I cooked a roast at the weekend and had plenty of leftovers afterwards, which doesn't make me sad in the least. I love leftovers almost more than I love the original meals!! In my opinion, leftovers taste twice as nice! I don't understand people who throw away their leftovers. They are missing out on real treasures! Yesterday I turned some of them into a tasty Pot Pie! NOBODY complained!
When I was a child, I was always really excited when my mother made a roast dinner because I knew that there would be pot pies at the end of it all. My mom knew how to squeeze every little ounce of eating pleasure out of a roast dinner and pot pies are about the most economical thing you can do with the leftovers. They stretch a little bit of this and a little bit of that a very long way!
I always make my own pastry, but if you are not a dab hand at making pastry you can use ready roll. You will need enough for a bottom and a top crust. Other than that all you need is a bunch of leftovers. And it needn't be beef!
If you have leftover roasted meat of any kind along with the attendant vegetables and gravy, you have the makings of a pot pie. Today I used some beef, peas, carrots, swede, roast potatoes and of course the gravy. I add a finely grated small onion for additional flavor and some herbs and seasoning.
For Beef I use summer savory or thyme . . . this would also work very well with chicken, pork or turkey. Leftover lamb would go well with mint or rosemary. After Christmas I make pot pies with turkey and ham. I just make a light cream sauce for those. Oh boy but they are some good!
*Mom's Beef Pot Pie*makes one 9 inch piePrintable Recipe
It's amazing what you can throw together with a few leftovers. Stretches a little bit a very long way in a most delicious manner!
sufficient pastry for one two crust pie1 cup of leftover roast beef, cut into cubes1 cup of leftover roasted potatoes, cut into cubes1 cup of leftover peas and carrots, carrots cut into cubes1 cup of leftover cooked mashed swede (rutabaga, if you don't have this, add extra peas and carrots and potatoes)2 cups of leftover gravy (if you don't have two cups, add whole milk, sufficient to make up the difference)salt and black pepper to taste1/2 tsp summer savoury1 small onion, peeled and grated1 TBS cream
Preheat the oven to 200*C/400*F/ gas mark 6.
Mix together the leftovers in a bowl, along with the summer savoury, salt, black pepper and grated onion. Set aside.
Roll out half of your pastry to line the bottom of a nine inch pie dish with a bit of an overhang. Brush the edges with a bit of cream. Spread the filling into the dish. Roll out the remaining pastry to cover. Fit over the filling. trim the edges of the pastry and then crimp it all the way around, pressing the bottom and top crusts together. Brush the top with a bit of cream. Cut some slits in the top to vent.
Bake in the preheated oven on the bottom rack of the oven for 15 minutes, turn the temperature down to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4. Bake for a further 20 to 25 minutes until the filling is hot and bubbling and the pastry is golden brown and crisp. Remove from the oven and let stand for about 10 minutes before cutting into wedges to serve.
I served some homemade oven chips and salad on the side. It was a fab meal. I hope you will give them a go! I think you'll agree with me in saying with leftovers like this nobody will be complaining!
Note - amounts are only guidelines. If you want to add more or less of any one thing, it's really up to you!
Bon Appetit!
