Leftovers Are New Again

With the holidays comes that special type of inspiration in the kitchen:  what to do with leftovers.  The ritualistic creative endeavor of turning leftovers into a masterpiece is probably my favorite part of the holidays.  I have even served an entire Christmas meal in leftover fashion, skipping the ceremonial pomp and circumstance of carving and serving a turkey and jumping right into the luscious fun of slapping turkey onto my favorite slab of crusty bread drizzled with Dijon mustard and topped with an aged Swiss cheese, crispy romaine lettuce, and juicy tomato slices.   I am reminded of the scene in A Christmas Story when the neighbor's hounds devour the Parker family's feast, and Ralphie laments: "The heavenly aroma still hung in the house. But it was gone, all gone! No turkey! No turkey sandwiches! No turkey salad! No turkey gravy! Turkey Hash! Turkey A La King! Or gallons of turkey soup! Gone, ALL GONE!"  I relate on the deepest personal level to that scene.  I really couldn't imagine a holiday without leftovers.  This year my muse has been pizza as I figure what to do with the huge slabs of meat cooked at holiday time.  This post begins a two-part kitchen journal on my leftover pizza excursion.

For Thanksgiving, we made a Crock pot ham; it was just the three of us, a low key affair, and we made enough ham to have leftovers for days and days and days.  The Crock pot ham recipe was simple:  ham, ginger ale, and apricot jelly cooked on low for six hours.  We made sandwiches, soups, and pastas with that ham, but one of the more memorable meals was a breakfast pizza that Matt, Mia and I made together.   I love making breakfast pizzas so much, and I have for many years.  I began waiting tables in a pizza restaurant when I was just 19.  The pizza cooks introduced it to me then, and I have been addicted ever since.  Eggs instead of red sauce -- that's the key difference.

Our pizza consisted of eggs, ham, caramelized onions, fresh thyme, red peppers, mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses, and mashed potatoes (also leftover from Thanksgiving).  To make a breakfast pizza, you lay out your dough just as you would any pizza; since this will be a very wet pizza to begin with, you must work very quickly, and you should have some type of flour or cornmeal underneath the dough to create friction when you slide into the oven (we use a pizza stone -- works wonders in the home oven).  Create your egg base.  Use 2-3 eggs that you have mixed with a whisk.  Gently turn up the sides of the dough so that the egg will not fall off the edges.  Pour the egg mixture over.  Then top with your chosen toppings.  Be quick about it so that the dough doesn't stick to the work surface. Once done, slide into a 450 degree oven and cook until done.