Spinach leftovers...

As much as hubby and I are trying to be healthy and staying on our grocery budget for the month, salads and greens always seem to be items that we don't "get around" to using very often although we always include them in our weekly grocery lists :) But I was refusing to throw a pound of spinach away and came up with the following recipe. Although the base of this recipe was from a recipe on meals.com, I've included below my changes to it. Hope you enjoy it as much as we did...

Spinach Pie

Ingredients:

1 tsp olive oil
3 green onion, chopped
8 cups of loosely packed spinach
1 pie crust
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 1/2 cups crumbled feta cheese
2 portobello mushrooms, chopped
1/2 orange sweet pepper, chopped
3/4 cup evaporated milk
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons fresh dill
2 teaspoons fresh parsley
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350° F.

In a large skillet, heat the olive oil until shimmering. Add the onions and sauté until tender. Stir in the spinach and then turn off the heat. The spinach will start to wilt down, but not much. Let cool slightly.

To the spinach mixture, add eggs, feta cheese, milk, flour, dill and pepper in medium bowl; pour into pie crust. Top with Parmesan cheese.

Bake for 35 to 40 minutes or until set; let stand for 10 minutes.

Enjoy!

Taco Leftovers

A couple of weeks ago for March Break we hosted a fun sleepover for the kids in our family and a Doggie Birthday Party for our little jack russell Dumbo who turned 13 years old. Where has all the time gone. A quick and easy dinner for the kids of soft and hard tacos became a quick Taco Pizza lunch for me the next day.

Taco Pizza

I had some Lebanese flatbreads in the fridge, mixed it with mild salsa, then spread the meat mixture on the bread and topped it with shredded cheddar cheese. I placed it in a preheated oven of 350 and baked it for approximately 12 minutes until the cheese had melted and it was heated through.

Enjoy! I know I did :)

Baked Leftovers...

I found this great recipe for pumpkin bread on Meals.com. I had some leftover pumpkin that I really wanted to use and needed to bake a recipe for the week so this one was it :)

We froze some of the leftovers in little freezer bags with 2 slices. The night before we would take them out to thaw, butter the slices in the morning and it became a great alternative for breakfast. Even our little toddler loved it which makes any recipe an added bonus in our home.

Spiced Pumpkin Bread

Ingredients:
2 cups all-purpose flour
5 teaspoons ground allspice or pumpkin pie spice
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup LIBBY'S® 100% Pure Pumpkin
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup Apple NESTLÉ® JUICY JUICE® All Natural 100% Juice
2 large eggs
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

PREHEAT oven to 350° F.

SIFT flour, allspice, baking powder, baking soda and salt into medium bowl. Combine pumpkin, sugar, Juicy Juice, eggs, oil and vanilla extract in large bowl; stir well. Stir in flour mixture just until moistened. Spoon into greased 9 x 5-inch loaf pan.

BAKE for 65 to 70 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan on wire rack for 10 minutes; remove to wire rack to cool completely.

Enjoy!

More Leftovers...

So hubby and I tried very hard last month to stay on budget and for the first time in a year we both actually made RRSP contributions (who would have thought especially with being on mat leave). Although the temptation was there to go out to eat (many times!) we had to think twice in most cases. This day was going to be no exception so I looked very quickly in the fridge to find something I could throw together I came across some leftovers from our Slowcooker Pot Roast

Visiting my handy dandy Canadian Living Magazine, I found this great recipe for the beef leftovers. Not having had any pizza dough, I used the fresh Portuguese buns I had picked up that morning for my base and turned them into an open-faced sandwich... Wow was this every quick and delicious!!

Philly Cheese Steak Pizza

Ingredients:
1 tbsp (15 mL) extra-virgin olive oil
1 sweet green pepper, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
Half sweet onion, sliced
2 cups (500 mL) sliced mushrooms
1 tsp (5 mL) dried oregano
1/4 tsp (1 mL) each salt and pepper
1 lb (500 g) pizza dough
1/2 cup (125 mL) pizza sauce
8 slices provolone cheese
1 cup (250 mL) thinly sliced cooked roast beef

Preparation:
In large skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat; sauté green pepper, garlic, onion, mushrooms, oregano, salt and pepper until onion is golden and no liquid remains, about 5 minutes. Set aside.

On lightly floured surface, roll out pizza dough to fit 12-inch (30 cm) pizza pan. Spread with pizza sauce. Arrange half of the cheese over sauce; spoon vegetable mixture over top. Top with roast beef and remaining cheese.

Bake in bottom third of 500°F (260°C) oven until crust is golden and cheese is bubbly, about 10 minutes.

Enjoy!

Leftovers in a Pie...

With so many leftovers from last night’s Slow Cooker Pot Roast, I was excited once again to revisit my Canadian Living Special Issue magazine… With 3 options for these leftovers, I decided to select The Shepherd’s Pie recipe on page 46. Now if leftovers could taste like this all the time, I’d be in heaven and have way more time for myself. This recipe was definitely a keeper for our family, hope you think so too…

Canadian Living Shepherd’s Pie

Ingredients:

1 tbsp (15 mL) vegetable oil
1 large onion, chopped
1 tsp (5 mL) dried thyme
2 tbsp (30 mL) all-purpose flour
4 cups chopped cooked Sirloin Tip Oven Roast
1 cup Porcini Mushroom Jus (recipe below)
1 bag of small potatoes (454 g)
1 large carrot, peeled and shredded
1 cup (250 mL) milk, warm
4 tsp (20 mL) butter, softened
1/2 tsp (2 mL) each salt and pepper
1 cup (250 mL) leftover peas & corn

Directions:

In large nonstick skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat; cook onion and thyme, stirring occasionally, until softened and golden, about 5 minutes.

Sprinkle with flour; cook, stirring for 1 minute. Add beef, jus and ½ cup water; simmer for 2 minutes. Spread in 8-inch square glass baking dish.

In saucepan of boiling salted water, cover and cook potatoes (with skin, chopped in ½ ) until tender, about 8 minutes. Drain potatoes and return to dry saucepan; mash together with warm milk, butter, salt and pepper until smooth.

Scrape beef mixture into 8-inch (2 L) square glass baking dish. Cover with shredded carrots, peas and corn; spread mashed potatoes over top. Bake in 400°F (200°C) oven until filling is bubbly and potatoes are golden, about 40 minutes.

Make-ahead: Cover and refrigerate for up to 24 hours; add 20 minutes to baking time.

Porcini mushroom Jus:
1 pkg (14 g) dried porcini mushrooms
1 tbsp (15 mL) vegetable oil
1 clove garlic, minced
Pinch dried thyme
Pinch salt
1 tbsp (15 mL) brandy or sodium-reduced beef stock
1-1/2 cups (375 mL) sodium-reduced beef stock

Preparation:

Soak mushrooms in 1 cup (250 mL) boiling water for 20 minutes. With slotted spoon, remove mushrooms and chop. Strain liquid and set aside.

In saucepan, heat vegetable oil over medium heat; fry garlic, thyme, salt and mushrooms until softened, about 2 minutes. Add brandy; cook, stirring, until no liquid remains.

Add stock and reserved pan/mushroom juices; bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, for about 8 minutes or until reduced to about 2 cups (500 mL).

Note: I ended up using all of this jus in my Shepherd’s Pie as it was that yummy :)

Enjoy!