it into the baking dish and top with pie crust. If your filling is cold you may want to cover your crust with tinfoil partway through the baking time if it starts to get too brown.

Pot pies can also be covered, baked, and cooled completely, then reheated at a later date. To cool quickly, remove the crust to cool separately. Stir the filling often to get cool air into it. Refrigerate once it’s cooled down (if food is too hot when it goes into the fridge, the fridge temperature may raise to an unsafe temperature).

Of course you could also just stand at the stove and eat it out of the pan… 😉

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I have a favorite pie crust that I make, from Alana’s cookbook, The Homemade Pantry. One crust was perfect for four individual ramekins of pot pie. If you prefer gluten-free, there are flour blends available, or you can just buy a GF crust at your favorite market.

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I can’t decide what’s more favorite, the beautifully browned crust or the savory gravy soaked veggies. Good thing I get to eat them together.

Happy Eating!

Veggie Pot Pie

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour, 1 minute

Total Time: 1 hour, 21 minutes

Yield: 4

Veggie Pot Pie

Ingredients

  • 2 T olive oil
  • 1 C any: potatoes, rutabagas, sweet potatoes, chopped
  • 6-7 C combination of any that you like together: carrots, parsnips, turnips, beets, radishes, eggplant, summer squash, winter squash, onion, shallot, leeks, fennel, celery, greens, cabbage, bell pepper, green beans, peas, broccoli, cauliflower, corn, asparagus
  • to taste salt
  • 2-3 cloves garlic, diced
  • 1/2 C lentils or tofu (optional), chopped, if tofu
  • 1/4 C any* (fresh): garlic chives, basil, parsley, oregano, thyme, or rosemary, chopped
  • 1/2 t paprika
  • 1 t dijon mustard
  • 2 T AP flour or 1 T cornstarch whisked with 2 1/4 C cold veggie stock
  • 1 T lemon juice or vinegar
  • 1 pie crust
  • 1 egg (optional), whisked, for brushing
  • salt

Instructions

  1. Pre-heat the oven to 350F.
  2. Heat an oven-proof skillet (unless using individual ramekins, in which case just use a skillet). Add oil. Add veggies and salt. Cook over medium-low for about 15-20 minutes, or until veggies are tender, stirring occasionally. Add garlic through dijon and cook for 1 minute. Add flour or cornstarch and veggie stock mixture and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook for about 10 minutes, or until sauce has reduced and thickened and all veggies are tender. Remove from heat and stir in lemon juice or vinegar. Taste and adjust seasoning if desired.
  3. Roll out pie crust. Use it to top the oven-proof skillet, or divide the veggie mixture into 4 greased 6" ramekins and top with pie crust (1 crust should be enough for 4 ramekins). Brush with egg if desired, sprinkle with salt, and use a knife to cut some vent holes in the center.. Bake for 30 minutes, or until crust is browned and flaky.
http://www.de-ma-cuisine.com/veggie-pot-pie/

Monday

13

April 2015

0

COMMENTS

Vegan Tofu Fried Quinoa

Written by , Posted in Dairy-Free, Dinner, Fruit, Gluten Free, Grains, Leftovers, Lunch, Main Dishes, One Dish Dinners, Quick and Easy, Quinoa, Rice, Vegan, Vegetables, Vegetarian

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We don’t eat a lot of meat. We enjoy it, but it’s expensive, and we’ve found that there are plenty of other ways to get enough protein in our diet. So the meals containing meat are few and far between, and we fill in the gaps with meals like this take on Fried Rice.

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It starts with some seasonal veggies. Right now we’ve got greens like kale, chard, and mei qing choi. There are carrots, snap peas, and spring onions. And we’ve got the most delicious spring onions.

If you wanted to adapt this to suit another season, you could try some of these options:

Spring: Radishes, green beans, asparagus, fava beans, garlic scapes, or kohlrabi.

Summer: Zucchini/summer squash, tomatoes, bell peppers, eggplant, or sinqua.

Fall: Beets, arugula, cabbage, celery, chard, fennel, or radicchio.

Winter: Broccoli, cauliflower, winter squash, bok choy, mustard greens, or daikon radishes.

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No matter the veggies, it’s going to come together super quickly, so I’d suggest having all of the components ready to go before you begin cooking. Stir fry type dishes generally tend to cook over pretty high heat, which means they need to be stirred almost constantly. This doesn’t leave time for chopping up the next ingredients while the first ones cook.

