Smoked eel and other recipes with leftovers from a wedding

It's been a couple weeks since our daughter's wedding and yes, we still have some cheese leftover from the welcome reception. We also had some leftover smoked eel.

It's not a common fridge item for sure, but after a fantastic appetizer inspired by a top restaurant in London, I was ready to give it a try.

The sandwich is a staple at Quo Vadis in the Soho section of London. The original is a little simpler than what I put together, but it was a hit. At least with me and my sister-in-law as Jodi wanted no part of it.

I started with two small pieces of toast (four ingredients and no enriched flour). Buttered the toast with some Irish butter.

On one side, pickled onion and Dijon mustard. On the other chopped pickles, horseradish, and copped pieces of the smoked eel. Perfect.

The second dish I made with the eel was an egg salad. Simple. Hard-boiled eggs, chopped pickles, capers, Dijon mustard, black pepper, celery salt and Greek yogurt. I've done this with sardines as well as smoked eel.

Make sure there's more egg to fish in the ratio. Eat in a bowl or with some sourdough toast. No mayo necessary.

Late Sunday, after nearly a dozen stops over the weekend, I wanted some pasta.

Barilla protein penne is my go-to.

In a pan, I melted some butter and added some olive oil. Into the fat went chopped onion and a couple of anchovies.

Once the onions became translucent and the anchovies melted into the fat, I added the chopped eel. Then capers, parsley, and at the end a couple of cloves of crushed garlic.

Salt, pepper, and crushed red pepper topped off the sauce.

The al dente pasta was drained and added to the pan.

I heated it all together and served it. This one is a keeper.

See more of my recipes here:

The post above reflects the thoughts and observations of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Bill Spadea. Any opinions expressed are Bill's own. Bill Spadea is on the air weekdays from 6 to 10 a.m., talkin’ Jersey, taking your calls at 1-800-283-1015.

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