Bluefish Cakes with Sun Dried Tomatoes

I only know one other person besides me who likes bluefish. And he only likes it because he goes fishing for them and he likes the fishing so he tolerates the eating part.

My husband Ed, who rarely complains about anything I cook and will eat almost everything I cook, complains about bluefish and won’t eat it. So I make some for myself sometimes when he is out at dinnertime.

Then, if there are any leftovers I make those into something for myself too because Ed won’t eat any of the leftovers either.

Obviously people do eat bluefish because it’s always for sale at the fish store at this time of year. Granted  this fish is relatively cheap but you don’t eat food just because it’s cheap. Not bluefish anyway; there are other, more popular choices in the inexpensive category.

For all of you out there, unknown to me, I know you’re there, loving bluefish as much as I do — here’s what I did recently with some of the leftovers: I made them into fishcakes with sun dried tomatoes and potatoes.

They were spectacular. Soft inside, with crispy crusts, and that tangy taste from the tomatoes. I used bluefish of course but any leftover fish would do.

Bluefish Cakes with Sun Dried Tomatoes

2 medium Yukon gold potatoes

2 cups crumbled cooked bluefish (or any leftover fish)

1 large egg

1 thick scallion, finely chopped

1/4 cup chopped black imported olives

1/4 cup chopped sun dried tomatoes

3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

salt and pepper to taste

all-purpose flour for dredging, about 1/4 cup

2 tablespoon butter

2 tablespoon olive oil

lemon quarters

Cut the potatoes into large chunks and cook them in lightly salted water for 12-15 minutes or until tender. Drain under cold water and peel. Mash the potatoes and place them in a bowl. Add the fish, egg, scallion, olives, tomatoes, parsley, mustard and salt and pepper to taste. Mix the ingredients to distribute them evenly. Shape portions of the mixture into 4 patties about 1/2-thick. Dredge the patties in the flour and shake off excess. Heat the butter and olive oil in a sauté pan over medium heat. When the butter has melted and looks foamy, add the patties and cook for about 3 minutes per side or until hot, crispy and golden brown. Serve garnished with lemon quarters. Makes 4 servings

Salmon Salad with White Beans, Blue Cheese and Dried Cranberries

I love to cook, but even I don’t love to cook when the weather is hot and sticky and I’ve been out all day and all I want is a shower, a cool room and a quick dinner.

On those days I grill something easy and fast, like a chicken breast or fish filet. Or I make a sandwich or sometimes even plain old scrambled eggs for dinner.

Sometimes I don’t cook at all. Like when I have leftovers and can mix them with the packaged ingredients that I always keep handy in my kitchen: canned beans, frozen peas, dried fruit and items like that. This is the stuff of a good summer salad.

This salmon salad is just one example of the kind of quick-to-fix food that I think is perfect for a hot summer day. And also if you lose power in a hurricane because if you don’t happen to have leftover salmon, you can use a 15-ounce can of salmon (don’t forget to keep a manual can opener in your miscellaneous equipment drawer).

The recipe is versatile of course. If you don’t have peas, use corn; no cranberries — use raisins; no white beans, use black. And so on.  

Salmon Salad with White Beans, Blue Cheese and Dried Cranberries

2 cups crumbled leftover cooked salmon (or 15-ounce can red salmon, drained)

2 cups cooked white beans (or 15-ounce can white beans, rinsed and drained)

1 cup thawed frozen peas

3/4 cup crumbled blue cheese

4 scallions, chopped

1/2 cup dried cranberries

1 tablespoon grated fresh orange peel

1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill

2 teaspoons chopped fresh mint

1/4 cup vegetable oil

2 tablespoons lemon juice

2 tablespoons orange juice

salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Place the salmon in a large bowl and break it up slightly. Add the beans, peas, cheese, scallions, cranberries, orange peel, dill and mint. Toss gently to distribute the ingredients evenly. In a small bowl mix the vegetable oil, lemon juice and orange juice. Pour over the ingredients and toss. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Let rest for at least 15 minutes before serving. Makes 4 servings

Roast Beef Hash

Did I really do this? Did I actually pay $.99 apiece for duck eggs? Just because I haven’t eaten a duck egg in years and they were sitting there, lovely looking and daring me to choose my favorites, as if any of them looked any different from any of the others? Tempting me, the way the gum and candy tempt kids while their caretakers wait with them on the checkout line at the supermarket? 

Yep. I did it. Bought four of them. 

When you pay that much for eggs, I think you should eat them like eggs. I mean, for themselves and not mixed into something like a cake or pancake batter. 

