The Recycled Cook

  Breakfast  Mushroom Omelette Today's blog is a simple breakfast dish using up some left over chestnut  mushrooms.  A straightforward dish but a very tasty start to the day and a change for the usual breakfast fry up. It is also a good vegetarian dish. First of all you need to wash, trim and slice your mushrooms, use more than you think you will need as they do reduce in volume when  cooked.  Beat four eggs in a bowl adding a dash of cold water and set aside. Season with some white pepper and fine salt. Heat some oil and butter in a frying pan, if you have some available or can get some locally use Truffle oil to really bring out the flavour of the  mushrooms. Saute the mushrooms in the oil and butter until they reduce by about half the volume. Don't overcook them as you want to keep some texture.  Season with salt and black pepper to taste.  You can at this stage add som...

Parma ham and cheese croquettes Well another batch of leftover coquettes today as I had some Potato and  Celeriac mash left over from yesterday's dinner. I also found in the fridge some parma ham which needed using up and some bits of leftover cheese, I keep a box just for these leftover bits  specifically for cooking.  Once again you can use the previously frozen breadcrumbs Remove the fat and chop the Parma ham quite finely,   this could of course be any kind of leftover cured or cooked ham.  Will have to try this with  Carmarthen ham  which is apparently the original Parma ham; the Romans pinched the idea from us Celts. Add the chopped ham to the leftover  was in a large bowl then great in the leftover cheese, I used a mix of three cheeses but one will do fine. Season well with salt and black pepper.  You could add a pinch of chilli powder  if you wanted to spice them up a little Use your imag...

Split pea and ham croquettes Earlier in the week we had a classic London dish for dinner of slow cooked ham joint with yellow split peas )peas pudding), served with  runner beans and chopped Italian tinned tomatoes. We had some left over so thought I would make some peas pudding, cooked onion and baked ham Croquettes. To start with either chop the whole cooked onions that were baked with the split peas or fry off some onions and chop into small pieces which we will add to the croquette mix. Add the leftover cooked spilt peas and crumble into the mixture, season well with salt and pepper. Chop some of the leftover ham into bite sizes pieces, add all the ingredients together and form into small balls with your hands.  As they are already cooked you won't need any binding agent, they are moist and starchy enough. Add smoked spicy paprika (Pimienton) if you have some availab...

Paella This dish is hugely popular all over Spain as many who have visited the country will know and have enjoyed eating it, but it originates in the province of Valencia from where it gets its name; "Paella" is Valencian for frying pan, the distinctive twin handled pans that are immediately associated with this dish. Paella comes in many varieties, traditionally using rabbit or chicken, shellfish and fresh vegetables, so it is a perfect dish for making using leftovers from the fridge or freezer. I have used a traditional paella pan but a large frying pan, wok or saucepan will do perfectly well If like me you throw out very little food then, with a little imagination, you can make a delicious and authentic homemade Paella. Start off by chopping some onions, red onions work well but whatever you have available, white onions shallots and spring onions all work fine, you could even add some leeks and of course garlic is a must. Add a generous splash of olive oil ...

Recycled Casserole If you have frozen any previous meat, regardless of whether it is roasted , slow cooked or casseroled you have the basis for a really nice meal. It may be that you have a singe lamb chop left, some slices of beef or some pieces of chicken, not enough for meal on its own but just sitting there getting frost damaged with so much potential. If, like me, you are bad at labelling then you could end up with a lucky dip casserole but so long as you are not mixing fish and meat you should be fine. Today while rummaging through the freezer I discovered I had some slices of steak and the  remnant of a slow cooked beef dish so decided to combine them into a beef stew I started by cooking off a small chopped onion, garlic, celery and a carrot util it was soft and starting to  brown. This mix is used a lot in latin countries as a base, what the Italian call a "sofrito". The steak was raw so I seared it in some olive oil...

The Recycled Cook By Adrian Sleeman Spanish Croquettes Anyone who has been to Spain will I am sure be familiar with these lovely potato and cheese savouries called Croquetas. Strictly speaking I suppose these are Welsh Croquettes but I am sure nobody will mind. In keeping with the theme of this blog this is another way of using up leftovers, in this case I have used leftover mashed potato, cheese and ham. To make these as vegetarian dish simply leave out the ham and possibly add some cooked onion or red pepper instead. Mix the cheese ham and mashed potato in a large bowl then add some smoked Paprika or Pimienton.  This comes in a Sweet "Dulce" variety or a spicy "Picante" version which is  my preference. You shouldn't need to add egg to bind these as the natural starch in the potato combined with the cheese should be sufficient. Roll them in the palms of your hand into a ball and then form them into the traditional cigar shapes. You c...