It really is incredible how good bread can dress up a meal, and how WARM bread can make a good meal great. I regularly feed my family leftovers, but I rarely do much more than stick the dish on the kitchen counter with a stack of plates, a serving spoon, and an open microwave. I never think to make my leftovers something that the family will not only not complain about, but actually rave about…
How leftover roast beef became Gourmet French Dip sandwiches
I have been eyeing the Easy Au Jus recipe that Mama Loves Food posted quite a while ago (it’s one of those recipes waiting on my Pinterest Dinner board).
Luckily, this weekend I had a really good excuse the try the recipe, since I had to figure out something to do with the leftover roast beef and Ecce Panis bread in my kitchen.
I bought three loaves of Ecce Panis bread by Pepperidge Farm at Walmart the other day. All I had to do was stick the loaves in the oven while I set the table and cut the meat. It couldn’t have been simpler. The smell of freshly baking bread roused the entire family and I didn’t have to call anyone in for dinner.
Oh my goodness. I think the entire family DIED and went to heaven while eating the meal. The funniest part? After making a pretty darn good roast and some excellent au jus sauce, thanks to April at Mama Loves Food, do you want to guess what everyone was raving about?
Right. The bread.
Even the day after, when we still had a little bit of meat left over (did I mention it was a really BIG roast?), my husband complained that it wasn’t as good without the bread. True story.
Here’s how we made our unforgettable, must-make-again meal with leftovers:
I used April’s Easy Au Jus recipe, except that I used water instead of white wine, and I reserved the juices from the crock pot to use instead of straight beef broth. The ingredients are simple, and the thing I love best about this recipe (and the reason it works so well with leftovers) is that you don’t HAVE to have a fresh roast or pan drippings to make it.
So the ingredients I used were:
- olive oil (maybe 2 tsp)
- 1/4 cup red onion, chopped
- 1 teaspoon garlic, minced
- 1/8 cup water
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 2 1/2 cups beef broth (juices from roast)
- 1 teaspoon flour
I should also note that I cooked my roast with Montreal Steak seasoning, so there was plenty of that in the juices. When I make this again, I will certainly add a few sprinkles of Montreal Steak for some more of that flavor. Please see Mama Loves Food for the instructions…
While the au jus was heating up, I thinly sliced my leftover roast. I also put the Ecce Panis loaves into the oven to bake, giving them enough time to cool slightly before slicing them.
I cut each loaf into thick slices. I loved that the outer crust was flaky and crunchy, but the inside was soft and spongy and perfect for soaking up au jus.
To serve, each person made a sandwich to their liking (some of us put more meat in it than others…) and I set out small cups or bowls of au jus sauce to dip. I paired the meal with a freshly tossed salad.
Now that Easter is only a few days away, I’m thinking about how I can make my Easter meal leftovers something new, fresh, and exciting. I’m pretty sure that my future holiday leftover meals are going to include some Ecce Panis rolls…
Ecce Panis coupon
Save $0.55 on any 1 Ecce Panis Bake at Home Bread (valid 3/26/12 – 5/31/12 or while quantities last).
Connect with Pepperidge Farms
Twitter: @pepperidgefarm
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Please note: This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias. All opinions and photos are my own. See the entire shopping experience on my Google + album. #CBias #EasterMeals
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Yummm! Going to try these!
I had no idea how to make Au Jus! This looks really good!