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I’d made some quinoa the day before, and used the leftovers in this dish. You could also use bulgur wheat, rice noodles, or regular brown rice (cook according to the package’s directions).

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The quinoa takes the place of brown rice, since it has a bit more protein. The tofu mimics the egg, to make it vegan. I asked Tim if he could tell that there weren’t eggs in here. He said that it wasn’t noticeable.

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Like a lot of things, I enjoy this served with a wedge of lemon to squeeze over top. The brightness that it adds is the perfect way to complete this dish.

Happy Eating!

Vegan Tofu Fried Quinoa

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Yield: 4

Vegan Tofu Fried Quinoa

Ingredients

  • 2 T oil
  • 1 C snap peas (or green beans), strings removed, chopped
  • 1 C carrots, chopped
  • 1/2 C fennel (or celery), chopped
  • 1 C onion, chopped
  • 2 C greens, chopped
  • sprinkle ginger
  • to taste salt
  • to taste pepper
  • sprinkle cayenne
  • 2 cloves garlic, diced
  • 2 T soy sauce or gluten-free aminos
  • 2 T rice vinegar
  • 1 C quinoa (or bulgur wheat, brown rice, or rice noodles) (cooked)
  • 7 oz. tofu (firm), drained and crumbled
  • 1/4 C green or spring onions, chopped
  • 1/2 to 1 C microgreens
  • lemon wedges, for serving

Instructions

  1. Heat a wok, add oil over medium-high heat. Add snap peas through cayenne and cook for 3-5 minutes, turning constantly.
  2. Add greens through microgreens (if microgreens are very delicate, wait to add them until 1 minute before you finish cooking) and cook for 3-5 minutes, stirring constantly.Taste and adjust seasoning if needed.
  3. Serve with lemon wedges for squeezing.
http://www.de-ma-cuisine.com/vegan-tofu-fried-quinoa/

Monday

9

February 2015

0

COMMENTS

Loaded Chicken and Rice Soup

Written by , Posted in Dinner, Fruit, Gluten Free, Herbs, Leftovers, Lunch, Main Dishes, Meat, One Dish Dinners, Poultry, Quick and Easy, Rice, Soups, Vegetables

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I’m a sucker for a good bowl of soup. I think we’ve had three different kinds over the past four days. I love it. I can’t get enough of it. It can be hearty and filling, or a light start to a meal. It can be simple, like French Onion, or have a myriad of ingredients. Soups are a great way to get loads of veggies into a meal, and they’re a fabulous place to hide leftovers. Yes, soups are my favorite.

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This one is no different. The goal was to make a veggie laden, leftover using, Chicken and Rice Soup.

It started with carrots and radishes. The carrots were fresh from this week’s box of produce. The radishes were extra from another meal, that I’d chopped and frozen so they wouldn’t go to waste.

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We’re getting so many greens in our boxes that I’ve been making a lot of Stir Fry, like this Red Choi Stir Fry from the other week. I’d planned ahead and made double the rice, so there were leftovers for the soup.

Winner winner, chicken and rice soup for dinner.

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After the initial veggies were fairly tender, everything else joined them in the soup pot. I made some Sliced Roasted Butternut Squash for dinner last night, to go along with some chicken thighs that I par-cooked on the stovetop, then finished in the oven. I used the leftovers from both in the soup.

Leftovers 0, Rach 3.

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After everything bubbled around for a while (but not too long, since it was all cooked already), I added some milk. I used coconut milk, because I had some that I needed to use up. Use whatever kind you have on hand. The milk just needs to warm through for a minute or two. Don’t let it boil, or the soup may break.

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And then, for the finishing touches, I stirred in some fresh parsley and a knob of butter.

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This soup is best eaten with your favorite someone or alone standing at the kitchen island while you read a book. Fresh bread is essential for dipping and sopping up anything the spoon leaves behind. A slice of lemon is a perfect way to brighten a bit – just squeeze over top right before eating.

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And, if it’s possible, this soup may be even better the next day (or a few days later – it freezes well).

Happy Eating!

