5 Things to Do With Your Christmas Dinner Left Overs

02:23 4 Dec 2018

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It's silly season and we are ready for all of the food we are about to consume and blame it on the fact that "It's Christmas!"

Once the main event of the Christmas dinner is done and we even though we've all polished off two plates full of food and don't lie we all do it! We still somehow manage to have turkey left for days after. But what can you do it with this Christmas turkey?

Here are 5 recipes for your Christmas leftovers;

Pan-fried Turkey, Brie and Cranberry Sandwich

This sounds delish and so easy to make!

You'll need;

2 slices of free-range cooked Golden Turkey or whatever is left over from Christmas
bread of your choice
softened butter
cranberry sauce
Sliced Brie
Sea salt and black pepper

Butter your bread of choice on one slice and on the other slice spread cranberry sauce. Place two slices of turkey and sliced brie into the sandwich with salt and pepper. Heat the sandwich with a pan or your trusty George Forman grill with a tablespoon of oil. Gently fry for 2-3 minutes until bread browns. Best served with potato wedges or leftover roasted potatoes.

Refried Roasties

You'll need;

3 tbsp olive oil
10 small pickled onions, cut in half
½ tsp cayenne
a few thyme sprigs, leaves picked
500g leftover or defrosted frozen cooked roast potatoes

Heat 1 tbsp oil in a large frying pan over a medium heat, add the pickled onions and fry for 3-4 mins until they get nicely caramelised.Add the cayenne and thyme leaves, then tip the roasties into the pan along with another 1 tbsp oil. Use the back of a wooden spoon to squash each one slightly. Leave alone for 3-4 mins to fry and get extra crisp on one side, then give them a good toss.
Add the remaining oil, toss and fry again for extra crispiness. Don’t worry if they fall apart a little, the scuffed bits will get extra crisp. Season to taste and serve warm with your Christmas leftovers.

Spicy turkey noodles

You'll need;

250g medium egg noodles
1 tbsp soy sauce
2 limes, juiced
2 tsp brown sugar
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 garlic clove, thinly sliced
1 red chilli, thinly sliced
500g cooked turkey, sliced
2 spring onions, thinly sliced on a diagonal
100g beansprouts
30g salted peanuts (or any other nuts you have left over), roughly chopped coriander and lime wedges, to serve

Cook the noodles according to pack instructions, then drain and rinse with cold water. Set aside. Mix the soy, lime juice and sugar together.
Heat the oil in a large frying pan or wok and add the garlic, chilli, turkey and spring onions, fry for around 2 mins, then tip in the noodles and the beansprouts and fry for 1 min more. Pour the sauce into the pan and toss everything together well, working quickly to coat all the vegetables and noodles. Once everything is heated through, season, and tip into bowls. Scatter over the nuts and coriander, and serve with lime wedges for squeezing over.

Cheeseboard Macaroni Cheese

You'll need;

350g pasta shapes
2 tbsp butter
1 garlic clove, crushed
1 tsp mustard powder
½ tsp cayenne pepper (optional)
3 tbsp plain flour
500ml milk
250g mix of cheeses you have around (we used Cheshire, cheddar and camembert), plus extra hard cheese for the topping

Cook the pasta according to pack instructions, drain and set aside.
Melt the butter in a saucepan, add the garlic and cook for a min until softened, then add the mustard powder and cayenne pepper and cook for 1 min more. Add the flour and stir to make a paste, cooking for about 1 min, until the mix starts to bubble a little. Take off the heat and gradually pour in the milk, whisking with every addition so the sauce doesn’t go lumpy. Return to the heat and cook for 5 mins until thickened, then add the cheeses, stir until melted, and fold in the pasta.
Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Tip the pasta into a baking dish, and top with additional cheese, preferably some hard cheese such as cheddar or parmesan, then bake for 25-30 mins, until golden and bubbling. Allow to cool for 10 mins or so then serve.

1 tbsp vegetable oil
½ onion, sliced
1 medium cooked potato (leftover boiled or roasted potatoes are fine), cubed
1 tsp medium curry powder
1 tsp nigella seeds
2 large eggs, whisked
1 tbsp natural yogurt or raita
good squeeze chilli sauce (optional)

Heat most of the oil in a pan. Fry the onion for 10 mins until starting to caramelise, then add the potato and fry for a further 8 mins until the edges are beginning to crisp. Add the curry powder, most of the nigella seeds, some seasoning and a splash of water. Cook for 1-2 mins, then scoop the mixture onto a plate. Wipe out the pan with kitchen paper.
Increase the heat and add the remaining oil to the pan. Add the eggs and some seasoning, then use a spatula to stir a few times. Leave to cook for 30 seconds. Pile the potato filling onto one side of the omelette while the top is still a little soft. Fold the omelette over to cover the filling and cook for a final 1-2 mins, if you like your omelette set all the way through. To serve, top with a drizzle of yogurt or raita and some chilli sauce, if you like.