Love Those Leftovers!
Love 'em or hate 'em, leftovers are a part of life in the kitchen.
It's just about impossible to make many dishes that don't have any remainders. Sometimes, even though a dish was great the first time, you really just don't want to eat it again. And again.
Fear not: you can change your leftovers, so that they become an entirely new meal! Whole cookbooks about using leftovers have been written, but here are some excellent ideas for making the most of the foods sitting in your refrigerator:
- Add diced raw vegetables and bottled Italian dressing to leftover pasta for an easy and refreshing salad!
- Combine leftover mashed potatoes with chopped onion and shredded cheese, then bake. Tastes like twice-baked potatoes without the work!
- Form balls of leftover mashed potatoes around cubes of cheese, roll in Parmesan cheese or bread crumbs and broil until golden brown. Yummy!
- Crumble leftover biscuits over a can of mixed fruit for a quick cobbler topping.
- Freeze red and white wines left over from the dinner table in ice cube trays. A tablespoon here and there can make a great addition to a sauce, or a cube can cool a glass of slightly-warm wine.
- Use leftover beef, chicken or pork to make an easy pot pie, stir-fry, a chef's salad, chopped sandwich salad/spread, skillet hash or fajita-style tortilla wraps.
- For the ultimate turkey sandwich, place leftover sliced turkey breast, a heaping spoonful of stuffing and a slathering of tart cranberry sauce between two slices of your favorite bread.
- To make leftover fruit pie taste "just-baked," wrap in foil and warm 10 minutes in a 350° F oven.
- Add leftover crumbled sausage meat to buttermilk pancake or waffle batter, or corn muffin batter.
- To extend a little leftover meat into another meal, combine with cooked rice, macaroni or pasta, a can of creamed soup, half a can of milk or water, a sprinkling of garlic and/or onion powder and place in a greased casserole, sprinkle with shredded cheese and heat uncovered in a 350° F oven until hot and cheese is melted and lightly browned.
- Jarred pickled peppers don't have to take up space in your refrigerator. Chop and toss into just about any dish for an added kick. Try them in bean salad, chili, omelets, salsa, steamed vegetables, salad or on sandwiches.
