Cumin Roasted Caulifloer (v)

This is a great way to use up any leftover cooked cauliflower you may have hiding in the back of your fridge, but is also a yummy way to jazz up a sometimes overlooked veggie.

For one person you need
1/2 cup prepared cauliflower florets (lightly steam for 2-3 mins if not using up leftovers)
1 tsp olive oil
salt and pepper
1/2 tsp cumin seeds

Toss the cauli in the oil, cumin and seasoning and then roast for 15-20 mins until lightly browned and starting to crisp. Delicious on its own or with anything you fancy!

Lamb, Date and Almond Lentil Tagine

I adore Moroccan food. Absolutely, totally love it. Thankfully Fuz does too ;-) This was an easy and quick meal to use up some of the left over lamb from our Sunday roast. It would work well with leftover beef too.

For 2 portions you need
2 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, sliced
4 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
1 inch piece of fresh ginger, grated
1/2 tsp each turmeric, ground cumin, chilli flakes and ground coriander
1 tsp each of ground cinnamon and ground ginger
salt and pepper
1 can chopped tomatoes
2 tbsp dates, roughly chopped
1 cup diced cooked lamb or beef
300ml lamb stock
1/2 cup red lentils
2 tbsp whole skinned almonds, toasted

Begin by frying the onion in the oil in the base of a tagine or other heavy based pan. Add the garlic, ginger and spices and cook for another 5 mins or so. Add everything else apart from the almonds and bring to the boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook, covered, for 30-45 mins.

Add the toasted almonds 15 mins before you want to serve, and remove the lid to thicken the sauce. Delicious with the orange, onion and almond salad.

Veggie Caesar Salad

I love quorn roast and like to use the leftover bit in a veggie version of caesar salad. Make sure whatever dressing you buy is veggie friendly (or make your own with mayo, a little hendersons relish and some white wine vinegar).







For 1 person you need:
1/2 cup watercress
2 leaves romaine lettuce, shredded
2 inch piece of cucumber cut into matchsticks
2 spring onions, sliced
3 slices cold quorn roast, cut into chunks
handful croutons
1-2 tbsp caesar dressing

Place the lettuce and watercress into a large shallow bowl. Top with the cucumber and spring onions. Sprinkle over the quorn roast and croutons and top with the dressing. Enjoy.

Bottom of the Fridge Soup (v)

This is made from the veggies left in the vegetable draw at the end of the week. The ones you can't be bothered to use in anything else but don't want to throw out either.




For 4-6 portions you need:
1 onion, roughly chopped
3 celery stalks, chopped
3 carrots, peeled and chopped
1/2 head cauliflower and brocolli, cut into rough florets
750ml vegetable stock
1 tbsp oil
Nutritional yeast and dried, fried onions to serve

Begin by sweating the vegetables in the oil for about 10 mins. Add the stock and simmer for 10 mins until tender. Blitz and then serve with nutritional yeast and dried, fried onions on the top. Add some grated cheese if you're not vegan if you want.

Parnsip and Celeriac Soup with Cream and White Wine

Yes. We're *still* using up the Christmas leftovers...

For 4-6 portions you need:
1 onion, chopped
1 leek, sliced
3 parsnips, peeled and diced
1 celeriac, peeled and diced
50g butter
2 tbsp ground nut oil
1-1.5 litres light vegetable stock
125ml double cream
250ml white wine
salt and pepper

Sautee the vegetables in the butter and oil, covered, for about 15 mins till tender. Add the wine and allow to boil for a minute or so. Add the stock and season. Bring to the boil and simmer covered for about 15 mins. Blend to a smooth puree, adjusting the seasoning if necessary. Serve with a dash of cream and some fresh chives snipped over the top if you have any.

Roquefort and Walnut Salad with Garlic Croutons

This was an attempt to use up some more of the seemingly endless Xmas leftovers...

For one person you need:
3 walnuts, shelled and broken into bits
1 slice bread, cut into chunks
1 clove garlic, crushed
salt and pepper
olive oil
salad leaves e.g. watercress and endive
leftover cheese
walnut oil
white wine vinegar

Toss the bread in a bowl with the garlic, salt and pepper and some olive oil. Toss on to a baking sheet and cook in a hot oven for about 10 mins, checking every couple of minutes. DO NOT LET THEM OVERCOOK!!! Remove and leave to cool.

In the same bowl you made the croutons in, place the salad leaves and walnuts. Season with pepper but no salt. Drizzle over some walnut oil and white wine vinegar. Toss the salad and place on a plate. Top with the croutons and cheese.