That’s what I did. Sunnysides, right on top of roast beef hash, which is a perfect counterpoint for two reasons. First, because when it comes to taste, the runny egg yolks ooze into the crispy meat and vegetables and gives all the crusty stuff a memorably voluptuous feel in your mouth. And second, hash uses up leftovers, which is a frugal way to balance the price of those eggs.

Roast Beef Hash

2 cups diced (1/4-inch cubes) Yukon Gold or “new” potatoes 

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1 large onion, chopped

2 cups diced mushrooms (1/4-inch cubes)

2 cups diced cold roast beef (1/4-inch cubes)

1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves, chopped

1/8 teaspoon cayenne, pepper

salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

1 cup frozen peas

3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

1/2 cup beef or vegetable stock

4-8 Sunnyside eggs if desired

Bring a pan of water to a boil, add the potatoes, cook for 3 minutes and drain. Heat the vegetable oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add the potatoes and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 8 minutes or until the cubes are beginning to crisp and brown. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 10 minutes or until soft and beginning to brown. Add the mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, for another 2 minutes. Stir in the beef and season with the thyme, cayenne pepper and some salt and pepper to taste. Cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the peas and parsley, mix, and pour in the stock. Raise the heat to medium-high and cook, turning the hash occasionally and loosening any browned bits on the bottom of the pan. Cook for 8-10 minutes or until the hash is crispy and the liquid has evaporated. Serve with Sunnyside eggs, if desired. Makes 4 servings

Apple Strudel

ate wasting food, so I really related to this article, which gave me yet another reason to think twice before discarding leftovers. It mentioned that the average American household throws out about 470 pounds of food a year, adding unnecessarily to landfills.

I hadn’t actually considered this reason before. For me it was always guilt about hunger around the world. I was brought up in the post-World War II generation of kids who heard this phrase: “think of the poor starving children in Europe” whenever we didn’t want to eat something or other.

Which is not to say I never trash food or that I think it is good to make children eat everything on their plates.

No, I just mean I like to make as creative and delicious uses for leftovers as I can. And to not throw stuff out if I can use it.

For instance. I have been busily making apple dishes for the Jewish holidays. And I had some extra phyllo dough — pieces that had torn off and couldn’t be used for the apple strudels that are now tucked away in my freezer.

So, I spooned some of the apple filling into a small baking dish and covered it with layers of the small, not-so-pretty leftover snippets of dough, brushed them with melted butter and voila! a terrific dessert for two.

Here’s my recipe for Apple Strudel. If you have ingredients leftover, treat yourself to a “leftovers” version.

Apple Strudel

• 4 pie apples (Rhode Island Greenings, Golden Delicious, Granny Smith, etc.)

• 3/4 cup golden raisins

• 1-1/2 teaspoons grated fresh lemon peel

• 8 phyllo dough sheets

• 10 tablespoons butter, melted (approximate)

• 1/3 cup plain dry breadcrumbs

• 1/2 cup ground almonds, optional

• 6-8 tablespoons sugar

• 1-1/2 teaspoons cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Lightly grease a cookie sheet. Peel, core and slice the apples into a bowl. Add the raisins and lemon peel, mix and set aside. Using one sheet of phyllo dough at a time, brush the sheet with some of the melted butter and sprinkle lightly with bread crumbs. Top with a second sheet of dough and continue until there are two separate buttered/crumbed phyllo sheets that are 4 sheets thick. If using the almonds, sprinkle them in a strip along the long side of the buttered/crumbed sheets, leaving a margin of about 1-1/2-inches on both short ends. Spoon the apple mixture on top of the almonds. Sprinkle each mixture with equal amounts of sugar and cinnamon. Roll each strudel, with the last roll, seam side down, onto the cookie sheet. Press the short ends to seal them. Brush each rolled strudel with remaining melted butter. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown.

Makes 2 strudels, each serving 6

Chicken Salad with Quinoa and Oranges

What do you do with leftover chicken?

I was thinking about that the other day because I had some. The best kind too, the kind leftover from when you make chicken soup. Chicken soup chicken is tender and soft and generally mild, at least as compared to a roasted or rotisserie chicken, which are more highly seasoned. The mild flavor means you can do a little more with it.

I had the chicken soup chicken left over from the soup I made for myself as a cure for the awful cold I had. I know there may be no scientific evidence for this, but I think chicken soup really does help when you have a cold. Mine took over a week to go away, and finally did, right after the soup.

Anyway, I had this chicken left over and I remembered that my Mom always made salad with those leftovers and she mixed the meat with celery and sometimes hard-cooked egg, and mayonnaise. On occasion, she would make chicken salad with chopped tart apple and chopped almonds.

Both very good.

But I made the salad below, mostly because I didn’t have enough chicken left to make a traditional chicken salad. The quinoa bulks it up, gives it a healthy touch. I also got the chance to use the mint that is growing so abundantly in my garden, plus some dill leftover from the bunch I bought for the chicken soup.

