Christmas dinner: The day after

Gourmet omelette

Nurture a Boxing Day hangover with a comforting breakfast omelette using surplus ham (so simple, even a fuzzy festive brain will cope!) Heat oil in a frying pan, beat two eggs together and pour into the pan. Stir with a fork until the eggs begin to set and turn down the heat.

Add your other ingredients – chopped cooked ham, cheese, herbs, mushrooms, whatever’s around – and cook until the egg has set. Fold over in the pan and slide onto a plate.

See also: Roast chicken: a how-to guide

Meaty medley

Put goose or duck to good use in a cassoulet by frying garlic, onion, celery and carrots in goose fat until soft, and season with freshly ground black pepper. Add diced meaty remnants such as ham and sausages, and the goose and duck legs, and pop in a bunch of thyme and bay leaves. Add a little stock, and heat to a simmer, and pour in 2 x 400g tinned tomatoes and 2 x 400g tins of haricot beans and stir gently. Cook for around 2 hours at 150C/Gas Mark 2, topping up with water if it dries out. In the last 30 minutes, sprinkle with breadcrumbs and cook until they crisp up.

See also: Roast chicken: a how-to guide

Cranberry crumble

Swap savoury for sweet by using leftover cranberry sauce in an apple crumble. Preheat the oven to 190C/Gas mark 5, and mix together 125g (4oz) porridge oats, 75g (2oz) brown sugar, 5tbsp plain flour and a pinch of cinnamon. Stir in 75g (2oz) melted butter and a splash of water and mix to form your crumble.

In a saucepan, pour 450g (15oz) cranberry sauce and 2tbsp cornflour and bring to the boil. Remove from the heat and stir in 4 peeled, cored and sliced cooking apples and 2tbsp sugar. Put the mixture into a baking dish and spread the oats on top and bake for 35 minutes, or until the apples are tender.

See also: Roast chicken: a how-to guide

Three ways with leftover roast potatoes

1. Slicing into wedges and dousing with oil, paprika and crushed garlic. Bake in a hot oven for 30 minutes, and serve with a dip made from yoghurt, chopped mint and a squeeze of lemon or;
2. Blend with leftover veg and stock to make a soup or;
3. Cut into bite-sized chunks and fry in a little oil until golden. Serve with salad leaves and strips of salmon or ham.

See also: Roast chicken: a how-to guide

Brussels hustle

'Mash up potato and brussels sprouts scraps with beaten egg, salt and pepper and mould into patties,' says TV presenter Jasmine Birtles, from money saving website moneymagpie.com.

'Roll in a little flour and fry or grill, or put the whole lot into a frying pan and cook like a Spanish omelette. You can even do the ‘bistro thing’ and top with a poached egg and hollandaise sauce!'

See also: Roast chicken: a how-to guide

Christmas pudding soufflé

Home economist James McIntosh, author of frugal cookbook Cake., likes to use his excess Christmas pudding in soufflé. 'For eight people, preheat the oven to 180C/Gas mark 4 and brush the inside of 8 x9cm (3 1/2”) ramekins with melted butter and coat with sugar, and place onto a roasting tin,' he says. 'Cream 110g (4oz) butter and 50g (2oz) sugar together until fluffy and beat in 6 egg yolks.

Fold in 175g (6oz) cake crumbs (Xmas cake will do!), ½ tsp cinnamon, pinch ground cloves and 110g (4oz) crumbled Christmas pudding and grated zest of ½ lemon.In a separate bowl, whisk the egg whites until they form soft peaks and fold in 50g (2oz) caster sugar, before folding into the pudding mixture. Spoon into ramekins, pour 1cm boiling water into the tin and bake for about 25 minutes until nicely risen and golden.'

See also: Roast chicken: a how-to guide

Date cake

While those reindeer themed socks from gran can be re-gifted, the obligatory box of festive dates, or bag of nuts,can sit around for weeks. Turn them into something more appetising by cooking 200g (7oz) dates in a knob of butter and 250ml (8fl oz) water for a few minutes.

Beat in 2 eggs with 140g (4oz) sugar, and sift in 250g (8oz) plain flour, 2tsp baking powder, 2tsp mixed spice and a pinch of salt. Add 115g (4oz) of nuts (walnuts, hazelnuts etc) and beat well. Pour into a greased loaf tin and bake at 180ºC/Gas Mark 4for 1 hour, or until a skewer comes out clean.

See also: Roast chicken: a how-to guide

Chestnut soup

Transform chestnuts into a warming winter soup by boiling them for 20 minutes in water until soft inside, cutting them in half and scooping out the innards. Warm four chopped leftover parsnips in 1litre chicken stock and add the chestnuts, a tub of crème fraiche, 1tsp cumin and season, and simmer for a few minutes before blending until smooth.

See also: Roast chicken: a how-to guide

Cheese dip

Turn your cheeseboard rejects into a delectable dip by grating leftover cheese into a pan and melting with a knob of butter, a glug of Sherry and Dijon mustard. Blend and serve in a bowl with veg crudités and bread sticks.

As for the leftover crackers: crush, bag and freeze to use as a crunchy crust on stews and casseroles or as a coating for chicken and fish.

See also: Roast chicken: a how-to guide