Leftover Cheese ~ 65 Great Ideas that will make you Happy!

Whatever leftover cheese scraps you have lurking about the place I think you will find something delicious to do with them here!

This post on leftover cheese recipes was prompted by a rather fine joke my sister told me, plus cheese is one of my favourite things!

Joke – best read aloud

A cheese looks into a mirror and says ...
“Halloumi”

Sorry about that!

Ideas to Suit Most Leftover Cheese

1.    Stir grated, chopped or soft leftover cheese into hot mashed potato.

2.    Add to omelettes, scrambled egg and other egg dishes.

3.    Try burgers topped with real cheese, the processed stuff isn’t compulsory, or even real cheese!

4.    Stir leftover cheese through risotto during last few minutes of cooking – Parmesan is traditional but other cheese work well too, soft cheese gives a rich finish.

5.    Toss into salads.

6.    Float a bit of cheese on toast on soup; if it’s good enough for the French its good enough for us! – see my cheese on toast post for details.

7.    Crumble into vinaigrette, Parmesan is traditional in Caesar dressing and blue cheese works well in dressings too – see here for basic vinaigrette recipe and lots of ideas.

8.    Cheese Straws – here’s how to make cheese straws with pastry scraps.

9.    Mix with breadcrumbs and sprinkle onto dishes to be baked; pastas, gratins, Cauliflower Cheese etc., for a crisp crust.

10.   Sprinkle on pizza, of course.

11.   Make cheesy garlic bread.

12.   Add cheese to bread dough, grated cheese will give an even flavour throughout and crumbles will give lovely cheesy pockets. After the first rising roll out the dough and scatter with the cheese plus any other additions such as nuts, fruit etc. Re-knead and continue as usual.

13.   Cheese Fritters – for a basic and flexible fritter recipe with suggestions including cheese see here.

14.   Cheese on Toast – lots of cheese on toast ideas here.

15.   Grilled (so called!) Cheese Sandwiches – see here.

16.   Add to Alfredo Sauce – Parmesan is a basic ingredient in this lovely, quick, easy and luxurious sauce but other cheese instead of or as well as Parmesan make delicious variations.

Traditional Cheese Sauce

This is Number 17 if you are counting!

Normally I would use a mixture of Cheddar and Parmesan plus a little mustard but any leftover cheese can be used to good effect together with seasonings to match.

30g butter
30g plain flour
600ml milk
salt and pepper
a pinch of mustard powder, cayenne, nutmeg or nothing as applicable
80g grated or crumbled cheese

~       Melt the butter in a medium sized saucepan and stir in the flour to form a paste.
~       Cook gently for a minute or two then gradually whisk in the milk till completely combined.
~       Turn up the heat and whisk constantly as the mixture comes to a boil and thicken to a smooth sauce.
~       Reduce the heat to low, simmer for 5 minutes then stir in the cheese till melted. 
~       Taste and season but do not boil again as the cheese may become stringy.

18.   All sorts of cheeses make great fillings for baked potatoes.

19.   Cheese Soups– stir grated or soft cheese into your favourite soup or there are five recipes for cheese soups in SOUP (almost) the Only Recipe You’ll Ever Need! including this sexy Roasted Garlic & Parmesan Cheese Soup

20.   Put a nugget of cheese in the middle of potato cakes for a molten centre when cooked.

Quesadilla

No. 21

~      Have you’re your filling ready; in addition to cheese good ideas are chicken, chilli, cooked vegetables, shredded cooked meat, beans etc.  You also need a flour tortilla.
~      Heat a little oil in a frying pan large enough to take your flour tortilla laid out flat.
~      Lay the tortilla in the hot pan and sprinkle the fillings over half of it.
~      Cook gently till the underside is crisp and golden, the filling hot and the cheese melty.
~      Carefully fold the unfilled half over the filled, slide onto a chopping board and cut into wedges.  
~     Serve with salsa and sour cream.

Incidentally there is a recipe for entirely cheese-free Chocolate & Chilli Quesadilla here.

22.   Cook’s Treat – just sit yourself own with the leftover cheese, a glass or wine and maybe a good book and finish the irritating stuff off!

