A Year of Miracles and a Leftover Pie.

This wonderful book begins with "This book is a memoir, which is to say, it is a kind of fiction," It also begins with a note about grief and finding miracles and how food can bring us together and help us heal. The first recipe is leftover pie - a creation made of the carcass of a leftover chicken and whatever else you may happen to have in your kitchen.

I know you are looking  for the skip to recipe button - There isn't one. I don't write or test recipes - for so many reasons (this might be my next blog post.) I read recipes and cookbooks, share what I like and hope you will track down the book - at a used bookstore, a library, online or even at Booklady Cooks. Many times, you can even find the recipe on line. 

Ella Risbridger, who also wrote Midnight Chicken & Other Recipes worth living for, created this food memoir of her year of building a new life after incredible loss. She brings us into her life, her new home and her kitchen and there is so much we can learn from her, from each other and from time spent nurturing our relationships. 

And while this cookbook/memoir is full of stories and miracles, it is also full of amazing food. I have this idea that I would always like to cook the first recipe in a book when I start reading it, but that hardly ever happens! It did with this book, though and I'm so glad I started there. It was wonderful to make and delicious to eat. 

For Leftover Pie, "the ingredients are mostly optional; these are mostly just guidelines for pie." Because it is pie, you will need a crust, This is part of the recipe. I had a frozen pie crust, so I used that. My filling was pretty much what was in the book:

onions
green onions ( I didn't have any leeks)
garlic
butter
mushrooms
leftover chicken
chicken cube
flour
thyme
white wine
miso (this added so much to the recipe!)
nutmeg,
pepper
Romano cheese (I didn't have a Parmesan rind)
cream

I know it says the ingredients are optional, but I've made lots and lots of chicken pies and the miso really adds so much flavor. I'm sure the pie will still be delicious, but do try it!

I would also like to invite you to join us on our Year of Miracles Cook Along which will begin in January 2025 - but you can join in at any time!