musings on left-overs

Today's blog entry is a guest post written by my Aunt Carol (and yes that's capitolized because I think she's "just capital"). She'd sent these musings to me as an email but I loved it so much I wanted to share her thoughts with all of you. With her permission here they are:

Your article on sequential eating is an affirmation of the way that I've been cooking all my adult life.

When our children were small I used to save the empty aluminum trays from tv dinners, putting left over entree portions in the main compartments, add some frozen vegetables, half a baked potato, left over pie filling in the dessert compartment, etc. I would serially fill the various compartments when I'd have the appropriate left overs. Then cover each tray with aluminum foil – I did not mark what was inside, who had the time for nice details like that? :-) When Yosef and I went out to dinner, our kids had the treat of choosing a "mystery tray" – a wholesome form of gambling (but pretty safe because they were meals that they already liked anyway) and each one would be getting something different. The baby sitter would heat them up and our kids had exciting meals, telling us the next morning what each one had had (I never heard about trades, though that might have been possible).

I imagine that like you, most of your readers, still having one or more children living at home, prepare meals for families. As an older widow with occasional guests, I often freeze part of the cooked ingredients for a recipe before assembling let's say half of the total recipe, I also freeze individual portions of stews or soups, or what will in future be pot pies or Shephard's pies, so that they'll be ready for the crust or mashed potato topping when I am making those things for other meals.

The dishes that I do not like to freeze and defrost later are quiches (they get soggy and the vegetables get too soft when frozen, defrosted then reheated). I make mine crustless, just rubbing a bit of butter around the bottom of the round flat pan, to grease it, sprinkling on a layer of bread or toast crumbs before adding the sauteed vegetables, grated cheese, and then the custard. I try to plan to first serve this entree when I have guests coming over. However since this is an easy and favorite dish with me, I sometimes grate different kinds of cheese (another good use for left overs) on different portions. I usually cut my quiche into wedges, and may decide that half will be cheddar, and half Swiss, etc. I change the side dishes during the subsequent days--baked potato, reheated grain with spices, or different salads. This makes for a tasty variety and and easy way to use up left overs.

What is even more delightful is that I have a friend to whom I often give a portion or two of something tasty that I have prepared; she does the same with me. This way we both have more variety in our meals. What I give to her often becomes a treat for lunch at home, before she leaves to teach at the university; what she gives to me becomes a delicious, surprise dinner. As you can anticipate--we also share many recipes, enjoying one an other's tastes in food and both being whole grain, organic food enthusiasts. Many people think of inviting friends over for a meal, but sharing dishes to be eaten at home is also a generous, friendly gesture and fits well into the full life of commitments that many of us choose these days. It does not replace sharing sit down meals with guests, it's rather a personal catering with love, service.

I want to explain that it's not a one-on-one direct exchange--I give her A so she gives me B. Rather when, for example I baked muffins (and I'd been explaining to her son the difference between cupcakes which are a new treat to most Israelis – a few enterprising women have even opened successful delivery of home baked cupcakes for special events services- and muffins), I saved and froze a few of my last batch of corn muffins that contain niblets. Then when I baked oat-berry muffins with raisins and maple syrup, I packaged up a few of each, along with a baked apple and some chestnuts and gave them to her when we next met.

A few days later when we again met she brought me a wedge of a delicious cake she'd baked that contained chunks of apple and some grapes in the batter and gave me a jar of her home made granola - which I plan to sprinkle on a sliced banana, top with yoghurt then enjoy for breakfast.

Savoring the cake with a cup of tea, enjoying this breakfast gift, these are, to me, like little hugs.

photo courtesy of Manuel Flury | Wikimedia Commons

homemade rolls

Susan asked, "I wondered if you might have a resource for homemade wheat rolls (or other dinner-y kind of breads) that could be made up to a certain point and then frozen. So that you could make up a whole bunch when you have time, and then just cook a few at a time when you want them. I've been googling and haven't really come up with anything. We're trying to accommodate the starch eater/cravers in the household while substituting for healthier alternatives. Thank you very much for any ideas."

I don't have any whole grain par-baked bread recipes. Part of the difficulty, as I find it, is that working with whole grains changes the gluten structure, the higher fiber retards the rise. So when I try to par-bake and freeze the rolls they never rise right. Freezing the unbaked dough is tough because the freezing process kills the yeast and the thawing bread never seems to rise correctly, adding extra yeast doesn't work because then you're starting all over again.

My suggestion would be to find a whole grain bread recipe that you like and make rolls, soft bread sticks, even slice the loaf after baking, and freeze the results. You can thaw them for those that want it and then warm it up in the over for that "fresh-baked" aroma and warmth.

photo courtesy of Fir002 | Wikimedia Commons

sequential eating

Although I am a fan of leftovers others in the house are less excited by the repetition of certain dishes. Being a big fan of not wasting food, and a new fan of Jonathan Bloom's blog Wasted Food I try to look for creative ways to repackage, if you will, the offerings at the dinner table.

One way to do this is to take a moment and plan your menu, seeing what can be re-created from what you have already made. I offer here a couple of examples (I should note, by the way, that my favorite method is to turn dinner foods into breakfast foods as it makes food prep in the morning - a typically hectic time - a little easier):

Making Tuscan Stew with polenta for dinner typically means there is leftover polenta. I take that polenta, pan fry it, top it with an over easy egg, top that with some homemade mushroom marinara and it becomes breakfast. Since polenta is made with stoneground, or fresh ground, corn meal, it's a delicious way to add some fiber to your morning and help get you off to a good start. Pan frying the polenta gives a nice change to the texture and provides a tasty base to the egg and sauce.

In case you're wondering, the Tuscan Stew is delicious as leftovers and I typically have it for lunch the next day. There don't tend to be a lot of leftovers when I make this it.

Tonight's dinner was sauteed onions, peppers and mushrooms with oregano and parsley served alongside organic chicken cilantro sausage for the meat eaters and veggie sausage for the vegetarians. The leftover veggies will be turned into an omelette in the morning. All the prep and cooking is done, which will make breakfast cooking a snap. This is a great way to use leftover sauces or cooked vegetables, adding them into omelettes, frittatas, or an egg scramble.

Another favorite is to make extra brown rice which we then turn into brown rice cereal the next morning. Adding a small knob of butter, some almond milk and a little dried fruit makes this a delicious, quick and easy breakfast. It's healthier than a bowl of store-bought cereal and more filling as well.

For dinnertime leftover usage we can get creative by rummaging through the fridge. Soup and/or chili is a great way to incorporate a lot of little-bit leftovers. Adding fresh sauteed onions, a tasty broth or sauce, and making sure the spice combinations go together well (in the case of soup, curry does not pair well with Italian spice, I'm just saying...) you can hide almost anything. Alongside fresh baked bread and a salad, it's a whole new meal.

Last but not least is the pot pie/sheperd's pie trick; you can hide almost anything under that crust. Pot pie is, of course, a pastry style crust and shepherd's, or cottage, pie uses a mashed potato crust. Taking your leftovers, combining them with added vegetables, if needed, under a crust which is then baked in the oven, you've got a new meal that doesn't take a lot of time, saves money (because you're not throwing out ingredients) and keeps everyone from getting bored with the same old leftovers.

Taking a few minutes to plan your meals will save you time and money while still allowing you to provide delicious and nutritious meals for your family.