Loaded Chicken and Rice Soup

Loaded Chicken and Rice Soup

Ingredients

  • 1-2 T olive oil
  • 1 C carrot (or parsnip), chopped
  • 1 C radish (or cauliflower), chopped
  • to taste, salt
  • 3 cloves garlic, diced
  • 2 T balsamic vinegar
  • 1/2 t dried rosemary (or 1 t fresh), broken or chopped
  • 1 t fresh thyme (or 1/2 t dried)
  • 1/2 t paprika
  • 1 C cooked chicken, chopped or shredded (I used leftovers)*
  • 2 C rice, cooked (I used leftovers)***
  • 2-3 C greens (like hon tsai tai, komatsuna, Tokyo bekana, chard, kale, collards, or spinach), chopped
  • 1 1/2-2 C winter squash, chopped (I used leftovers)**
  • 5-6 C chicken stock
  • 1 C milk (any kind)
  • 1-2 T fresh parsley, chopped
  • 1 T unsalted butter (optional)
  • lemon wedges, for serving

Instructions

  1. (*If you're not using leftover chicken, cook it now, let it cool slightly, remove from bones and shred or chop.)
  2. Heat a soup pot over medium-low heat. Add the oil and when it's hot, add the carrots through salt (**unless you're using uncooked winter squash - if you are, add it now). Cook for 7-9 minutes, or until veggies are relatively tender. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute more. Stir in balsamic vinegar, cook for 1 minute.
  3. Add rosemary through stock. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook for about 13 minutes, or until veggies are tender (***if you're not using leftover rice, also add 1/2 C raw brown rice now, along with an extra 1 C stock and cook until rice is tender). Add milk and cook for 2 minutes more (do not boil).
  4. Remove from heat and stir in parsley and butter. Taste and adjust seasoning if needed. Serve with a squeeze of lemon.
http://www.de-ma-cuisine.com/loaded-chicken-and-rice-soup/

Thursday

8

January 2015

0

COMMENTS

Dilly Eggs with Lentils

Written by , Posted in Brunch, Dairy-Free, Dinner, Eggs, Fruit, Gluten Free, Herbs, Leftovers, Legumes, Lentils, Lunch, Main Dishes, Quick and Easy, Vegetarian

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We all have our go-to meals. For me, sometimes it’s pasta, often it’s soup, more often than not, it’s eggs.

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Remember last week when I wrote about lentils? I had a great idea to top sweet potatoes with them.

I also had a ton of lentils leftover.

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I thought that those leftovers would be great topped with a fried egg and some dill.

I was right.

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I’m kinda obsessed with dill right now. I’m not sure why. Maybe because up until a year or so ago I didn’t think I liked it. I guess it was one of those tastes that I didn’t like as a kid and had never really found a way to enjoy as a grownup. Until my friend, Christy, introduced me to it, in some of the foods she made.

Now I want to eat it in all the things. (I’ll have a Winter Salad for you soon that also uses dill… Can’t stop won’t stop.)

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Back to the eggs again for a sec. The reason they’re such a go-to for me: they can be made into so many different things, in no time at all. Treats like, French Toast Stuffed with Fresh Fruit and BasilEnd of the Week Pasta topped with a fried egg, scrambled into some summer squash to make Squash ‘n Eggs. And never mind all the wonders they can do to baking, or the fact that they make things like Chicken Pot Pie look so amazing when they’re used. They’re one of my best kitchen friends.

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This meal is a great example of one of my favorite types of meals. Effortless, nutritious, delicious.

Simple foods.

This dish takes humble ingredients, lentils, eggs, lemon, and dill, and really lets them shine.

I will definitely be eating this again soon. Maybe for dinner tonight.

Happy Eating!

Dilly Eggs with Lentils

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 5 minutes

Yield: Serves 2

Dilly Eggs with Lentils

Ingredients

  • 1 C cooked lentils (I used leftovers from my Lentils on Crispy Sweet Potatoes, so they were already seasoned)
  • 1 t olive oil
  • 2 eggs
  • pinch salt
  • 1-2 t fresh dill, chopped
  • 2 slices lemon, for serving

Instructions

  1. Re-heat lentils until they are hot.
  2. Heat a skillet over medium-high, add oil, then eggs. Cook until done, flipping if desired. Season with salt.
  3. Divide lentils between two plates and top with eggs, dill, and a squeeze of lemon.
http://www.de-ma-cuisine.com/dilly-eggs-with-lentils/