6 ways to use up Easter leftovers

Easter is a great holiday for leftovers ham keeps well in the fridge, freezes welland adds a ton of flavour to dishes from pastas to salads to quiche.

A handful doeswell in a batch of mac and cheese, dresses up grilled cheese and lays the foundationfor a fantastic soup.

But a glut of hard-boiled eggs left over from the egg hunt aremore of a challenge. Because there are only so many egg salad sandwiches one caneat, here are a half dozen new ways to transform your Easter surplus.

Make a quiche or a tart or a frittata

All of the above are great ways to use up all kinds of leftovers bits of ham, cookedveggies, wilting greens. Cover it with a rich egg custard and cheese and bake it in apastry shell, or skip the pastry and pour eggs whisked with milk over your choice ofingredients and slide it into the oven to transform them into a whole new meal.

Ham andmushroom tart

(Inspired by my sister and Bon Apptit, May 1994)

Crust:

• 1 1/4cups all purpose flour
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup chilled butter, cut into pieces
• 1/4 cup cold water

Filling:

• 2 Tbsp. olive oil
• 2-4 Tbsp. butter
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• 1/2 lb cremini, brown or button mushrooms, thinly sliced
• 1 Tbsp. chopped fresh rosemary and/or thyme
• salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 Tbsp. Cognac, sherry or brandy (optional)
• 1 cup grated Gruyre, aged Cor white cheddar
• 3/4 cup heavy (whipping) cream
• 2 large egg yolks
• 1 large egg

To make the crust, in a bowl (or the bowl of a food processor) combine the flour andsalt, then pulse or blend in the butter until almost combined. The mixture shouldresemble coarse meal. Add the water and stir until the dough comes together. Let itsit on the counterfor 20 minutes to rest or stick it in the fridge if its warm.

On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out to a 10-12-inch circle just biggerthan a nine or 10-inch tart pan with a removable bottom. Fit it into the pan and fold theedges over inward, making a double-thick crust. Trim to about 1/8-inch above theedge of the pan. (I used a larger pan and so didnt do this just trimmed it to within1/8 inch without folding it over.) Preheat oven to 375F and chill the crust for 20-30minutes.

To make the filling, heat the oil and butter in a heavy skillet set over medium-highheat. Saute the onion and mushrooms until soft; add the rosemary, season withsalt and pepper and continue cooking until all the liquid has cooked off and themushrooms are starting to turn golden. If you like, add a shot of Cognac, sherry orbrandy and cook until it evaporates.

Line the crust with foil and fill with dried beans or pie weights. Bake until golden,about 15 minutes. Sprinkle half the cheese over the bottom of the crust. Cover withthe mushroom mixture. Whisk together the cream, yolks and egg add a few extrasnippets of thyme if you like and pour the custard over the mushrooms. Scatterwith the remaining cheese.

Bake for 30 minutes, until set and golden. Serve warm, at room temperature, or cold.

Serves 12.

Green eggs and ham salad

Hardy kale salads make a perfect vehicle for chopped roast ham and hard-boiledeggs or soft boil or poach an egg to lightly break over top. This kale Caesar saladis dressed with a garlicky, lemony, peppery dressing and tossed with strips of ham,chunks of egg, and freshly grated Parmesan cheese. It travels well and makes apretty fantastic dinner.

• 1 small bunch kale
• 1 cup chopped or sliced roasted ham
• a few hard-boiled eggs, roughly chopped
• shaved Parmesan, aged cheddar or Gouda

Dressing:

• 1/4 cup mayonnaise (or more to taste)
• 1 garlic clove, finely crushed
• juice of half a lemon (about 1 1/2 Tbsp.)
• lots of freshly ground black pepper

Put the kale and ham in a bowl, whisk together the dressing ingredients and drizzleovertop. Toss to coat. If you like, transfer it to a platter. Scatter with eggs and cheeseand serve. Serves four to six.

Make a pot of soup

A leftover hambone makes some of the most flavourful soup imaginable. Throw theham stock into a slow cooker (unless its there already) and add chopped carrot andcelery, dried white or black beans or lentils, dry pearled or pot barley and tomatoes(fresh or canned). Or try white beans, chopped kale or spinach and fresh rosemaryor thyme. Turn it on low for six to eight hours, then serve with crusty bread whatever youthrow in the pot, you cant get a more comforting (or inexpensive) meal.

Devil some eggs

Who doesnt love devilled eggs? Its the perfect way to use up extra hard boiled eggs simply cut them in half lengthwise, remove the yolks and mash them with a blob ofmayo, squirt of grainy mustard, and any number of ingredients you think would gowell with eggs curry paste, sauted spinach, chopped smoked salmon or ham, crabor shrimp anything goes! Spoon the mixture back into the egg halves and you havea party offering people tend to go nuts for.

• 6 large eggs
• 1/4 cup finely chopped smoked salmon, ham or bacon
• 1 green onion, finely chopped
• 1 Tbsp. chopped parsley
• 2 Tbsp. mayonnaise
• 1 tsp. grainy mustard
• Salt and pepper to taste

Place the eggs in a medium saucepan. Cover with water and bring to a boil. Cover,remove from heat and let stand two minutes. Drain and rinse with cold water untilcool. Peel and slice in half lengthwise and remove the yolks.

In a medium bowl mash the yolks with the remaining ingredients. Stuff egg whitehalves with filling and serve immediately. Makes 12.

Pasta with cheesy peas

Ham and eggs go really well in pasta this simple toss of noodles, peas and cheeseis benefited by a handful of chopped ham and/or a fried egg plopped on top. Orwhisk together eggs and Parmesan and toss with the hot pasta and a bit of reservedstarchy pasta water it will cook up like carbonara, the ham mimicking thetraditional bacon.

• pasta for three to four people
• four big handfuls of fresh or frozen peas
• a knob of butter
• a squeeze of lemon juice
• chopped bits of leftover ham
• lots of freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• freshly ground black pepper

Bring a big pot of water to a boil and add the pasta; cook until al dente, adding thepeas for the last 4 minutes of cooking time. Before you drain it, scoop out some ofthe water with a measuring cup.

Drain the pasta and peas and put it back in the pan add a knob of butter, a squeezeof lemon, some chopped ham and lots of freshly grated Parmesan cheese, andenough of the pasta water to make a saucy consistency. Serves three to four.

Spicy pickled eggs with chiles

Who makes pickled eggs anymore? If you find yourself with a glut of hard-boiledeggs, peel them and pack them in a jar with a sweet-tart brine for a batch ofhomemade pickled eggs you can set out on your own bar.

• 8 hard-boiled eggs
• 2 cups white or apple cider vinegar
• cup sugar
• pickling spice
• 2-3 fresh jalapeno peppers, halved lengthwise and seeded

After boiling your eggs (cover with water, bring to a boil for two minutes, then removefrom the heat, cover and let sit for 10 minutes) cool them completely under coolrunning water and peel. Place in a large jar or two.

In a medium saucepan, bring the vinegar and sugar to a simmer. Put a smallspoonful of pickling spice in each jar along with the jalapeno peppers and pour thehot brine over top. Cool, seal and refrigerate for a few days if you can before eatingthem. Store for up to a month.