Leftover Soft & Cream Cheeses

23.   Mix with a little cream and appropriate seasoning and use to top soup when serving.

24.   Melt into hot pasta for a quick sauce adding other ingredients according to your fancy.

25.   Stir into tomato based pasta sauce.

26.   Mix with a leftover sauce or salsa and use as a dip.

27.   Top crostini with cream cheese, smoked salmon and chives (or dill or parsley etc.)

28.   Almost a Cream Tea – replace the clotted cream with sweetened cream cheese (but this is absolutely no excuse to any other aberrant behaviour – the rule is jam first!).

29.  Savoury Cream Tea – use plain but not too sweet or, even better, cheese scones and fill with cream cheese and tomatoes. Boursin or similar is good for this.

30.   Sweeten and flavour cream cheese with citrus zest, vanilla extract, jam, marmalade, liqueur etc., soften with a little cream if necessary and use as a topping, frosting or filling for cakes and desserts.

31.   Fill peach halves with fresh cheese, sprinkle with brown sugar and pop under the grill till warm and caramelising.

Leftover Brie, Camembert and Similar

32.   Cheese croutons – dice and coat with seasoned flour, dip in beaten egg and coat with breadcrumbs. Shallow fry till crisp and golden and toss in a salad.

33.  No Cook Pasta Sauce – mix together diced Brie or Camembert, coarsely chopped tomatoes, a little finely chopped red onion, a glug of olive oil, torn fresh basil if possible, salt and pepper and set beside the stove to warm whilst cooking pasta.  When ready drain the pasta, reserving a spoonful or two of the cooking water, and toss together with the cheese mixture. Add the reserved water and toss again. Serve with freshly grated Parmesan.

34.   A Warm Salad Dressing– scoop the soft cheese from the rind and heat gently with about half as much crème fraîche, whisking till smooth and runny enough to drizzle. If necessary dilute with a little port, wine, Brandy, water or stock. Toss a green salad with some crunchy croutons, drizzle over the warm dressing and serve immediately.

Leftover Semi Hard Cheeses such as Edam,
Halloumi & Mozzarella

35.   Slice thinly and top with hot roasted tomatoes, serve with crusty bread and a glass of red wine.

36.   Speidini – toss cubed bread in flavoured oil, thread onto skewers alternating with cubes of semi hard cheese and toast under a hot grill, turning now and then, till the bread is crisp and golden and the cheese starting to melt.

37.   Mozzarella in Carrozza – make mozzarella sandwiches, white bread is the norm. Dip them in milk, then dredge with flour and finally dip in beaten egg. Shallow fry in hot oil turning so that each side is crisp and drain briefly on kitchen towel and serve immediately.

38.   Fritters – coat slices of cheese in flour, then beaten egg and finally breadcrumbs (panko crumbs are great) and fry till crisp and melting. 

Leftover Cheddar and other Hard
or Crumbly Cheeses

Twice Baked Cheddar Soufflé

No. 39

This is both gorgeous and a seriously useful recipe.

Serves 6

60g butter plus a bit
60g plain flour
300ml milk
120g grated good strong cheddar
1 level tbsp wholegrain mustard
salt and freshly ground pepper 
3 large eggs

~    Preheat oven to 200°C/400°F/180ºC fan/gas 6.
~    Butter 6 x 200ml ramekins.
~    Melt the butter in a small saucepan.
~    Stir in the flour to form a smooth paste (a roux in fact).
~    Cook over low heat for a minute or so then whisk in the milk.
~    Bring to a boil whisking constantly till you have a thick and smooth sauce.
~    Stir in the mustard, cheddar, salt and pepper and keep stirring till cheese has melted into the sauce.  (Incidentally, if you stop here you have a tasty cheese sauce which will probably just need diluting with a little more milk.)
~   Set aside off the heat whilst dealing with the eggs.
~   Separate the eggs and stir the yolks into the cheese sauce.
~   Whisk the egg whites (making sure the bowl and whisk are utterly, utterly grease free and that there is not the slightest trace of yolk in the whites) till thick and fold into the cheese sauce.
~   Divide between the ramekins.
~   Stand the ramekins in a roasting tin or similar, and carefully pour in enough boiling water to come half way up their sides (this is a bain  marie) and bake till just set and golden – 15-20 minutes.
~   Cool in the ramekins.
~   Run a knife round the edge of each soufflé, turn out and, when completely cold, wrap in cling film and keep in the fridge till needed.

