How to refresh Christmas leftovers: Part Three | HerCanberra

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How to refresh Christmas leftovers: Part Three

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It’s time to lift your game and prepare to turn what’s left of the Christmas aftermath into drool-worthy dishes that’ll keep that festive smile on your dial for a little longer.

Did you miss the last two instalments? Find out how to transform leftover turkey, salmon, stone fruit and roast veggies into delicious dishes with Part One and Part Two of our Christmas Leftovers series.

Here are the last two ways to nail sustainability in the silly season and throw fewer leftovers out!

Croque Monsieur Bake

Croque_monsieur

There really is no meat more wondrous (or more delicious) than that magical, succulent beast: The Pig. Leftover ham is totally versatile though, right? I mean, ham sandwiches and ham on toast are the bomb!

Umm yeah, the first 10 times you eat them. Then you want to throw them at the wall. Why not make this ham and cheese sandwich on steroids instead? It’s basically a ham and cheese lasagne. You’re welcome. 

INGREDIENTS

  • 8 slices of thick white bread (crusts on), halved diagonally
  • 8 slices of leftover Christmas ham, halved
  • 200g gruyère cheese, grated
  • 3 eggs
  • 75ml full cream milk
  • ¼ tsp salt
  • Dill pickles or baby cornichon, to serve

Béchamel sauce

  • 100g butter (melted)
  • 2 tbsp plain flour
  • 325ml full cream milk
  • ½ tsp grated nutmeg
  • 1½ tbsp seeded mustard
  • ½ tsp sea salt

Method

For the béchamel sauce

1. Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat until it starts to foam (about two mins).

2. Add the flour and stir to incorporate until the mixture starts to become foamy (about three mins). Incorporate milk gradually, stirring until smooth, then keep cooking on low­-medium heat for around three minutes. 3. Remove from the heat and stir in seeded mustard, nutmeg and salt. Set aside to rest, covered.

To assemble

1. Toast the bread slices until they’re a light golden colour. This will give the bake a little more crunch when cooked. Whisk the milk, eggs and salt together in a medium bowl and set aside. 2. Layer the toasted bread slices in a lightly greased terrine dish or baking tray, starting with a layer of bread, then béchamel sauce, then ham, then Gruyere cheese. Repeat layering until there is about 2cm of space left at the top of the dish. Reserve enough béchamel and cheese for the top!

3. Pour the milk, egg and salt mixture in, taking care not to fill the dish right to the top. Top with the remaining béchamel sauce, a sprinkling of Gruyere and some fresh, grated nutmeg. Refrigerate and let the bread soak up the egg mixture for at least two hours or overnight.

To cook

1. Remove the bake from the fridge and preheat the oven to 200C (180C fan­forced). Cook for around 20-­25 minutes or until the top is golden and crispy.

Serve with dill pickles or baby cornichon.

Christmas Pudding Pops

pudding_pops_2

Love it or hate it, Christmas pudding is the cornerstone of the Christmas table. And there’s always some hanging around after the main event. So why not turn it into these fun, yummy pudding pops.

Both the kids and the adults will love them and you can make a big batch of the ice-cream and eat it out of the tub once the pops disappear (oh, I mean, I didn’t do that, but you probably could).

INGREDIENTS

  • 200g Christmas pudding, crumbled
  • ½ tub vanilla ice ­cream, softened for around 20­-30 mins (low fat ice­cream works best as it contains more water so freezes faster, making it easier to remove from moulds)
  • 5 Oreos or other cookies, crushed

Method

1. Stir the crumbled pudding and crushed Oreos into the softened ice­cream, mixing well to combine.

2. Fill the popsicle moulds with the ice­cream mixture and freeze for at least four hours or overnight.

3. When ice­cream is set, run each mould under warm water for about 20 seconds before carefully removing from the moulds.

Serve straight away!

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