I'm not sure who it was that first recognized that if you beat egg whites together with a bit of sugar and then baked it that you could come up with a heavenly concotion as light as a cloud and quite blissfully as tasty . . .

I only know that I am glad that they did.



Simple ingredients, simple techniques . . . marry together in a wonderful union of un-parralled success . . . eat them plain, or whip up some heavy cream and sandwhich them together. You could break them up and fold them into some gently whipped cream along with some crushed berries, or like me . . . you could just sit there and bit into it, relishing every glorious, meltingly sweet pillow like bite . . . the choice is yours.



A few things to remember . . .

Always start with eggs that are more than a few days old. Very fresh eggs will not create as voluminous mixture.



Make sure your whisk and bowl are scrupulously clean. Any hint of fat at all will prevent your whites from reaching their full potential.

Avoid making meringues on a humid day. The extra moisture in the air will be absorbed by the meringues, making them soften and get quite sticky . . . not a good thing in a meringue . . . you want crisp and light.




*Big and Fluffy Almond Meringues*
Makes about 6 large or 12 small
Printable Recipe

These lovely meringues are light and crisp. You don't have to add the toasted almonds, but I think they add a nice touch. These are delicious served with fresh berries and softly whipped cream, or make smaller ones and sandwich them together with some whipped cream in the middle.

4 large free range organic egg whites, at room temperature
115g caster sugar
115g sifted icing sugar
1 small package of flaked almonds (optional)



Pre-heat the oven to 110*C/ 225*F. Line a large baking sheet with some parchment paper. Set aside.

Place the egg whites in a large glass mixing bowl. Whip with an electric whisk until they resemble fluffy clouds and hold their shape when you life the beaters out of the bowl. Gradually start beating in the caster sugar, one tablespoonful at a time until the mixture is thick and glossy. (Try hard not to overbeat it) Fold in the icing sugar a third at a time, being careful, once again, not to overmix. You want it to be fluffy and cloudlike.

Spoon large dollops of the mixture onto the baking sheet, leaving about 2 inches or so between each one. If you are making smaller ones, spoon tablespoonful's onto the baking sheet. Scatter the flakes almonds over all, if using. Bake for 1 1/4 hours, or until they are very crisp on the bottom and sound hollow when tapped on the bottoms. They should be very lightly browned. Remove to a wire rack to cool.

You may now use them as you wish.

 

 

 

Next I applied a sort of an uncooked sofrito/mirepoix of very finely chopped vegetables. I used two kinds of sweet bell peppers (yellow and red), onions and green and black olives. You could use whatever combination you wanted to use. 

It is meant to be another layer of flavour in what is already shaping up to be something quite delicious to say the least. And I am all for the flavours!

 

Onto that, and again on both sides, goes a layer of grated Mozzarella cheese.  Ooey, gooey, milky Mozzarella Cheese.  This helps to "glue in" those vegetables and keep them in place.

I added a layer of very thinly sliced Pepperoni.  Italian Pepperoni. You will never catch me snacking on a Pepperami stick, but on a pizza, I love the flavour of Pepperoni. It just fits.

 

Finally on the top I gild the lily with some melted butter.  A thin layer brushed over top of everything.  More flavour it added by lightly sprinkling on some dried basil and oregano leaves, and then a final dusting of very finely grated Parmesan Cheese. 

Now it is time to pop your Pizza Bagel into the oven. Make sure you line your baking sheet and lightly spray it with low fat cooking spray. That cheese will melt and the sauce may ooze a bit. You don't want your pizza bagel to end up stuck to the baking tray.

 

These delicious hot delights are the ultimate in Pizza Bagels.  Not just a half a bagel like most Pizza Bagels you will see, these are the whole shebang! 

With double the sauce, double the toppings and double the cheese.  A true delight you can wrap your mouth around.

 

Hot, delicious and oh so moreish. I guarantee these Pizza Bagels are sure to become firm family favourites.  

