Leftovers On Purpose

Weekend Cooking

2012-01-02T07:00:00.000-07:00

It has been two months of traveling and staying with others. After finally moving into our own apartment, I'm back to cooking ahead. Without cooking for toddlers, I have to remember not to cook so much at once. I feel like I did a mini-session, but actually have several meals.

Hamburger meat for spaghetti.
I browned hamburger with some minced onion and garlic powder. I put it in a container and in the freezer. I'll defrost it and add it to spaghetti sauce.

Turkey Burgers
I mixed ground turkey, cracker crumbs, garlic powder, onion powder, and minced onion. I made patties and fried them in a pan. I got 11 patties out of two pounds of ground turkey.

Tangy Sweet Potatoes
I followed the link recipe, except I used the juice of two small lemons instead of the juice from the mandarin oranges.

I have turkey burgers for lunches made, yummy sweet potatoes, and meat ready for spaghetti. It feels good to have some ready-made meals again.

Pamm

Subscribe to Leftovers On Purpose by Email

Easy Peach Cobbler

2011-12-05T07:28:00.000-07:00

I love this recipe! It's so easy!

1 large can (or 2 small cans) of sliced peaches
1 box yellow cake mix
1 stick butter

Dump the peaches into a 9x13" pan. Pour the cake mix evenly over the top. Dot with butter.

Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.

I didn't get a picture of the finished cobbler, it was eaten so quickly! It's delicious!

I've heard of people doing this with other canned fruit such as apricots. I've never tried it, but I plan to some day.

Pamm

Subscribe to Leftovers On Purpose by Email

Got A Lot Of Turkey?

2011-11-29T17:16:00.001-07:00

Hopefully you had a great Thanksgiving with a beautiful bird. Ours was wonderful.

We have a lot of turkey left over. What to do with all that turkey? Here are three easy ideas:

Turkey Spaghetti

Prepare 1 pound pasta (your choice of the shape). Drain and return to pan. Add 2 cans cream of chicken soup and 1 to 2 cups cut into bite sized pieces. Mix well and heat through.

Turkey and Biscuits

In a large skillet, combine 1 can chicken broth, 1/4 cup melted butter, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Add 1-2 cups turkey cut into bite sized pieces and cook over medium-high heat for 5 minutes, until bubbly. Place refrigerator biscuits (2 10.8 oz cans, or I make homemade ones) evenly over top. Reduce heat to low; cover and cook for 10 minutes. Sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon paprika and simmer uncovered 10-12 minutes or until broth is slightly thickened.

Fried Rice

Cook and stir 2/3 cup uncooked rice and 1 medium, chopped onion in 2 tablespoons hot oil until rice is golden brown and onion is tender. Stir in 1 1/2 cups boiling water, 1 tablespoon beef or chicken soup base, 2 tablespoons soy sauce, and 1 to 2 cups cooked, diced turkey. Heat to boiling. Lower heat, cover tightly, and simmer for 15 minutes without removing lid. Remove from heat and fluff with fork. Cover and let stand for an additional 10 minutes. Serve or freeze.

Those three recipes I have made over and over through the years.

Pamm

Subscribe to Leftovers On Purpose by Email

A New Calling

2011-11-20T06:33:00.001-07:00

Wonder what I've been up to? Check out this post on my other blog: A New Calling.

Pamm

Subscribe to Leftovers On Purpose by Email

Double Duty

2011-10-29T09:28:00.000-07:00

This is the top of my mini crock pot.

I discovered for items like pancakes, cheese & sausage biscuits and other things that don't need to be directly in a crock pot for heating, I can put on top, covered with a bowl to trap heat. I have the vegetables of the day in the crock pot, warming.

Pamm

Subscribe to Leftovers On Purpose by Email

Pumpkin & Oatmeal Pancakes

2011-10-27T09:18:00.000-07:00

Remember my pumpkin pancakes? Well I had to use up the rest of the pumpkin and the rest of the box of pancake mix. When I did that, roughly doubling the recipe, it came out too thin. I had to add something to thicken it up. I just so happened to have about 2 cups of quick oats that needed to be used up. I mixed it in and it was just what it needed to thicken up.

I cooked just like I described in the original recipe. They came out very good with added texture and nutrition. It was a good mistake.

Pamm

Subscribe to Leftovers On Purpose by Email

Sweet & Sour Rice

2011-10-25T09:13:00.000-07:00

I had made some basic meatballs for Sweet & Sour Meatballs. They were just sitting in the freezer waiting for something to go with it so I made up some Sweet & Sour Rice.

I didn't measure anything, I didn't even look at a recipe--yikes! I mixed up:

pineapple tidbits and juice (the whole can)

garlic power

onion power

ground ginger

soy sauce

apple cider vinegar

minced garlic

minced ginger

brown sugar

I kept adding things and tasting until it tasted right.

I made several cups of Jasmine rice in my rice cooker. I Put a serving of rice with some sweet and sour sauce, into a container then into the freezer. To heat, I put in some of the meatballs, then a container of rice and sauce into my mini crock pot and heat for 2-3 hours.

