Leftover Spinach Pie Omelets

Leftover Spinach Pie Omelet

Spanakopita is and has been one of my favorite foods for a long time now.  I love Greek food, especially in a restaurant with friends or family.  It’s one of the few meals that doesn’t work well for single people on their own.  Sure, it is possible to make small servings of the different types of food at home (I can’t just have spinach pie).  There are many wonderful different vegetarian Greek recipes, some natural and some easy to turn meatless.  I think it’s best to share the meal with a few people and get to try a bit of everything (moussaka, spinach pie, saganaki, fried zucchini, soups, salads, etc.).  So, when we go out (or stay in) for Greek food, we usually end up with leftovers.  As I’ve said before, I love leftovers but—as I’m sure you know—I don’t always like to eat the same exact meal twice in one week.  So, I’ll take my leftovers and do something creative with them.  The last time my family had Greek food, the spanakopita was all we had to take home.  So—as I often do—I chopped up the leftovers and threw them into a pan with some eggs.  This turned out to be an amazing combination and I thought I’d share it with you all.

Ingredients:

2 or 3 eggs

One small piece (between ½ and 1 cup) of leftover spanakopita, diced

Splash of milk

Dash of garlic power and oregano, or any “Greek Seasoning” spice blend (optional)

Additional Feta Cheese (optional)

Directions:

1. In a medium sized frying pan, melt a pad of butter or margarine with the burner set to medium.
2. Blend the eggs, spinach pie, milk, and (optional) spices in a bowl until thoroughly mixed.  The eggs should be nice and fluffy.
3. Pour egg mixture into the pan, and heat on the stove’s low to medium setting.  Every so often, use a fork to pull back the edges of the eggs so that it will cook thoroughly.
4. When the omelet is mostly cook, flip over so that the top part can cook.  Add the extra cheese and fold the top half of the omelet over and serve.

Tidy Joes

Tidy Joes

I love making sloppy Joes.  I have been cooking them for myself and my family for years.  It’s actually one of the simplest recipes I’ve ever invented/ seen.    Unfortunately, they can be awful messy (hence the name).  Recently I got an idea—before the Pillsbury commercial came out actually—to make pocket sandwiches filled with sloppy Joes.  I took out an uncooked crescent roll, and flattened the dough on a plate to make it a bit bigger/ more stretched out than they normally are.  Next I poured the “mix” onto the unfolded crescent rolls.  Then, I closed them up, and cooked the whole thing until it was golden brown and perfect.   Feel free to change the sauce recipe if you don’t like it; this is just how I like them.

Ingredients:

½ cup TVP (I use smart ground but anything is fine, even chunks of veggie burger).

¼ cup ketchup

¼ barbeque sauce (I like KC Masterpiece because it’s got a rich, smoky flavor)

1 teaspoon chili powder

1 teaspoon garlic powder

Between 2 and 4 unfolded crescent rolls, biscuits, or any type of dinner roll dough

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven based on the instructions on the container (usually 350).

2. Mix the TVP with ketchup and barbeque sauce in a bowl.  You don’t need to cook it ahead of time.  The sloppy Joes will get plenty warm while baking inside the rolls.  Stir until fully mixed.  Then, add the garlic and chili powder and stir again.

 

3. Take two (or more) crescents from the container after opening it according to the directions on the package.  Unroll and flatten the crescents—see photo bellow—or if you’re using biscuits you should flatten them.  If you do use crescents, get the big and flakey or big and buttery.  Depending on the size of your roll, you need to carefully place your Joe mix or else the contents will spill out of an overstuffed pocket when you fold the ends over. 

4. Pour a few spoonfuls of sloppy Joe mix into the center. Fold the small corner/tip of the crescent roll up and over so it touches the very the straight line/ bottom end.  This will cover up most of the TVP mixture.  Then, fold both of the corners up—one at a time of course—bringing them to the middle too—see the photo below—or if you’re using biscuits, cover the bottom/ first half with the top/second half to make a semicircle.

5. Bake in the oven according to the instructions on the container of the roll.  Keep a close eye on them.  Because you are only making a few rolls, it’s easier to overcook them.   Depending on your oven, you might want to flip the pocket over about halfway through the cooking cycle so it cooks evenly on both sides. 

6. Serve with potatoes (I recommend chips, crisps, or mashed) and/or a fruit or vegetable side dish, so you get a fully balanced meal.  Once again, I do have recommendations, broccoli goes well with this dish, so does a serving of mixed veggies (lima beans, carrots, peas, and corn) but I’d bet that squash, or spinach would be nice additions as well, even though I never tried those combos. 