I cannot claim fully the inspiration for this delicious treat. I was largely inspired by a photo of some Pizza Bagels I saw on Pinterest from Don't go Bacon My Heart. Lush and lucious. I have adapted the recipe in a way I feel puts them together better and so that if you only want one or two you can easily manage that. Plus I like to make my own sauces, etc. If you would like a full size recipe for my pizza sauce, you can find it here.

I don't know how you feel about Pizza, but as far as I am concerned, there can never be too much of it in my little world. My husband does not share my passion, but that's okay. It just means that there is more for me to enjoy!

So here you are. It's boxing day and you have a whole fridge filled with leftovers. What to do . . . what to do . . .

I thought I would give you some tasty ideas this morning to help you use up some of those scrummy leftovers. Of course you could just have a reheat of the leftovers, but it's also nice to dress them up in a few different ways too!

Ham Leftovers:



We like to have ham, cut into thick slices and fried in butter along side of our fried eggs for a special boxing day breakfast. Just melt some butter and add the ham once it begins to sizzle. Cook until it begins to get crisp on the edges, flip over and repeat on the other side.

You can chop it up and add it to your favourite macaroni and cheese recipe, or to a pan of scallopped potatoes.

Combine it with some of the leftover turkey, and some of that Stilton in a tasty salad!

*Boxing Day Salad*
Serves 4
Printable Recipe

100g bag of baby leaf salad greens (about 4 cups)
1 head of red chicory
1 TBS extra virgin olive oil
100g of cooked turkey (1/4 pound)
100g of cooked ham (1/4 pound)
50g chopped toasted walnut pieces (1/4 cup)
2 ounces stilton cheese, crumbled
4 TBS reduced fat caesar salad dressing

Place the salad greens in a large shallow bowl. Break up the red chicory leaves and toss into the bowl. Drizzle with the olive oil Tear the turkey and ham into bits with two forks. combine in a bowl along with the walnut pieces and stilton cheese. Add the salad dressing and mix to combine. Pile this mixture on top of the salad leaves and serve.

It's delicious chopped and mixed with grated cheese and then stuffed into a nice big fluffy baked potato.

Turkey Leftovers:



Of course you can have a plain old turkey sandwich, but why not dress it up a bit and serve it open faced on a rustic piece of bread, topped with some leftover cranberry sauce, some of the leftover stuffing heated and crumbled on top of the cranberry, then the heated sliced turkey and some heated leftover gravy ladled over top. Delicious with a few sliced pickles and some potato crisps on the side!

My mom always made Turkey Pot pies, or Beef Pot pies. We loved them! You can follow the roughly outlined recipe below, which is only a rough guideline of what to do. You can adapt it to whatever it is you have in your fridge. If you are using beef, then use the leftover beef gravy of course!



*Turkey Pot Pie*
Serves 4 to 6
Printable Recipe

2 mugs full of leftover turkey, chopped
2 mugs full of leftover cooked vegetables, chopped
(peas, carrots, corn) If you haven't got any, then you can
use 2 mugs of frozen mixed vegetables, thawed
a handful of roasted potatoes, chopped
1 mug full of leftover turkey gravy
1 mug full of milk
1 small onion, peeled and chopped
1 tsp summer savoury
salt and black pepper to taste
Pastry to cover
milk and beaten egg yolk

Mix together all the ingredients except for the pastry in a large bowl, seasoning to taste with salt and black pepper. Spread into a large round, or oval shallow casserole dish. Roll out your pastry to cover and place over top, venting to allow steam to escape. Brush with a bit of milk and beaten egg yolk. Bake for about 35 to 40 minutes in an oven which has been preheated to 200*C/400*F/ gas mark 6. Serve warm.

I think one of the most popular things to do over here in the UK with the leftover turkey is to make a Turkey Curry, but how about Coronation Turkey Salad! Yummo!!

