Getting creative with leftovers

Monek Marie
Monek Marie Posts: 3,539 ✭✭✭✭✭

I have several friends who will not use leftovers. I personally love them especially for breakfast or if I don't have time to create an entire meal. My schedule makes it hard to make a decent lunch and mom no longer makes any meals, even snacks. So leftovers makes a easy solution to this problem - and creative meals.

Creating a pantry and trying to organize it and meals to get the most from them has also sort of re-trained me to make more of one item to serve with another later on.

Tonight was was looking at my leftovers and not wanting my mother to get tired of anything. So...

I called my niece. and asked if she had any leftovers. Total silence. I could hear her mind working - "What is my crazy Aunt up to this time?"

"Yes, I do"

"Well so do I, would you like to trade some? I hear laughter and Yes!

So we both have several days of new leftovers for our families

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Comments

  • LaurieLovesLearning
    LaurieLovesLearning Posts: 7,573 admin

    @Denise Grant We eat all of ours, on the next day generally, so would never have any leftover leftovers. Lol

    So creative. 😍

    Tonight we have leftover brisket, potatoes, & carrots...but I don't think anyone wants to trade that! They are like ribless ribs. 😋

  • Monek Marie
    Monek Marie Posts: 3,539 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @LaurieLovesLearning My mom is a real picky eater anymore so I have change up any leftovers so she does not get bored. Its actually lead to some very different meals.

    Love brisket!~

  • karenjanicki
    karenjanicki Posts: 989 ✭✭✭✭

    Nice. We do leftovers all the time. That's how I grew up. Otherwise to me it's a waste. Once I made a roast chicken for dinner. And the next night I turned the leftovers and the carcass into chicken soup. Once the solids were out of it and the broth was left I used that as the base for a nice bean dish in the crockpot. There are so many ways to use leftovers :).

  • RustBeltCowgirl
    RustBeltCowgirl Posts: 1,403 ✭✭✭✭✭

    i'm turning leftovers into individual portions and putting in the freezer to take for lunch.

  • Jens the Beekeeper
    Jens the Beekeeper Posts: 651 admin

    I often cook some more especially from soups to have them as dinner. Or side dish for dinner when it is usually bread only.

    As @karenjanicki said chicken great for creating new dishes out of leftovers. But noodles or rice too. Just toss them in a pan and have fried rice or noodles with scrambled eggs and some Veg for example. Or tomato sauce turned into tomato soup with rice.

  • SuperC
    SuperC Posts: 952 ✭✭✭✭

    I love leftovers. Even when there are a pile of mismatched veggies, I dice them up and with a bit of water in a pot, they get boiled and it provides a rainbow of delicious vegetables. I like them alongside of a salad (main entree) and piece of fruit. Who knew to swap leftovers, tho. LOL

  • Tave
    Tave Posts: 952 ✭✭✭✭✭

    I love leftovers, too. It means I don't have to cook the next day, just heat and eat.

  • Monek Marie
    Monek Marie Posts: 3,539 ✭✭✭✭✭

    When I had two job and absolutley no time I would cook on Sunday, my day off and just warm up every meal all week long. I actually miss that and may do it again. It would be a lot like @monica197 is doing. It sure saves time on those hectic days

    It seems like every time its meal time one of the backyard animals decides to raise havoc.

  • Brindy
    Brindy Posts: 212 ✭✭✭

    We usually eat them for lunch throughout the week. It solved my, "what's for lunch" problem.

  • LaurieLovesLearning
    LaurieLovesLearning Posts: 7,573 admin

    @Brindy It used to solve that problem for me until my kids got bigger & just into the "hollow legs" stage. Now I am missing a lot of leftovers when I go to use them...if I am lucky enough to still have any to begin with. I used to make 2 meals within a meal. Now it is like 1 1/2 or less, and I also have less space in the fridge & freezers for keeping it! 🙄

    I miss those easier days of just doubling it up. Now, it would have to be 4×. One day, that ease of cooking will come again...

  • Michelle D
    Michelle D Posts: 1,465 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Here at my house Sunday is my "day off". Therefore, I don't cook. Leftovers are what we eat on Sunday. That way I get a break and we don't waste any food. The leftovers from earlier in the week would already be gone because my husband would have taken them to work for lunches.

  • LaurieLovesLearning
    LaurieLovesLearning Posts: 7,573 admin
    edited January 2021

    Generally our leftovers would go to work too (but nobody is going right now). We homeschool or they would have gone to school too!

    We like to do a traditional faspa when we can on Sundays. It isn't leftovers, but everything can be made ahead. It things like buns, pickles, cheese, jam, fruit and or a sweet (homemade cake or cookies), things of that nature. It keeps things simple, fun & easy. The kids really like this tradition.

  • vickeym
    vickeym Posts: 2,134 ✭✭✭✭✭

    I try on my days off or if I'm home early enough to make large meals a couple times a week or more. The extra portions are often frozen for use on nights when I don't feel like "cooking" or when we have a later night either due to my work schedule or something else comes up to keep us out later than usual.

    When we have smaller quantities of leftovers we quite often eat them either the next night or within a couple days. Many dishes taste even better the second time around.

    I find it very easy to make 2 pans of meatloaf at the same time as making one. Or homemade mac & Cheese in extra large quantities and freeze a couple pans for later use. Same for making enchiladas, lasagna and many others. Then when I need a quick to make meal I can just throw one of those in the oven when I get home and by the time I have relaxed a few minutes, gotten the dog taken care of, etc. It is ready.

  • Monek Marie
    Monek Marie Posts: 3,539 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @vickeym I agree many leftovers taste better the second time.

    I will also often times change them just a little with a different sauce or season to make them taste just a little different.

    I take care of my mother and as she has aged her tastes have changed and its often difficult tp get her to eat a meal so I have to change things up when I can.

  • happy-trails
    happy-trails Posts: 170 ✭✭✭

    That is so cute! And creative... I like this idea! As long as I'm trading for the same quality as our food! None of my nourishing, nutrient dense pot-pie for a pan of toxic Campbell's sludge... hehe! 😄