Leftover Veggie Burger Omelet Sandwich

Leftover Veggie Burger Omelet Sandwich

Ingredients:

1. Two or three eggs
2. Splash of milk
3. One (or two) left over veggie burgers, copped. 
4. ¼ cup shredded or one or two slices of cheddar cheese
5. Sautéed mushrooms, grilled onions, (optional)
6. 1 bun, Kaiser roll,  or any other bread or roll
7. Ketchup, mustard, relish and/or pickles, lettuce, tomatoes), etc to top

Directions:

1. Place a small amount of smart balance spread (or butter, margarine, etc) in a medium frying pan and allow it to melt.  Spray with non-stick cooking spray  (preferably butter flavored)
2. Cook the (optional) onions and/or mushrooms in the butter while mixing the other ingredients.
3. Crack and beat the eggs in a bowl with the milk, and veggie burger chunks.  If you want your tomatoes cooked, mix them in now too.  Then, pour into pan and turn the heat to low.  
4. Heat evenly, using a fork to push the egg mixture back every so often so that as much of it as possible will get cooked.
5. Flip over, sprinkle on the shredded cheese.  Fold the omelet over the cheese and finish cooking.
6. Once finished, place inside the bread/ buns and top as you like.   If you are using cheese slices instead of shredded cheese, place it on top of the omelet or on one side of the toast or cold roll. 

It wasn’t always easy to find a good veggie burger.  Even these, it can be a struggle but there are a dozen brands available now.  Even small town Mom & Pop grocery stores sell them now.    Some people like the veggie burger patties made from grains and vegetables but I find those disgusting.   Who wants to pour ketchup and add pickles to a fucking pilaf with and peas and carrots?  It’s a side dish, not a sandwich!  But everyone’s entitled to their own opinion, and if you do like the rice burgers they will work in this recipe too.  Personally, I like to work with Boca burgers—or Quorn—or anything made from soy, because it tastes like a real hamburger.  

As for this specific recipe, I used to make eggs and meatless sausage all the time, but it wasn’t until I started to work on the cookbook that I considered mixing together veggie burger with an omelet.  I  have several “leftover” omelets because I think mixing extra food with eggs is a great way to deal with leftovers without getting bored or having to eat the same thing every day.  However, when I first started experimenting the soy burger omelet, it was completely bland.  Then it hit me: treat the leftovers like a regular burger and pile on the toppings. 

So, I mixed cheese and burger chunks in with the eggs, and put it on a pretzel roll and ate it open face (with half the omelet and toppings on each side.   I really like mushrooms and cheese on my veggie burgers so I put them in my omelets too.  But, as I always say, if you don’t like things the way I suggest you are free to experiment with your own condiments.  You could either go without the onions and/or mushrooms, or you can cook them separately and throw them on the bun with the other toppings.

Leftover Tofurkey Scrambler

If you’re like me, you enjoy leftovers but sometimes get bored of eating the same thing 3 times in one week. As a chef I’ve spent most of my life enhancing leftovers. I add olives and vegetarian bacon bits or veggie burgers to Mac-n-cheese, throw some spices and extra veggies into pasta, and I have been tossing leftover Indian food into a pan with some eggs to make leftover omelets. I recently realized that I can use just about any leftovers (save for pasta and pizza) for omelets or scramblers. I’ve been experimenting for months and I do have a few finished ‘leftover’ or “garbage” omelets but I haven’t had the time to type them up yet. In honor of the holiday season I’m posting my leftover Thanksgiving omelet and scrambler recipes first.

Leftover Tofurkey and Cranberry Omelets

Ingredients

1. 3 eggs
2. 1 piece of a cooked tofurkey roast (diced or chopped) and the rice that was in the middle of the slice.
3. 3 or 4 tbsp of cranberry sauce (more if it doesn’t have whole or chopped cranberries in it)
4. Splash of milk
5. Dash of poultry seasoning
6. Butter flavored cooking spray
7. 1 tsp butter or margarine (to grease pan)
8. ¼ cup or less tofurkey gravy (heated)

Directions

1. Crack the eggs into a bowl, add milk, and beat with a fork until blended.
2. If you haven’t already done so, cut separate the tofurkey “meat” from the rice, and cut it into medium sized cubes. You don’t want them to be too much larger than the pieces in the picture.
3. Add the tofurkey chunks, rice, and cranberries/ cranberry sauce to the eggs and stir until evenly mixed.
4. Melt the butter or margarine in a medium sized frying pan and add cooking spray. Do not overheat. If your butter starts to bubble, the flame/ burner is on too high.
5. Pour the mixture into the pan and cook over a medium flame.
6. Allow the scrambler to cook evenly, stirring occasionally so there won’t be any raw bits.
7. The time it takes to do this will vary depending on your stove, and how high of a flame you use. The eggs should be fluffy when finished. The rice may prevent your omelet from holding together as one big piece which is why I listed this as a scrambler.

