Tuna Vegetable Strudel

I love cooking with things I forgot about in my fridge.  I call it leftover cooking and I do it about once or twice a month.  I find it’s easier than actually figuring out what to cook for dinner each night. Making something delicious and new from these finds along with one or more pantry staples is easy weeknight-friendly cooking.  This is my Tuna Vegetable strudel, inspired by some neglected veggies, a can of tuna and some puff pastry (which I always have in my freezer).  

I had half packet of store bought coleslaw from the weekend game, a wonderful way to enjoy a salad without having to go through the work of cutting by hand. Most folks I know (although I must admit denying I do know them), don’t have a sharp knife. This makes the job that much harder and more dangerous. So store bought slaw works for me for most applications. Combine this with some snap peas, they were “snappea” and always a welcome addition to anything where I need a “snappea” (copyright this word) bite, some grated mozzarella, a slightly bruised pepper, of course a fresh jalapeno (coz they don’t seem to ever be neglected in my house) and you can make this strudel.   

All the veggies got softened in a pan, cooled and then piled on top of the puff pastry along with the tuna and cheese. I know it was a lot to stuff into one roll of puff pastry but I wanted to finish everything in one go (I like leftovers but come on!). I have listed quantities below, but use your judgement and adjust to what you have available – see the “Well Why Not” section for other ideas.

Make this for dinner, leftovers provide ideal sources of protein for this kind of strudel – pulled pork or rib meat, chicken wings without the bones, the veggies – just chop them up and sauté them to soften. Everything is already seasoned – just salt and pepper needed for the veggies, oh and the jalapeno/Thai chili of course! Enjoy this fast and easy meal for lunch or dinner. Stay safe and enjoy the balmy weather outside! As always – enjoy!

Ingredients
1 roll frozen puff pastry – or make your own (recipes on my site)
1 pepper (new or slightly neglected), cut into strips
1 cup prepackaged coleslaw
1+ hot pepper – jalapeno, Thai chili etc. – sliced thinly
1 can tuna
½ cup grated mozzarella or cheddar or smoky type cheese
1 sprig cilantro, chopped
1 egg, beaten for painting the pastry before baking
Salt, pepper and olive oil

Instructions
1 If you haven’t done this already, thaw the frozen roll of puff pastry on the counter for 30 minutes or overnight in the fridge
2 To a non-stick pan over medium high heat, add some olive oil
3 When hot, add the peppers and sauté – season with salt and pepper – 3 minutes or so – add the snap peas, toss for 1 minute or so, remove all ingredients form the pan and set aside to cool
4 To the same pan, add a little more oil and sauté the coleslaw until softened – 3 minutes or so, season with salt and pepper, remove the pan from the heat and add the chopped cilantro to the slaw mixture – stir, remove to a plate and set aside to cool
5 Preheat your oven (I used my toaster oven 400f for 23 minutes) to 400f
6 Unroll the puff pastry (use the parchment wrap it comes in as a base) onto a baking tray
7 To the bottom half of the pastry, add the cooled sautéed veggies, the tuna and the cheese – leave a 1” border – brush some of the beaten egg on the border
8 Fold the top half over the bottom half and press together to seal all around – you may end up having to slightly pull up the pastry from the bottom end to meet the top – be careful not to tear
9 Paint with the egg, sprinkle some salt and pepper on top and bake for 20 minutes until golden brown and the bottom can lift easily off the paper
10 Let cool slightly before cutting into it with a serrated knife

Well Why Not! (tips and suggestions)
Use whatever veggies you have in the fridge – mushrooms work well in this dish, kale, spinach etc.
Use whatever canned protein you like – I used tuna, but salmon, rinsed cannellini beans, corned beef will all work well – so will anything freshly cooked
Debone any leftovers you have in the fridge to use for the filling – pork, chicken, beef, fish etc.
Squeezed and drained, seasoned and baked thin strips of tofu will also work
There should be no rough edges on any of the filling or it will break through the pastry when wrapping and/or baking
Puff pastry works best when it is cold – if it is getting hard to work with, pop it in the freezer for a couple of minutes, it should be pliable not sticky
Leave the cheese out if avoiding dairy
If you have 2 rolls of puff pastry, you can make a bigger tart, same baking instructions, just fill the middle leaving a 1″ border around the sides, egg wash the border and place another on top. No need to make holes in it, although it is a nice effect if you do