Gill Books 12 Feasts of Christmas: Christmas Leftovers (Perfect for St. Stephen’s Day)

The Gill Books 12 Feasts of Christmas celebrates the festive season with twelve feasts featuring recipes from our wonderful authors. Recipes that will impress the visitors, sustain you, make the children smile, help you survive after overindulgence, celebrate in style and most importantly, taste delicious. Below we share some recipes with you that ensure you make the most out of any Christmas dinner leftovers.

A Simply Delicious Christmas: St Stephen’s Day Pie

A Simply Delicious Christmas by Darina Allen caters to every need over the festive season, this delicious pie is no exception!

Try to keep some leftover turkey and ham for this delicious pie – it’s the most scrumptious way to use up leftovers and can be topped with fluffy mashed potatoes or a puff pastry lid.

900g (2lb) cooked organic or free-range turkey, white and brown meat and crispy skin
450g (1lb) cooked ham or bacon
25g (1oz) butter
350g (12oz) chopped onions
1–2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger (optional)
225g (8oz) flat mushrooms or button (if flats are not available).
1 clove garlic, crushed
salt and freshly ground pepper
850ml (11/2 pints) well-flavoured turkey stock or 600ml (1 pint)
stock and 300ml (1/2 pint)
turkey gravy
150ml (1/4 pint) cream
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
1 tablespoon chopped chives
2 teaspoons chopped fresh marjoram or tarragon, if available
roux (page 152)
900g (2lb) Duchesse or mashed potato (page 137) or 450g (1lb) puff or flaky pastry

Serves 12

Cut the turkey and ham into 2.5cm (1in) approx. pieces and shred the crispy turkey skin.

Melt the butter in a heavy saucepan and add the chopped onions and ginger, if using. Cover and sweat for about 10 minutes, until the onions are soft but not coloured. Meanwhile, wash and slice the mushrooms.

When the onions are soft, stir in the garlic and then remove to a plate. Increase the heat and cook the sliced mushrooms, a few at a time.
Season with salt and freshly ground pepper and add to the onions and garlic. Toss the cold turkey and ham in the hot saucepan, using a little extra butter if necessary. Add to the mushrooms and onions. Deglaze the saucepan with the turkey stock. Add the cream and chopped herbs.
Bring it to the boil, thicken with roux, add the meat, mushrooms and onions and simmer for 5 minutes. Taste and correct the seasoning.

Preheat the oven to 190°C/375°F/gas mark 5.

Fill into 2 x 1.2 litre (2 pint) capacity pie dishes with a lip and pipe rosettes of mashed potato all over the top. Bake in the preheated oven for 15–20 minutes, until the potato is golden and the pie is bubbling.

Alternatively, if you would like to have a pastry crust, allow the filling to get quite cold. Roll out the pastry to about 3mm (1/8in) thickness, then cut a strip from around the edge the same width as the lip of the pie dish. Brush the edge of the dish with water and press the strip of pastry firmly down onto it, then wet the top of the strip. Cut the pastry into an oval just slightly larger than the pie dish. Press this down onto the wet border, flute the edges of the pastry with a knife and then scallop them at 2.5cm (1in) approx. intervals. Roll out the trimmings and cut into leaves to decorate the top. Make a hole in the centre to allow the steam to escape while cooking.

Brush with egg wash and bake in a preheated oven, 250°C/475°F/ gas mark 9, for 10 minutes. Turn the heat down to moderate, 180°C/350°F/gas mark 4, for 20–25 minutes, until the pastry is cooked through and the pie is bubbling.

Serve with a good green salad.

A Taste of Home: Ham Croquettes with Leek and Paprika Sauce

These ham croquettes with leek and paprika sauce by Catherine Fulvio are great for using up any leftover Christmas ham. Perfect for St. Stephen’s Day feasting!

A firm favourite with my children, these have meat and veg in them so all boxes are ticked! It’s also quite a useful recipe for using up leftovers. The beauty of croquettes is that the filling can be changed to suit what’s in the fridge – I often add diced, sauteed chorizo or smoked salmon. Sometimes I even make smaller ones to serve as canapes with drinks in summer in the herb garden.

FOR THE CROQUETTES

100g good quality ham,
diced into small pieces
350g warm mashed potato
good handful young spinach, shredded
½ lemon, zest only
1 tbsp chopped chives
2 tsp chopped oregano
3 tbsp plain flour, seasoned with salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 egg, beaten
4 tbsp fresh breadcrumbs
3 tbsp sesame seeds
rapeseed oil, for frying

FOR THE SAUCE

rapeseed oil, for frying
½ medium leek, finely sliced
2 tsp wholegrain mustard
½ tsp sweet paprika
4 tbsp crème fraîche
1 tsp chopped oregano
1 tbsp chopped parsley
100ml vegetable stock
salt and freshly ground black pepper

To make the croquettes, place the ham, potato, spinach, lemon zest, chives and oregano in a medium-sized bowl and mix together. Divide into 12 portions to shape. Spoon the seasoned flour out onto a clean plate. Pour the beaten egg into a shallow, wide bowl, and spread the breadcrumbs and sesame seeds out on a clean plate.

Dampen your hands with cold water and shape the ham-and-potato mixture into croquettes. Dip each one into the egg, roll in the breadcrumbs and place on a plate lined with parchment paper. Leave in the fridge for half an hour to set.

To make the sauce, heat some oil in a saucepan over a medium heat, add the leek and saute for 5 to 6 minutes until softened but not browned. Stir in the mustard, paprika, creme fraiche, oregano and parsley. Pour in the stock and simmer to thicken slightly, then season with salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.

To cook the croquettes, heat some oil in a large frying pan over a medium heat. Carefully place the croquettes in the frying pan in batches and fry until golden and crispy and heated through.

To serve, place some wilted chard on a platter, arrange the croquettes on top and spoon over some of the sauce – serve the rest in a small ramekin on the side.

The Ketogenic Kitchen: Brussels sprout and miso salad

In The Ketogenic Kitchen Domini Kemp and Patricia Daly share exciting nutritional developments, which reveal that a diet low in carbohydrates and high in fat, in conjunction with the treatment recommended by medical professionals, offers new hope in the support of and protection against many chronic illnesses. This salad is a perfect way to use up leftover brussels spronts.

Making unpopular but nutritious foods more appealing can be an uphill struggle, and it can take longer with some veggies (and some people) than others. You just have to persevere. Take Brussels sprouts, for example. To echo a certain popular saying about pets, Brussels sprouts, despite what some (like many teenagers) might think, are not just for Christmas.

A member of the brassica family, which also includes cabbages and kale, Brussels sprouts are what nutritionists call ‘nutrient dense’. Some even call them super. But let’s not start that fight again.

Juice of 2 limes (40g)
1 garlic clove, crushed (3g)
2 tbsp miso paste (any kind will do) (60g)
2 tbsp olive oil (26g)
1 tbsp sesame oil (12g)
1 tbsp mirin (16g)

500g Brussels sprouts, washed and shredded in a food processor

Serves 6

In a large bowl, thoroughly mix all the ingredients together except the shredded sprouts, then add the sprouts and toss well before marinating for at least 30 minutes before serving. This keeps well for at least a day in the fridge.

PER PORTION

NET CARBS 7.0G 23%
PROTEIN 4.3G 15%
FAT 8.0G 61%
ALCOHOL 0.3G 2%
FIBRE 3.7G
CALORIES 118

We hope that you found some inspiration for your Christmas leftovers! Happy feasting to you and yours, stay tuned for more fantastically festive recipes. Follow us @GillBooks on Twitter, @gillbooks on Instagram and like us on Facebook for the latest author news.