Simple Spinach and Mushroom Cups

Simple Spinach and Mushroom Cups

This meal will take approximately 30-45 minutes to cook, and you are going to make two to three large pastry cups.
Ingredients:
1. ½ a package of frozen spinach or about 1/2 pound of cooked, drained, and chopped spinach)
2. 1 tablespoon of butter or margarine
3. ¼ cup of milk
5. 1 fresh peeled, and chopped garlic clove.
6. 1 large Portobello mushroom
7. 3 tablespoons of julienne sun-dried tomatoes
8. ½ to ¾ of a package of soft goat's milk cheese
9. 2 Pepperidge Farm Puff Pastry shells (Any type of vegetarian pastry shell or cup will work just fine).
Instructions:
1. Pre-heat the oven 400 degrees (or the temperature listed for that product), and cook the shells, on a cookie sheet, according to the directions on the box.
2. While they cook, heat the frozen spinach in the microwave, put half away for another time, and leave the remaining spinach in the bowl or dish it was cooked in.
3. Melt the butter in a medium saucepan.
4. Add the chopped mushrooms and cook them for about 5 minutes
5. Add the milk and garlic, sauté over a low heat for 10 minutes, until they are soft and juicy.
6. Drain any excess juices from pan, and add the spinach, tomatoes, and cheese to the mix.
7. Heat (stirring occasionally) for 10-15 minutes.
8. Pour the mixture into the cooked cups. You will have a little extra.
9. Place filled cups in the oven for another 2 or 3 minutes.

Spinach and mushrooms are two of my favorite vegetables, and I am always looking for ways to mix the two together or with other ingredients. One evening I was cooking mushrooms the way I always do (in melted smart balance spread with milk and garlic) and I thought, what if I made a dip with spinach, goat’s cheese, mushrooms, and sun-dried tomatoes? I originally put the spread on a slice of bread. When I made this for my family the first time, I wanted to serve it in one large pastry shell, , but when I got to the store I couldn’t find any vegetarian pie crust.
I found the Pepperidge Farm shells, and turned out to be perfect for several reasons.
1. They didn’t have lard or any other animal products in them. They don’t even contain eggs or milk!
2. They are tasty. The shells are soft, crisp, light, and airy, everything you would want in a pastry dish.
3.I've always been able to find them.
4. The shells are simple to cook, just stick them in the oven at 400 degrees, cook for about 25 minutes, and stick a fork inside to remove the center part. Then you can put whatever you want inside of it. I’ve made this dish for family and friends, and everyone loves it.

Dedication Page

This cook book is dedicated, in loving memory, to Linda McCartney. Dearest Linda, without you there would not be a section in bookstores, and as such everyone would think that we vegetarians eat nothing but salad. There also wouldn't be any place to publish my recipes, and so thank you for that as well. Without your hard work and love of animals, there would be very few (extremely small) vegetarian and animal rights organizations and nearly all of the companies that no longer test on animals because of the boycotts from the animal lovers would still be testing on animals. I am not suggesting that you did this all on your own. Of course you had help. A lot of help. But you were one of the first to fight the good fight. Everyone remembers the firsts fighters because when you started, it wasn't cool to love animals and not want to eat them. I wish that I could put into words the depth of my gratitude and love for you and your great works, but I can not. I hope you can see this from where you are, and that it makes you happy. Love, Rachel the Vegetarian.

Note to my readers: if you are still eating meat, Linda and I and all the animals of the world would greatly appreciate if you decided to become a vegetarian. There are hundreds of places to go for help. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals will send you a free vegetarian starter kit. If they are too radical for your tastes, feel free to google "how to be a vegetarian" Or "new vegetarians" or email (or friend me on Facebook) or check out your local library/ bookstore. Once upon a time, there were only a fistful of meat-free frozen foods, and meat substitutes, but now there are too many to count. Check out a health food store, or shop online. Regular grocery stores will have some products but make sure you read the ingredient list carefully. Rennet is sometimes still found in cheese dishes, and it is basically made from cow stomach! There has never been a better time to be a vegetarian. So go veggie!

14 years vegetarian and loving it!


PS: I do not own that photo.

Leftover Indian Food Omelets

Leftover Indian Food Omelets

Ingredients:
1. 2 or 3 eggs
2. ½ to one cup of leftover vegetarian Indian food dish. I used Palak Paneer from India House in Buffalo Grove IL. This recipe also works with the frozen Palak Paneer dinner from Ethnic Gourmet, and will work with any other dish, preferably something without too many chunks of vegetables. If it is “chunky” you can just dice the vegetables and/ or cheese so they will fit in the omelet.
3. 1 pad of butter, smart balance spread, or margarine

Recipe:
1. Heat the butter in a small or medium skillet, and spray with non-stick cooking spray (butter flavor, or flavorless is best, do not use olive oil flavored spray!)
2. Break the eggs into a bowl, add the leftovers, and whisk until fully mixed.
3. Pour the egg mixture into the pan, heat evenly, flip, and fold.
4. Slide the omelet out of the skillet and onto a plate. Serve with French fries, potato chips, fruit, carrot sticks, applesauce, bread/ toast, or rice.


I love omelets, as I’m sure I’ve already mentioned. I also love leftovers. One way to add a slightly different taste to previously eaten food, or to add extra protein to a meal of leftovers is to add them to an omelet. I will be introducing more leftover omelet recipes, because it works with all sorts of different kinds of foods. Veggie burgers, cheese plates (or saganaki), beans, stir fry, Chinese food, Mexican food (minus taco or burrito shells), vegetarian moussaka, tofurkey, just about anything except for leftover pasta could work.