*Coronation Turkey*
Serves 4
Printable Recipe

1/2 onion, peeled and chopped
1 clove of garlic, peeled and minced
1/2 TBS vegetable oil
1 TBS curry powder
1/2 tsp each ground cumin, ground coriander and ground turmeric
125ml of coconut milk (1/2 cup)
125ml of chicken stock (1/2 cup)
200g of mayonnaise (about 1 cup)
425g of leftover turkey (1 pound)
2 TBS dessicated coconut, toasted in a dry pan until golden brown, then cooled
fresh coriander leaves to garnisn (optional)

Fry the onion and garlic in the oil, until lightly browned. Mix in the spices and let them sizzle for about a minute. Add the coconut milk and chicken stock. Let simmer for about 20 minutes over low heat until the mixture has reduced and you have a thick, creamy, spicy onion mixture in the pan. Allow to cool completely. Whisk in the mayonnaise. Cut the leftover turkey into cubes and place in a large bowl. Pour the curry mayonnaise over top and toss to mix. Sprinkle with the toasted coconut, and garnish with a few torn coriander leaves.

Serve with warmed Chapattis, sliced tomatoes, sliced onion and torn lettuce.



Leftover Vegetables:

We can't be forgetting the leftover Christmas Veg!! I know we all buy in far more than we need, and then end up with it hanging about the fridge. Here's a few different recipes for some dishes using some of that leftover veg so it doesn't get all wilted and go to waste!

*Spicy Parsnip and Sprout Hash*
Serves 4
Printable Recipe

800g of parsnips, peeled and chopped into chunks (1 1/2 pounds)
300g of brussels sprouts, peeled and finely shredded (1/2 pound)
a large handful of frozen peas
the juice of 1/2 lemon
50g of butter (1/4 cup)
1 TBS cumin seeds
1 TBS garam masala
1 red chili, deseeded and chopped
1 bunch of coriander, chopped (reserve a few leaves to garnish)
salt

Place the parsnips in a pan of cold water to cover. Add a pinch of turmeric and salt and bring to the boil. cook for 12 minutes. While the parsnips are cooking, blanch the sprouts in another pan of boiling water for about 3 minutes, until tender, adding the peas for the final minute. Drain all the vegetables well. Tip the drained parsnips back into the pan along with the lemon juice and half the butter. Mash roughly. Beat in the cooked sprouts, peas, cumin, garam masala, chili and coriander. Season to taste with some salt.

Heat the remaining butter in a medium sized non-stick skillet. When it begins to sizzle, tip in the parsnip mixture, pressing it down to form a flat cake. Cook, until it is browned underneat. Turn over carefully with a fish slice. (It may break up but that's ok) Continue cooking until crisp on this side as well. Keep flipping and turning until you have a nicely crisped cake. Slice out onto a heated plate. Garnish with the coriander leaves. Cut into wedges to serve.

*Roast Vegetables with Stilton and Chestnuts*
Serves 4
Printable Recipe

3 TBS French Walnut oil
4 large parsnips, peeled and quartered lengthwise
4 large red potatoes, peeled and cut lengthwise into 6 wedges
4 large carrots, peeled and halved lengthwise
2 large onions, peeled and cut into wedges
200g pack of peeled and ready to use chestnuts (1 cup)
(roughly chop)
the juice of one lime
sea sald and freshly ground black pepper
200g Creamy Blue Stilton cheese, crumbled (1/4 pound)

Preheat the oven to 200*C/400*F/ gas mark6. Place 2 TBS of the oil in a large roasting tin and heat in the oven for 5 minutes. Toss iin the prepared vegetables, giving them a stir to coat with the oil. Roast for one hour until tender, turning occasionally.Mix in the chopped chestnuts and cook for a further 10 minutes. Whisk together the lime juice, remaining TBS of oil and a bit of seasoning. Divide the roasted vegetables between 4 heated serving plates. Scatter with the crumbled stilton and drizzle with the lime dressing. Serve immediately.

Another thing which I really love is anything to do with British Bakewell tarts. Beautiful tarts in a crisp shell with a jam base and almond frangipane cake topping.