To serve …

1 tbsp double cream per soufflé
a little grated mature Cheddar per soufflé

~   Preheat oven to 220ºC/425ºF/200ºC fan/gas 7.
~   Unwrap the soufflés and stand them in a shallow buttered dish.
~   Pour the cream over the top of each soufflés.
~   Sprinkle with grated Cheddar.
~   Bake till risen and the cream and cheese are bubbling – about 10 minutes.  No need for a bain marie on the second cooking. 

40.   Welsh Rabbit or Rarebit

Cheese Scones

No. 41

This is one of the many ways to make scones, based on one simple recipes and extrapolated upon in my book The Secret Life of Scones.

225g/8oz self-raising flour
OR
225g/8oz plain flour + 1 rounded tsp baking powder
a pinch of salt
60g/2½oz cold butter or margarine
100ml/3½ fl oz milk
75g/3oz cheese of your choice – grated or crumbled or coarsely chopped

~   Preheat the oven to 200˚C/400˚F/180C fan/gas 6.
~   Make the dough mixing in the cheese after rubbing in the fat.
~   Add any other ingredients and seasonings.
~   Mix to a soft workable dough with the milk.
~   Roll or pat out the dough, cut to shape and place on a lightly greased baking tray.
~   Maybe, if you feel like it, brush with butter or cream and sprinkle with a little extra cheese and or some sea salt.
~   Bake for 15 minutes-ish till risen, golden and with hollow sounding botties.

Always use a well flavoured cheese, here are some suggestions:

~   Cheddar Cheese – I tend to use lovely crumbly extra mature Cornish Crackler which is everything a cheddar cheese should be and more.
~   Cheddar with hot chilli flakes.
~   Cheddar and crumbled crispy bacon
~   Try smoked cheddar.
~   Blue cheese with loads of black pepper.
~   Blue cheese and toasted walnuts.
~   Brie (I know – not a hard cheese – freeze then dice it), dried cranberries and bacon.
~   Firm goat cheese and dried figs.
~   Grated Parmesan and a spoonful of pesto (a little less milk needed here).
~   Swiss cheese and Parma ham.

Glamorgan Sausages

No. 42

Serves 2 or 3

You might be surprised at the sheer sausaginess of these.  Although made almost entirely of cheese and bread the texture is decidedly meatesque.

120g fresh breadcrumbs.
100g grated Caerphilly (although I’ve done these with Cheddar too)
2 spring onions – finely chopped
1 egg yolk
a pinch of mustard power
salt and pepper
another egg – beaten
more breadcrumbs or, even better, panko crumbs

~   Mix everything together and form into 6 small sausages.
~   Dip in the beaten egg, coat in the crumbs and shallow fry till hot, crisp and golden.

Leftover Well Hard Cheeses such as Parmesan,
Gran Padano and Pecorino

43    Eat thin slivers with a glass of something red and I’m not talking tomato juice.

44.   Grate or shave over soups, risotto, pasta dishes and salads.

Frico Crisps

No. 45

~      Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F/180ºC fan/gas 6.
~      Scatter an even layer of grated Parmesan onto lightly oiled greaseproof paper on a baking tray, sprinkle with black pepper or a pinch of cayenne. 
~      Cook for five minutes or so till melted but not browned. 
~      Leave for five minutes to firm up, remove from the baking tray to a rack and cool completely. To make a little cheese bowl drape over a glass or cup to cool.

Don’t throw away the rinds! …

46.   Simmer them in tomato sauces or soups, as is traditional when making Minestrone, or in any sauce or soup that you would grate Parmesan over.

47.   Parmesan Broth – simmer rinds in chicken or vegetable stock together with your choice of flavourings for an hour or more. Strain and use the broth in soup, sauces, and risotto.

