Chicken ‘n Dressing – From Leftovers

I’ve heard various people say they don’t like leftovers. That’s okay; I don’t like some leftovers either. But, I do try to make good use of leftovers when I can. And they don’t always have to be just heated in the microwave. Sometimes they can reappear as something else. Most of the time, I deliberately cook, so I will have leftovers. That way, when I don’t want to cook, and don’t want to go out and get something, I can have something ready to eat in a few minutes – no extra cost.

The first bit of advice I received, about using leftovers, was many years ago, when reading a column by a psychologist. I don’t recall all of it from this distance in time, but I believe he was advising people with limited incomes, on making the most of what you have. In that instance, it was leftover mashed potatoes. He said that you could put a little butter, along with a small amount of milk; heat and stir as they warmed up, and they would taste as good as new. I tried it and they were pretty good. More about this later; today is about chicken.

I live alone, so there is only me to cook for. A grocery store near my home has a very good deli. Sometimes I buy a whole, small broasted chicken, which for one person, with my-sized appetite, means several meals. That was among my purchases on my last shopping trip. I prefer the white meat, but I take off the thigh and drumstick portions, which will be two more meals later on. I put these in the freezer so I can take them out one at a time, when I want to. I do notice that my blood pressure goes up ‘a little’ when I eat the dark portions, but since I only do this occasionally, I think I can get by with it. I stick them under the broiler, either with or without barbecue sauce, in my counter top broiler-oven. No extra preparation to speak of.

I had already had two servings of the white meat, but still had some left. The notion struck me to make a chicken ‘n dressing dish for my dinner. I took the bony parts, along with a couple of chicken bouillon cubes, about one/fourth small onion, covered with water; and cooked it for 10 to 20 minutes to make stock. I had some leftover Italian bread that was beginning to dry, so used that.

We have traditional sage dressing, or at least traditional for our household, at Thanksgiving and Christmas. Rarely is it ever made at other times. The kids know how they want it made, and how it should taste, with no variation. But, in the years since my children left home and there was only my husband and myself to cook for, I have occasionally experimented with chicken and dressing in the same dish. Since I only have myself to please now, as far as cooking is concerned, I used the leftover white meat chicken, the drying Italian bread, chicken broth, eggs, a small amount of milk, onions and sage as usual; but added some chopped broccoli florets [not a lot, but enough to say: vegetable included], and a small amount of chopped celery. I made just enough for an 8 inch square pan. Baked at 350 degrees about 35 minutes or so; began checking at 30 minutes. [My oven temperature is not always reliable.] A bigger pan and more dressing would change the cooking time.

I want to tell you, family and others, to my taste buds; that was the best dressing I ever made. The extra vegetables, not usually included, did not change the basic taste of the dressing. I had it again for lunch today, this time warmed in the microwave, and it was as good as it was yesterday.