Utilizing Left Overs

Utilizing Left Overs
 If you are cooking on a budget you need to get savvy at utilizing left-overs. I like to call them left-over makeover meals. You can turn left-over beef roasts, pot roasts, ham, roasted chicken or turkey, kielbasa or corned beef into remarkable new meals. Also, don't throw out the mashed potatoes, gravy or vegetables from your initial dinners! Combining left-overs with fresh ingredients is key to making whole different dinners. If I can do it, so can you.

1. Left-over mashed potatoes reheat very well in the microwave with the addition of a touch of milk or half and half and butter. Use them as is, add them into a freshly made pot of mashed. Use them for making the topping for Shepard's Pie or any other casserole, Potato Pancakes, and filling for Pierogies. Combine them with sour cream and chives (and bacon bits if you have left-over cooked bacon) and or grated Parmesan Cheese for a completely different flavor profile. Use as a topping for Stuffed Peppers or Stuffed Tomato recipes. Like I said, let your imagination take over!
2. Gravy reheats very well and stands on its own (add water to reconstitute on the stove top) or it lends great flavor to stews and homemade soups. You will also use it to make some of my left-over maker over meals which are contained in this blog.
3. Depending on what you have for left-over vegetables and the amount, you can reheat them in the microwave as is or add them to stews, soups or use in making pot pie recipes or in quiche recipes.
4. Left-over Pasta certainly can be used to create a new meal. Rice can be added to soups or reheated as is or use it to make stir-fried rice for an Asian style meal.