48.   Parmesan Oil – marinate in olive oil together with flavourings such as peppercorns or chilli. Discard the rind and use the oil to drizzle or dip.

Leftover Blue Cheese – aka Bleu Cheese in America!

49.   If you make your own burgers put a nugget of blue cheese in the middle making sure to enclose it completely. If you don’t make your own just put some on top of your burger.

50.   Crumble over steak just before serving or stir into the pan sauce, either way a drizzle of balsamic vinegar is a good addition.

51.   Fill halved and cored ripe pears with crumbled blue cheese and pop under a hot grill.

52.   Blue Cheese and Roasted Garlic Butter– or other cheesy butter, there is lots of useful information on making compound butters here.

53.   Toss in a salad, especially one containing walnuts – see for a great pear vinaigrette perfect for this salad. 

54.   Blue Cheese Dip – process blue cheese with an equal quantity of mayonnaise, flavour with roasted or black garlic, caramelised onions or black pepper, dilute with cream if necessary.

55.   Locket’s Savoury – a classic Stilton, pear and watercress on toast thing. 

56. Pasta in Creamy Blue Cheese Sauce with Roasted Pears

Leftover Goat and Sheep Cheeses

57.   Marinate pieces of Feta or goats’ cheese in olive oil flavoured with chilli, garlic, peppercorns, herbs and spices and keep in the fridge for up to a month.

58.   Stuff fresh figs with goats’ cheese, wrap in prosciutto, drizzle with balsamic vinegar, bake until warm and serve as a starter.

59.   Baked Feta – place a chunk of Feta on a piece of lightly oiled foil. Drizzle with good olive oil and season according to preference. I usually add oregano and chilli flakes but roasted garlic is good too. Loosely seal the parcel and bake in a hot oven for 10-15 minutes depending on the thickness of the cheese. Serve with crusty bread and red wine.

60.  Horiatiki – Greek Salad. Toss lovely ripe tomatoes, cucumber and onion in a simple red wine vinaigrette (no mustard) together with fresh or dried oregano and salt and pepper. Serve topped with black olives and Feta.

Leftover Sweet Nutty Cheeses such as Emmental, Gruyère or Norwegian Jarlsberg

61.   Käseschnitte –or Swiss Rarebit. Lay slices of toast in an ovenproof dish and sprinkle with white wine to moisten. Lay a slice of Swiss cheese on each piece of toast, then a slice of ham and another slice of cheese. Bake in a hot oven till melted and lightly browned.

62.   Raclette(ish) – put a goodly lump of cheese in a dish under a hot grill or on the hearth in front of a roaring fire till pretty well melted and forming a skin. Serve traditionally scraped over new potatoes with gherkins and pearl onions or non-traditionally with crusty bread.

63.   Swiss cheese is used together with ham to stuff chicken breasts in the classic dish Chicken Cordon Bleu.

A Mix of Leftover Cheeses

64.   Potted Cheese – a kind of cheese pâté. Mix grated or chopped cheese scraps with a third of their weight of  soft butter, or slightly less if there are soft cheeses in the scraps. Process or whisk to combine together with a modicum (approximately a tablespoon) of leftover alcohol; brandy, port, wine or even a good ale. Taste and season. Turn into a pretty pot or pots and chill but take it out of the fridge a while before serving to soften a little.

65.   Fromage Fort – French potted cheese,  they spurn the butter, add garlic and their alcohol of choice is white wine. Process together your cheese scraps together with 1 garlic clove and 60ml dry white wine per 225g of cheese to creamy but not too much! Taste and season with salt if necessary.

Serve either of these with rustic bread and wine.

Creative Ways to Use Up Leftovers

If these are just some of the leftover cheese recipes I can think of don’t you wonder what ideas I have for the other 450 potential leftovers in my book Creative Ways to Use Up Leftovers?

Have a look inside, see what you think!

A couple of Reviews

“Helps you create tasty loveliness from almost every possible leftover foodstuff you could think of (and possibly some that you couldn’t….)”

“Cookery books are really very boring, but this one definitely isn’t! ”