Plates piled high with turkey and trimmings, gallons of mulled wine, far too many mince pies… After the over-indulgence of Christmas Day, food is probably the last thing on your mind.
But chances are the fridge will be heaving with leftovers and all that festive food’s too good to go to waste. So, what on earth can you do with it?
Here are three delicious recipes for transforming surplus food (and drink!) into scrumptious new dishes. And there isn’t a turkey curry in sight…
LEFTOVER SPROUTS à SPICY SPROUT FRITTERS
Transform sprouts into tasty sprout fritters
Just the thought of a cold, soggy Brussels sprout is enough to make most of us shiver. But this recipe completely transforms the love-it-or-hate-it veg into a tasty dish for Boxing Day brunch.
Just serve these spicy fritters up with some poached eggs and fresh crusty bread and they’ll make short work of any sore heads in the house.
Serves 6-8
Ingredients:
300g cooked Brussels sprouts (with or without toppings)
3 medium eggs
1 fresh red chilli, finely chopped
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp cumin
Zest of ½ a lemon
Generous pinch of salt and pepper
100g chunky breadcrumbs
Method:
Chop or finely shred the sprouts (you can also do this in a food processor – anything that makes life easier!). Lightly whisk the eggs in a large bowl and add the chopped chilli, spices, lemon zest and seasoning.
Tip in the shredded sprouts and breadcrumbs and mix well. This works best if you dig your hands in, rather than using a spoon. Keep mixing until everything is well-combined and the mixture starts coming together.
Dampen your hands with a little cold water and roll the fritter mix into balls between your palms. There should be enough for 14-16, roughly the size of ping pong balls. Flatten them into fritters, around 1cm thick, and place on a plate lined with greaseproof or kitchen paper.
Heat a drizzle of olive oil in a large frying pan over a medium heat and, once it’s sizzling, add the fritters. You may need to cook them in two batches.
Cook them for 2-3 minutes on each side, until just turning brown. Serve hot.
Tip: You can rustle these up with any combination of leftover veg, such as carrots, parsnips, cabbage – or even crushed roast potatoes. Just adjust the quantities to fit whatever you have in the fridge.
LEFTOVER PIGS IN BLANKETS à CHRISTMAS CARBONARA
Make a pasta dish from your pigs in blankets
If your family is anything like mine, there won’t be many of these left after Christmas dinner; they’re always the most popular thing on the table. On the off-chance you do have some leftover pigs in blankets – and, indeed, any sausages, bacon, turkey or ham – this yummy pasta dish is a quick and easy supper for those post-Christmas days when you don’t feel like cooking. Better still, you’ll need just three ingredients.
Serves 4
Ingredients:
400g cooked pigs in blankets (or plain sausages, bacon bits, chunks of roast turkey and/or ham)
300g dried spaghetti
2 x 400ml can of mushroom soup
Method:
Chop 350g of the pigs in blankets or other leftover meat into 1cm pieces. Very finely dice the remaining 50g and set it to one side.
Cook the pasta according to the packet instructions (around 9 – 12 minutes in a pan of salted boiling water). Meanwhile, heat a slug of olive oil in a large frying pan over a medium heat. Add the chopped pigs in blankets, mushroom soup and the drained pasta.
Heat everything through until bubbling, stirring and adding a little water (no more than 1 tbsp) if you need to thin out the sauce.
Put the diced pigs in blankets in a small frying pan with a little oil and sauté until golden. Divide the pasta between bowls and top with the crispy bits.
LEFTOVER CHRISTMAS PUD à LITTLE PUDDING TRUFFLES
Make the Christmas pudding go further by making it into delectable truffles
It’s not Christmas dinner without a plum pudding, drenched in brandy and set alight… But after all that meat and veg, most of us can’t eat more than a few morsels. Instead of leaving it to fester in the fridge, make a batch of these little pudding truffles, which are much easier to munch in front of the TV (and taste great alongside a mug of mulled wine).
Makes around 20
Ingredients:
300g Christmas pudding, cooked and cooled
75g dark chocolate, melted
½ tsp ground nutmeg
90g white chocolate, melted
Red and green sprinkles (sugar sprinkles or jelly diamonds, which you can cut into the shapes of leaves and berries)
Method:
Break the Christmas pudding up in a bowl and add the melted chocolate and nutmeg. Stir until well combined and it comes together in a sticky ball.
Slightly dampen your hands and roll small blobs of the mix (around the size of 20p pieces) together between your palms. Arrange them in gold or silver petit four cases.
Drizzle small teaspoonfuls of melted white chocolate over the top of each – this serves as the ‘icing’ on your miniature Christmas puddings. Use a cocktail stick or skewer to drag small ‘drips’ of the white chocolate at intervals down the sides of the balls.
Arrange the coloured sprinkles on top, to look like holly berries and leaves on the tops of your puds.
Put the truffles in the fridge to set before serving. They’ll keep for 4 – 5 days. If your kitchen is hot it’s best to keep them chilled so the icing doesn’t melt, but you’ll be lucky if they last that long!