I think I need to trust myself more and cook without recipes. Maybe we all need to try it once in a while.

Pamm

Subscribe to Leftovers On Purpose by Email

Hot Pastrami

2011-10-23T14:12:00.000-07:00

A very simple sandwich!

I put a little butter in a frying pan and heated the pastrami. I took the meat out of the pan, then put the bread in, topped with the pastrami and some provolone cheese, then topped with bread. I let it brown, then flipped to brown on the other side.

I ate this without any condiments. It was a very nice, simple sandwich.

Pamm

Subscribe to Leftovers On Purpose by Email

Meatloaf Muffins

2011-10-21T05:28:00.000-07:00

In using things up from my pantry and freezer I decided to make some Meatloaf Muffins. I didn't have a box of stuffing on hand, so I had to improvise.

2 pounds ground turkey
1 packet onion soup mix
1 sleeve wheat saltines, crushed
1 cup milk
garlic powder to taste
onion powder to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix all ingredients. Spoon into muffin trays (I use an ice cream scoop). Bake for 30 minutes.

The ones I made were overcooked! I think 20 minutes would have been plenty of time.

The flavors were good, but I like the stuffing mix better. It was nice to have a change and to use up what I had.

Pamm

Subscribe to Leftovers On Purpose by Email

Pasta Salad

2011-10-19T08:52:00.000-07:00

I had a head of broccoli, some pasta that needed to be used up and a few bottles of Italian dressing. I had bought Italian dressing, then forgot I bought it, then bought it again, so I needed to use it up.

I cooked the pasta according to package directions and drained.

Meanwhile, I cut the broccoli into bite-sized pieces.

I put the pasta, broccoli, and dressing all in a bowl and tossed, then chilled.

I turned out very yummy! I nice change-of-pace salad for my lunches.

Pamm

Subscribe to Leftovers On Purpose by Email

Cooking Weekend

2011-10-17T08:48:00.000-07:00

It's time to use up what is in the pantry. I used only the ingredients I had on hand. I find it a fun challenge to make something out of thing I have in the pantry.

Pasta Salad
(recipe coming!)

Dog Food

Sweet & Sour Rice
(recipe coming)

Oatmeal Pumpkin Pancakes
(recipe coming)

Turkey Meatloaf Muffins
(recipe coming)

Pamm

Subscribe to Leftovers On Purpose by Email

Pumpkin Pancakes

2011-10-16T08:44:00.000-07:00

I had a can of pumpkin in the cupboard and a box of pancake mix that needed to be used up. Pumpkin Pancakes sounded so good! Now to figure out how to put it together. I search for a recipe, but ended up piecing this one together . . .

Pumpkin Pancakes

2 1/2 cups pancake mix
3 tablespoons brown sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1 egg
1 3/4 cups milk
2 tablespoons oil
1 cup can pumpkin

Mix all the ingredients together. Cook in heated pan with a little oil. Flip when golden brown and almost cooked through. Cook until the other side is golden brown.

I had these plain with just a pat of butter on them. They were very yummy!

I put the leftovers in a gallon freezer bag. I get a few out and heat them up in the microwave for a quick breakfast.

Pamm

Subscribe to Leftovers On Purpose by Email

Rice Cooker Green Beans?

2011-09-15T08:28:00.000-07:00

As you know, I have a home child care in a separate area of my house. I have no access to my kitchen during the day. Most of the time, I use mini crock pots to heat most of the food for me and the toddlers throughout the day and occasionally, I will use the microwave.

I decided to experiment with the rice cooker and a can of green beans.

I drained a little water from the can, then dumped it in and added a pat of butter. I set it to "cook" and put the lid on.

It came to a boil within minutes and I removed the lid. It continued to boil for a few minutes more.

I will definately continue to use my rice cooker to heat vegetables in a hurry!

Pamm

Subscribe to Leftovers On Purpose by Email

Teryaki Chicken

2011-09-13T08:37:00.000-07:00

Remember the Easy Teriyaki Marinade? I'm love the recipe! It's delicious.

This is the Teriyaki Chicken I cooked in the crock pot for about 4 hours. I made some Jasmine rice to pour it over. All the flavors work well together. I add a Broccoli-Ramen Salad to round out my dinner. Yummy!

Pamm

Subscribe to Leftovers On Purpose by Email

Five Ways To Save On Groceries

2011-08-12T08:31:00.004-07:00

It seems every family is trying to cut corners anywhere they can. Although you cannot cut out your grocery bill completely, you can take a look at how you're spending your grocery dollars. Implementing just one or two saving strategies per week can reap big savings with a little time and effort.

1. Sign up for a store loyalty card
It's simple, just give your name and address and they give you card that will save you money at their store. Most are even in "key tag" form you attach it to your keys so you won't even have to think about remembering to bring it and smartphones have apps where you can input the card information and show it at the check-stand.

