Leftovers: Elevating The Excess

FOOD FACTS:

No food facts, we're using leftovers!

TAKE-HOME TIPS

RECIPES:

Carrot and Cheddar Soup with Dill Croutons

For soup:
2 Tablespoons butter
2 Tablespoons flour
1 ½ cups onion (diced, or one medium sized onion)
4 cups carrots (peeled and cut into ½ inch rounds)
1 cup sweet potato (peeled cut into large dice)
4 chicken white chicken stock (NOTE: vegetarians can use 50/50 mix of water and carrot juice)
1 cup cheddar cheese (grated or a blend of cheeses such as brie, Parmesan and Swiss)
2 Tablespoons cheddar cheese (grated as a garnish)
2 Tablespoons white wine (optional)
2 drops Tabasco
salt and pepper to taste

Method:

In 4 quart (1 gallon) sauce pot, melt butter on medium heat.

Add onion, cook 5 minutes until translucent.

Add flour to onions, cook for 2 minutes until flour absorbs the butter and becomes thick.

Add white wine and cook 1 minute.

Add carrots, sweet potato, and chicken/carrot stock; bring to a simmer and turn heat to low.

Cook until carrots are completely cooked through and soft.
It is best to cool soup, then purée soup in pot with emersion blender or bar blender (Never put hot soup in a countertop blender or you could get burned!).

After soup is completely smooth and blended, re-heat to a simmer and add cheese a bit at a time while stirring so the cheese completely melts into the soup.

Season soup with salt and pepper. Serve hot.

Top with dill croutons and grated cheddar.

Dill Croutons

½ cup French Bread (cut into large 1 inch cubes)
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon cracked black pepper
1 pinch salt
1 Tablespoon dill (chopped)
1 Tablespoon parsley (chopped)

Method:

In a medium size fry pan, add oil and warm.

Add bread, season with salt and pepper, then toast in oil until golden.
Drain on paper towel.

Sprinkle croutons with chopped dill and parsley. Serve warm.

For more recipes, go to Page 2.

Turkey "Croquettes" with Mixed Greens and Cranberry Sauce

1 cup onion (diced small)
1 cup celery (diced small)
1 cup leek (white part only, diced small)
4 cups cooked turkey breast (diced small, you can use some dark meat too but no skin or bone)
1 Tablespoon herbs de Provence
1 teaspoon poultry seasoning
1 Tablespoon black pepper
Salt to taste

¾ cup mayonnaise
¾ cup butter (1.5 stick, cut into pieces, get to room temperature, soft to the touch but not melted)
1 egg (lightly beaten for mix)
4 cups ground Panko bread crumbs (or any dry unseasoned breadcrumb, on a sheet pan or large plate)
2 cup flour (on a sheet pan or large plate)
4 eggs (lightly beaten to coat cakes)

Method:

In a medium size sauté pan on medium heat, add 1 Tablespoon olive oil.

Sauté onion, celery and leek until tender. Transfer to plate lined with paper towel; cool in refrigerator.

In a non-reactive bowl, mix the onion, celery, leeks, turkey, herbs de Provence, poultry seasoning, pepper, mayonnaise, butter, and 1 egg.

Place mixture in refrigerator or freezer to completely chill, the mix will begin hardening like cookie batter.

Form mixture into 4 ounce "croquettes" and roll-in flour to coat.

Using your hands, form the mixture into a hockey puck shape cake, or use a mold.

Make sure each is coated and sealed outside with flour. This may take practice; if mixture becomes overworked and warm re-chill it.

Place croquettes into refrigerator to chill for 1 hour.

Dip each cake into the beaten egg, then coat with bread crumbs, using your hands to press the crumbs around each area of the croquette (They should be breaded like a chicken cutlet).

In a non-stick sauté pan on medium heat, sauté each cake in grape seed oil until golden brown, then flip and brown other side.

Transfer to a sheet pan and bake in 350-degree oven for 5 to 8 minutes until cake is warmed through. Serve immediately with your favorite salad greens.

Cranberry-Citrus Sauce

1 cup cranberry sauce
1 cup orange juice
1 teaspoon orange zest
1 ounce honey
Salt and pepper to taste

Method:

In small saucepot combine all above and reduce by half, purée with blender for a smoother sauce.

Chill and serve cold.

Mixed Greens with Tomato

4 cups mixed lettuces
1 cup cherry tomato or any small tomato (cut in half)
2 Tablespoons olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Method:

Toss greens in a bowl with olive oil and tomato, season and serve with croquettes.

Bartlett Pear Upside Down Cake

For the batter:
1 ½ cups all purpose flour
1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
¾ teaspoon powdered cinnamon
¼ teaspoon powdered ginger
4 Tablespoons butter
2/3 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
¾ cup milk

For the topping:
4 Tablespoons butter
½ cup light brown sugar
2 medium sized pears, halved and cored

Method:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees

For the topping:

Melt butter in microwave or saucepan over low heat

In a medium mixing bowl light brown sugar and pour in melted butter, mix until combined.

Spray 5 ounce muffin tins with nonstick spray.

Spoon brown sugar mixture into tins to cover base.

Slice pears and place one half pear in the base of each tin over the brown sugar butter mixture.

For the batter:

Sift together the all purpose flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and ginger. Set aside.

With electric mixer on high speed, cream together butter and sugar
Add vanilla extract and mix well.

Add eggs one at a time, mixing completely before adding the next.

Add one third of dry ingredients and mix on medium speed.

Add one third of milk.

Keep alternating dry and wet ingredients until all are combined.

Spoon batter over pears until it comes ¾ up the sides of the mold.

Bake approximately 30 minutes or until skewer inserted in center of cake comes out clean.

While hot, invert over pate, being careful of liquid syrup.

Serve with whipped cream.