Banana Toffee Cheesecake (dairy free)

This is in Nigella's new book Kitchen. She describes it as a way to use up leftover over-ripe bananas and I decided to use up the dregs of the biscuit tin too and some vegan cream cheese that had just been sitting the the fridge looking sad. Whilst the cheesecake is dairy free, it does contain eggs and is therefore not vegan, obviously... and the sauce contains cream and butter. This recipe was also an opportunity to try out my new silicon cake tin i.e. one that won't ooze wet cheesecake mix out the bottom or need lining with clingfilm/baking parchment. Quite how I remove it from the tin is another matter!!

For 10-12 portions you need:

For the base:
250g mixed biscuits (I used a mixture of royal danish butter and ginger)
75g unsalted butter, softened

For the cheesecake:
4 overripe medium bananas
60ml lemon juice
700g vegan cream cheese
6 eggs
150g light soft brown sugar

For the toffee sauce:
100g unsalted butter
125ml golden syrup
75g light soft brown sugar

You also need a 23cm springform tin or I used a 21cm silicon tin.

Start with the base. Blitz the biscuits with the butter in a food processor till it's come together. Press into the tin and chill in the fridge.

Mash the bananas with the lemon juice. Nigella says to use a fork but frankly life is too short so use a potato masher instead and be done in a quarter of the time...

In the cleaned food processor, lob in the cream cheese and blitz. Add the eggs one at a time. Add the sugar and then the bananas and lemon juice. Mix well till smooth.

Pour the batter on to the base and bake in a moderate (160 degree) oven for about 1hr 15 mins. Remove and leave to cool then chill over night.

For the toffee sauce melt everything together then boil for 2-3 mins till light golden brown and bubbly. Leave to cool.

Serve the cheesecake drizzled with the sauce with more sauce on the side for greedy buggers like me. Yum yum yum.

Boxing Day Breakfast (v)

This is an excellent way to use up those leftover potatoes...

For one person you need:
2-3 leftover potatoes (roast or boiled)
1/2 onion
salt and pepper
handful tomatoes, sliced
if you're veggie then add an egg
1-2 vegan bacon style strips (or a handful of bacon bits salad crispy thingies)

Roughly dice the potatoes and finely chop the onion. Fry on a high heat in a little oil for 5-10 mins till crispy and golden all over. Add the bacon strips if using and the tomatoes and cook for a further 1-2 mins. Season to taste. Fry the egg if using and serve with copious orange juice and coffee.

Boxing Day Soup with Cheese

This is an excellent way to use up those leftover veggies and cheese.

For as many portions as you need simply take:
1 cup veggies per person
1 cup stock
salt and pepper
1/2 cup leftover cheese e.g. stilton; blacksticks blue; st agur etc also works with cheddar, gruyere or mature gouda. Not so good with brie...

Heat the veggies in the stock and then blend when hot. Crumble or grate in the cheese and let it melt. Blend till smooth and enjoy. Vow to buy less cheese next year. Fail. Repeat.

Boxing Day Soup (v)

This is an excellent way to use up those leftover veggies.

For as many portions as you need simply take:
1 cup veggies per person
1 cup stock
salt and pepper
1/4 glass white wine
1/2 onion
2 sticks celery
1 tbsp veg oil

Fry the onion and celery in the oil and then heat the veggies in the stock and wine and blend when hot. Serve topped with left over crunchy roasties if you have any or deep fry some left over new potatoes/limp and soggy roasties. Add a swirl of cranberry sauce to the middle and scoff. Lovely.

Pasta with Peas and Pesto

Or the three p's... I'd had a really long day yesterday and a really long commute and needed something ultra fast to fuel me and soak up the LARGE glass of wine I downed upon arrival home ;-)

For one hungry person you need:
100g spaghetti
1/3 tub fresh pesto
1/2 cup frozen peas

Cook the pasta. 3 mins before it's done add the peas to the water. Drain. Toss through the pesto. Eat. Smile. Relax.

Irish Pie (v)

So called cos it's basically colcannon...

For 2 portions you need:
1 onion
1-2 bunches kale
knob vegan marge
little sunflower oil
little soya milk
potatoes
salt and pepper

Cook the potatoes and make in to mash using some of the marge and the milk. Season. Meanwhile chop the onion and sautee in the marge and butter. Wash and finely shred the kale and add to the onions. Cover and wilt for 5 mins or so. Place in the bottom of an oven proof dish. Top with mash and bake in a hot oven for 20-30 mins.

Romanesco and Brassica Soup with Blue Cheese

OK cauliflower and broccoli then...

For 1-2 portions you need:
1/2 head each leftover cooked cauli and broccoli
1 onion, diced
small knob butter
500ml stock
salt and pepper
1/8 cup crumbled blue cheese

Sautee the onion in the butter till golden. Add the cauli and broccoli and stock and cook out till hot. Blitz to a puree and then stir in the cheese. Quick and delicious.