I added cut up oranges because citrus is so refreshing in a summer salad, looks good too (plus it has all that vitamin C), and I used orange juice (plus some lemon juice) instead of wine vinegar, for the dressing.

No mayo.

I also added blanched fresh peas, but any vegetable would do: cooked carrot, broccoli, asparagus and so on. You could also add some chopped cashews or dried cranberries.

Chicken Salad with Quinoa and Oranges

3/4 cup quinoa

1-2 oranges

1 cup cut up cooked chicken

1 cup blanched fresh peas (or use thawed frozen peas)

2 scallions, chopped

2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill

1-1/2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint

2 tablespoons olive oil

3-4 tablespoons orange juice

1 tablespoon lemon juice

salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Place the quinoa in a strainer and rinse thoroughly with cold water. Let drain. Bring 1 cup of water to a boil, add the quinoa, stir, lower the heat and simmer, covered, for about 15 minutes, or until all the liquid has been absorbed and the grains are tender. Remove the pan from the heat and spoon the quinoa into a bowl to cool. Peel the orange(s) and remove as much of the white pith around the segments as possible. Cut the oranges into bites size pieces and add to the quinoa. Add the chicken, peas, scallions, dill and mint and toss ingredients to distribute them evenly. Pour the olive oil, orange juice and lemon juice into the salad and toss. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Let rest for at least 15 minutes before serving. Makes 4-6 servings

Salmon Zucchini Melts with Dill Butter

Sandwiches for breakfast?

Why not?! They’re easy to prepare and they fill you up. That sounds good to me, especially in the summer when you want to get out of the kitchen quickly and get on with your life. 

They’re good for brunch too. Note that if you have sleepover company during the summer, which I do, often, so I am always looking for food that’s easy but a little different too.

You can carry some sandwiches around, to eat on your terrace or at a picnic area or playground. (Remember that sandwiches were invented for convenience, by a gambler who wanted to eat and play at the gaming tables at the same time).

And they’re an especially good way to use up leftovers, which is a particular thing for me. I hate to throw food out (ask my kids, who would often make fun of the little packages of this and that in my fridge. In fact, they still do that, come to think of it.)

Here’s one, a riff on the old Tuna Melt. It’s not the tote-around kind of sandwich, but is a terrific, nutritious and satisfying sandwich for late breakfast or brunch. Or even dinner. And it finishes up that little bit of salmon from yesterday’s dinner. And the small amount of extra mozzarella cheese. And the English muffins you’ve had in the freezer for a while.

Salmon Zucchini Melts with Dill Butter

2 English muffins (or 2 slices whole wheat bread)

1-1/2 tablespoons butter, slightly softened

1-1/2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill

8 slices zucchini

4 slices tomato

4 ounces cooked salmon

1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

4 teaspoons grated Parmesan cheese

Heat the oven or toaster oven to 400 degrees. Lightly toast the bread and spread each piece with equal amounts of butter. Sprinkle the dill on top. Place the slices on a baking sheet. Layer 2 slices of zucchini and one slice of tomato on top. Cut the salmon into small chunks and place on top of the tomato. Scatter the mozzarella cheese over the fish. Finally, sprinkle with Parmesan. Bake the sandwiches for 5-6 minutes or until the cheese is hot and bubbly.

Makes 2 sandwiches

Beef and Pasta Salad with Avocado-Chili Vinaigrette

I hate waste, so I love using leftovers. Frequently I’ll try to figure out some new and interesting recipe to use up the stuff in my fridge. But more often my motto is simply: in cold weather put everything into a pot pie, when it it’s warm outside cut it up into a salad.

It’s warm outside.

So leftovers become: leftovers plus vinaigrette = salad = dinner.

Like this one, from leftover brisket, tomatoes and vegetables. I also had a half avocado, so I mashed it up into the vinaigrette and spiced it up with chili pepper.

Beef and Pasta Salad with Avocado-Chili Vinaigrette

1 pound penne pasta

2 cups cut up leftover beef

1 cup halved grape tomatoes or 2 medium cut up tomatoes

2 cups cut up cooked broccoli, asparagus or green beans

1 cup olive oil

6 tablespoons red wine vinegar

3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro or parsley, optional

1/2 avocado, pitted, mashed

1 tablespoon finely chopped jalapeno pepper

salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Cook the penne and drain but reserve about 1/2 cup of the cooking water. Place the pasta in a bowl. Add the beef, tomatoes and vegetable. In a jar or small bowl, combine the olive oil, vinegar, cilantro, avocado and jalapeno pepper and shake (cover the jar) or whisk the ingredients until well combined. Pour some of the dressing over the pasta and other ingredients. Toss to coat all the ingredients. Add more of the dressing, to taste and/or some of the cooking water, if necessary to moisten the ingredients. Season to taste with salt and pepper. (If you don’t use all the dressing you can save it for another salad.) Makes 4 servings

Leftover Cranberries?

