The holiday season is when people prepare a lot of dishes that everyone shares. One of the most common things you can spot during holiday gatherings is the charcuterie. And while you can keep leftover wine inside the fridge, it’s not common to create new dishes out of charcuterie leftovers.
Fortunately, nowadays, there are many easy-to-make recipes that you can try using the ingredients from your leftover charcuterie.
In this article, we’ll give you some recipe ideas using the common ingredients you can find from charcuterie.
1. Grilled Cheese
You can never go wrong with the classic grilled cheese. But instead of your go-to yellow cheese, you can use a combination of all the available cheese from your leftover charcuterie. You can add brie, blue cheese, and cheddar. Of course, don’t forget to use crusty bread and some butter for a complete grilled cheese experience.
If you want to create an improved version of the regular grilled cheese, you can add a thin layer of honey or fig jam.
2. Cheese Sauce
Since cheese is one of the most common things you can see on charcuterie boards, you can use various kinds of cheese to create a luxurious cheese sauce. Although it’s not common in Spanish restaurants to see cheese sauces, since you’re reusing leftovers, don’t hesitate to combine all the available cheese.
Once you have your cheese sauce, there’s an endless possibilities of using it. It can be used for pasta, dip, and toppings for roasted vegetables, and other dishes.
3. Charcuterie Frittata
Do you also have a selection of leftover cold cuts, you can chop them into smaller pieces, and make some frittata. It’s a great breakfast idea, especially since you just had a party last night.
For the frittata, you just need to prepare some eggs, chopped cold cuts, cheese, and broccoli (cut into small pieces) or spinach. Beat eggs, and combine the rest of the ingredients. After that, transfer the mixture into a pan. Preheat the oven to 400°F, and bake it for 15 to 20 minutes.
4. Stuffed Mushrooms
Do you have some mushrooms in your pantry or refrigerator? Another easy-to-make recipe using leftover charcuterie is the savoury stuffed mushroom.
In making this recipe, you need to finely chop the leftover cold cuts, and mix them with cream cheese, and herbs. Separate the mushroom stems and caps from each other. You’ll only need the mushroom caps. Next, stuff the mushroom caps with cream cheese and herbs. Top them with breadcrumbs, and bake in a preheated oven at 350°F for about 20 minutes.
5. Breakfast Parfait
As for the other leftover ingredients from your charcuterie, such as nuts and fruits, a holiday breakfast parfait is the best choice. You’ll just need a few more things, including yogurt, granola, and honey. Layer the yogurt, nuts, fruits, and granola into a cup, and drizzle them with some honey, and you’re good to go.
6. Salad Topper
Another recipe that needs the leftover nuts and dried fruits from your charcuterie is salad. If you have some green, like arugula or spinach, it’s easy to whip up your lunch after a holiday party. Just toss them all in a salad bowl, and add some salad dressing of your choice, and it’s done.
If you have some more time, you can also add pasta for a heavier dish.
7. Olive Tapenade
If there are a lot of olives left from your charcuterie, you can make an olive tapenade. Aside from the olives, you also need to prepare extra-virgin olive oil, sundried tomatoes, capers, garlic, parsley or basil, and fresh lemon juice.
In a food processor, combine all the ingredients, and blend them all together. You can use this olive tapenade for sandwiches or pasta.
How to Prevent Future Waste?
Although it’s fun to create more dishes from charcuterie leftovers, there are times when you can be too busy or you already have other kinds of leftover dishes. To avoid having too many charcuterie leftovers, consider portions based on the number of guests. In addition, you can serve a small portion, and just refill them whenever needed.
Another way to minimise food leftovers is by limiting the variations of the elements of your charcuterie. For instance, you can settle with three kinds of cheese, almonds, two to three types of cold cuts, and grapes.
Final Thoughts
Reusing charcuterie leftovers is a great way to minimise waste, and helps you discover more dishes you don’t usually make. By considering these recipe ideas, you won’t have to feel like you’re wasting precious resources since you can make other dishes out of them.
So before throwing them away, it’s best to look for as many recipe ideas as possible, so you have a lot of options on what dish you’ll create. If you have more ideas on how to reuse leftover charcuterie, don’t hesitate to comment below!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Aliana Baraquio is a web content writer who also loves cooking dishes from different countries. If you want to experience a Barcelona-style restaurant that serves high-quality food, and a modern, contemporary, fresh feel from the south of Europe, visit TAST Catala Spanish Restaurant.