Curried Cabbage Soup (v)

And no, it's not as grim as it sounds. Promise.

For 3-4 portions you need:
1/2-3/4 leftover cooked cabbage
various other cooked leftover veggies (I had leeks, carrots, cauli)
1 litre vegan stock
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp curry powder

Place everything in a pan and simmer for 5-10 mins till hot. Blend and serve. Simples.

Chilli Tofu and Alfafa Wraps (v)

This is one of those disgustingly healthy quick lunches that makes you feel very virtuous :)

For 2 portions you need:
1 pack smoked and marinated tofu, cut into strips
4 large outer leaves from a chinese leaf or cos lettuce
1 large cup alfafa
1 cup leftover stirfried veggies in chilli sauce
splash soya sauce
fresh corriander

Lay the tofu in the leaf then add the vegetables, corriander and alfafa. Add a dash of soya sauce and scoff.

Leftover Roast Dinner Soup (v)

This is a cinch to make and tastes lovely. All you need to do is make extra of the veggies and potatoes, lob them into a pan with some stock and blitz. See, told you it was easy.

For 4 or so portions you need:
Leftover veggies (I used roast spuds, cauli, broccoli and carrots)
1 onion, diced
2 tbsp oil
1 litre vegetable stock

Begin by sauteeing the onion in the oil for about 5 mins. Then add the veggies and stock. Bring to the boil, cook out for 2-3 mins to heat everything through, then blitz to a smooth puree with a stick blender. Add some more stock/soya milk if it's too thick. Serve with nutritional yeast. Feel frugal.

Risotto Cakes with Goat's Cheese

I had some left over risotto from Friday night and have been meaning to try and make some risotto cakes for ages. They worked pretty well :)

For about 6-8 cakes you need
leftover risotto (I used a butternut squash one)
Goat's cheese - I used about 1/4 of a log

Place the risotto into a bowl and mix to break it up (assuming it's cold and has been in the fridge). Pick up a dollop, about the size of a golf ball, and squidge it in your hand. Push some goat's cheese in to the centre and close the risotto around the cheese. Shape into a ball. This is easier than it sounds. Repeat till all the risotto and cheese has been used up. Place on a baking sheet and bake in a hot oven for about 20-30 mins til crispy on the outside and piping hot. Serve with a green salad and maybe a tomato sauce if you like.

Baked Eggs with Mash

A leftovers idea this one. Something you can chuck together from bits and bobs in the fridge. I made this on Sunday using extra mash from dinner. Was very yummy, but the eggs were slightly over cooked.

For 2-3 portions you need:
Mashed potato flavoured with whatever you fancy - I used 2 onions sauteed in butter until really crispy; chopped chives; chopped parsley; 1 tsp french mustard and some cheddar.
4 eggs
Grated cheese: cheddar, emmental or gruyere all work well.

Put the mash in an oven proof dish and make 4 wells for the eggs. Crack the eggs in to the hollows and sprinkle cheese over the top. Bake for 20-30 mins until the cheese is melted, the potato is cooked and the eggs are just done.

It's nice served with peas or salad.

Vegetable and Bean Cheesy Gratin

OK OK so it's another variation on an old favourite but it tastes goooooooood!

For 4-6 servings you need
Leftover cooked veggies (we've got cabbage, broccoli and carrots)
1 tin pulses - black eyed beans here tonight
1 quantity thin cheese sauce (30g butter, 30g flour, 500ml soya milk, 1 cup grated cheddar)
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
3 tbsp grated parmesan

Layer the veggies and beans in a gratin dish. Make up the sauce and pour over. Top with breadcrumbs and parmesan and then bake in a hot oven for 25 mins till bubbling, crispy and browned on top. Scoff with leftover roast potatoes and cold quorn roast. I love leftovers!

Cheesy Potato Pie

My husband hates cabbage. Unfortunately (for him) I happen to like it. A lot. Plus in the winter the veg box always seems to have a surplus. So this was invented as a way of using up both cabbage and last nights mash on the understanding the copious amounts of cheese always makes something taste better. Put it this way, he eats it...!

You need
Leftover mash (about 4 or so potatoes worth)
Leftover cabbage (any amount), shredded
Fried onion or leek if you can be bothered
Lots of grated cheese
A smidgen of mustard - any kind apart from hot dog mustard that is!

Lob the mash, onions/leeks and cabbage into a bowl along with about 1 cup of cheese and mix together. This is easier to do if the mash is still warm. If it's cold from the fridge then nuke it for a bit to soften it up. Once it's all mixed put into a baking dish and rough up the top. Cover with more cheese (as much as you fancy) and then bake in a hot oven for 30-45 mins till bubbling, golden brown and yummy. Enjoy on its own or with other leftovers.