I remember the day when my mother decided to get all sophisticated on us and switch from canned jellied cranberry sauce to the canned whole berry kind. I thought my Thanksgiving world was going to ruins. I liked that cylinder of shimmering, quivering jelly with the can indentation lines on it. I liked the way the pieces flopped onto the plate when my mother cut it into thick, velvety slices. 

The whole berry kind was somewhat too grownup for my then 8 or 9 year old self, but I had to admit that it was good too, not the disaster I anticipated.

But the best was when she got a new recipe for baked cranberry sauce. It’s the one I make every year, although sometimes I add on a second version. Then I know there will be leftovers.

Everyone always talks about the turkey leftovers. But there’s so many delicious things you can do with cranberry sauce leftovers! Like fritters to go with that turkey sandwich!

Cranberry Fritters

1 cup all-purpose flour

1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

2 tablespoons sugar

2 large eggs

1/3 cup milk or coconut, almond or soy milk

1 cup whole berry cranberry sauce

vegetable oil for frying

sifted confectioner’s sugar, optional

Sift the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and sugar into a bowl. In a separate bowl beat the eggs and milk together until well blended. Add the flour mixture and mix until well blended. Fold in the cranberries. Heat 1/2-inch vegetable oil in a saute pan over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot enough to make a bread crumb sizzle, drop the batter by the tablespoonful into the hot oil. Leave space between the fritters so that they cook crisply. Fry for a minute or two per side or until browned and crispy. Drain on paper towels. Serve plain or with sifted confectioner’s sugar. Makes 6 servings

Sweet Potato Latkes

My life is holiday-ing by. Wasn’t it just Hallowe’en? And Thanksgiving is already gone. Here it is only a day after and in addition to thinking about turkey leftovers I’m thinking about latkes because Hanukkah is next week, starting at sundown December 1st. Before you know it it will be next summer and I’ll be making lemonade for the fourth of July.

Foodwise, leftover Thanksgiving and Hanukkah actually go very well. Turkey sandwiches with old fashioned potato latkes is something special. Turkey and sweet potato latkes may be even better.

If you’ve got a couple of sweet potatoes left here’s an easy latke recipe (a riff on the recipe in my book, Hip Kosher) you can make to accompany your turkey leftovers and you can also make these next week for Hanukkah:

Sweet Potato Latkes

2 medium sweet potatoes

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

2 large eggs

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

vegetable oil for frying

Shred the sweet potatoes in a food processor. Place the potatoes in a strainer and press down to extract as much liquid as possible (or squeeze the shreds in a kitchen towel). Put the shreds in a bowl. Add the flour and toss the ingredients. Add the eggs, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and baking powder. Heat about 1/8-inch vegetable oil in a large sautepan. Scoop enough of the sweet potato mixture to form a pancake about 3-inches in diameter and 1/4-inch thick. Fry the latkes for about 2-3 minutes per side or until the pancakes are crispy and golden brown. Drain on paper towels. Makes 4 servings

Turkey Salad with Chickpeas and Orange Vinaigrette

Food writers are always thinking a season ahead, so I’ve already gone over the prospective Valentine’s Day article with my editor at the newspaper. These discussions always reminds me of my Dad, who was a fabric buyer, and how he was writing orders for calico cotton in December and thick wool in July.

Still, it’s not even Thanksgiving. But this is how my mind works — I’m already contemplating turkey leftovers. We all love sandwiches the day after. But then I like to get more creative so I make up salads and stirfries for the rest of the meat. Here’s an easy salad recipe you can use for your leftovers.

Turkey Salad with Chickpeas and Orange Vinaigrette

• 5 tablespoons olive oil
• peel of half an orange cut into strips
• 2 cups cooked diced turkey
• 2 cups cooked chickpeas
• 1 cup thawed frozen peas or cut up cooked broccoli
• 3 tablespoons orange juice
• 2 teaspoons lemon juice
• 1-1/2 teaspoons grated fresh orange peel
• salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Combine the olive oil and orange peel in a small saucepan and cook over low heat for 10 minutes. Let rest for 30 minutes. Discard the peel. Place the turkey, chickpeas and vegetable in a bowl and toss to mix the ingredients. In another bowl mix the flavored olive oil, orange juice, lemon juice and orange peel and pour over the turkey mixture. Taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper to taste. Let rest for at least 10 minutes before serving.

Makes 4 servings