How good are you at using leftovers?

Especially when we buy particular ingredients we try to use things up -- I hate wasting good food. I'm probably guiltier than most, unfortunately, but today I did good

We made Seared scallops on spinach with a Calvados cream sauce and Goat cheese + thyme mashed potatoes last night. So today for lunch I made potatoe cakes (I never said my leftovers were healthy!) and for dinner I stretched the leftover Calvados cream sauce and had it with penne, sauteed shrimp, wilted spinach (also bought for last night's dinner) and artichokes which were cooked in a reduced apple juice that I bought for last night.







I feel so proud when I use all ingredients I already have to make a decent meal!

Good for you!

This is a continuing problem for me, since I cook for my blog and for a cookbook and I'm single. I am very aware of the ecological cost of every scrap of food, but I hate leftovers unless they are planned-overs or completely transformed. You have done the latter and I compliment you!

New term for me - planned-overs, I like it

When we make risotto we have planned-overs - we mix with breadcrumbs and egg, stuff a bit of mozzarella inside and fry them. Yum!

I intentionally make double portions of dinner so that I can simply nuke the leftovers for lunch the next day.

Doesn't always work. Late night's dinner was mussels. There are no leftovers!

My congratulations too. You are inventive about the use of your leftovers or planned-overs. I'm not.

I also live recylcing leftovers, some are better than others for that purpose.

My minestrone is like that too.
left as is and served with rice, or pureed and served with croutons, re-boiled with stale bread into ribollita.... etc..
and a couple of small ziplock bags in the freezer.. for just reheating.


Most soups can also be pasta sauces.. or risotto's.

I love what I call the "clean out the fridge party" I feel very iron chef!

At the end of the week for cooking classes, I have many hungry friends ( as in not a lot of money! The Euro has hit Italians hard too!) and I glad to recycle to them too!

I have an aversion to leftovers that I'm slowly getting over.

I blame it on my childhood (when in need of an explanation for the unexplainable you should always blame your childhood right?)

My mother used to keep a large plastic container in the fridge freezer. Every night the leftovers went in there. Once a week she would take it out, dump it in a casserole and bake it for dinner. EWWWW

(And you thought the food in the pail was for pigs didn't you? - and it isn't necessary to suggest that I was a pig! )

Since we realized we love to travel we have tried to waste less food than we were. Often leftovers go to work with Paul for lunch. Two nights a week we clean out the fridge and eat what we find.

I too like to make leftovers into something 'new'. Recently leftover polenta became polenta lasagne (thanks Alice!) AND wonderful mushroom crostini.

Sometimes it isn't possible though - what can you do with leftover roast after you have had hot beef sandwiches?

>>the non-babeish babe is having a hard time thinking of the Diva as iron anything<<

Roast beef was born to be hash.

Hmmm. On our "what's for dinner" thread we should solicit leftover ideas.

I plan on having leftovers.
Friday night is usually our leftovers night.
Lunches are often leftovers.
In senior school, James took leftover curries, pastas, etc to school as the seniors had a microwave in their common room. One of the teachers used to be interested in what he had for lunch. He remarked on how interesting James' lunches were at a parent teacher night.

In my family Monday night was always a leftover night from the Sunday roast. We would slice and fry the boiled potatoes. Fried bread pudding (not bread and butter) with lemon juice was a treat.

I'm not real big on leftovers....unless it is Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner. However, when I usually have leftover I try to eat them the next day for lunch at work.