Besides the obvious saving money at the register, many store cards have other perks such as online coupons you can attach to your card and/or coupons they mail to your home based on your frequent purchases.

2. Look for the Unit Price, rather than the over-all price.

Comparing unit prices can be eye-opening. If you look at the price per ounce or per unit in a package often differ more than you think. Sometimes packages labeled "Family Size" or "Giant" turn out to be more per unit than if you opted for the regular size.

Example: A box of cereal in two different sizes
24 ounce $2.99 = 12 cents per ounce
36 ounce $3.99 = 11 cents per ounce

Even though you are spending more on the bigger box, you are getting more for your money. Don't be afraid to take a calculator with you to check the unit prices by dividing the cost of the item by the number of units (or ounces).

3. Use coupons

You don't have to go extreme about it, but every little bit helps. Even paying attention to the coupons they have on the shelves at the store can make a little difference. You can find coupons in the Sunday newspaper and even online.

You can make your coupons have a bigger impact by coupling them with a sale on the item. Don't forget to go online to your store's site and look for any coupons you can attach to your store loyalty card or to check if they have any other offers that could save on your groceries.

4. Look for markdowns and buy the store brand

In my favorite grocery store I know just where they put the marked down meat, bakery, and other items. I spend a lot of time in that little corner of the store, saving 25% to 50% and more. I rarely pay full price for a loaf of bread anymore, and I have found great deals on cheese and meat. The only catch is that these items need to be used or frozen within a few days of purchase.

Surprisingly, the store brand is as good or better than the name brand. Many store brands are made along side the name brand (check out this Consumer Reports article).

5. Look for a food box program in your area

Look in your community for a food box program. We have The Treasure Box andAngel Food Ministries are wide spread. These programs offer a box of food worth $65 to $80 for around $30. Buying a box or two each month can stretch your grocery dollars.

~Originally posted to Pamm's House Blog

Pamm

Subscribe to Leftovers On Purpose by Email

Easy Teriyaki Marinade

2011-08-10T08:20:00.001-07:00

I have had my eyes open for an easy teriyaki marinade for a long time. I finally came across a great recipe at A Turtle's Life for Me and I put my own spin on it.

1 bottle (15 oz.) lite soy sauce

1 cup brown sugar

1 1/2 cups apple juice

2 heaping tablespoons minced garlic

2 teaspoons ground ginger

salt and pepper

I whisked them all together. Use about 1/2 cup for every pound of meat; steak, chicken, pork chops, etc.

I used this for the chicken I got through The Treasure Box.

I put some marinade in a baggie, with the chicken, and put it all in the freezer. On the day I want to have it, I will let it defrost overnight in the fridge, then put it in the crock pot to cook for about 5 or 6 hours.

This would be good for grilling or baking, too!

Pamm

Subscribe to Leftovers On Purpose by Email

Weekend Cooking

2011-08-08T08:27:00.001-07:00

Teriyaki Chicken (recipe coming)

Broccoli-Ramen Salad

Macaroni & Cheese

from The Treasure Box

I boiled them according to the package directions,

then put them in containers to freeze. I will defrost and reheat in a mini crock pot on the day I serve macaroni and cheese. They came out very creamy.

Pamm

Subscribe to Leftovers On Purpose by Email

Zippy Meatballs

2011-08-04T07:12:00.032-07:00

I haven't made this in ages! I used to make it all the time when the kids were growing up. Our daughter reminded me of this recipe when she said she was making them.

Zippy MeatballsCombine 1 pound hamburger, 2 eggs, 9 drops Tobasco, 1 cup cracker crumbs, 2 tablespoons minced onions, 1/4 teaspoon garlic salt, and a dash of salt and pepper. Shape into meatballs and place on baking dish. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. Freeze separately.

For the sauce, mix 3/4 cup catsup, 1/2 cup water, 1/4 cup vinegar, 1/2 cup brown sugar, 4 teaspoons Wistershire sauce, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 6 drops of Tobasco. Freeze separately.

To serve: Thaw meatballs and sauce. Pour sauce over meatballs. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

Note: I have never used the Tobasco in this recipe and the kids love it! I serve it over rice.

For this time, I made a double batch using one pound ground beef and one pound ground turkey. I cooked the meatballs for a half hour, then poured the sauce over them and cooked for another 20 minutes. This made the sauce thicker.

I packaged them into meal-sized portions and put them into the freezer. On the the day I want to have them, I'll defrost in the fridge, then heat in the microwave or I will put straight from the freezer into my mini crock pot to heat through.

It was a great familiar taste from days gone by.

Pamm

Subscribe to Leftovers On Purpose by Email

Tomato Caprese Salad

2011-08-02T06:47:00.001-07:00

I haven't made this in a long time, but when the grape tomatoes went on sale, I thought I would make it again.

Tomato Caprese Salad
2 pints grape tomatoes, cut in half
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1 tablespoon dried basil
1 tablespoon onion flakes
1 teaspoon garlic salt
Balsamic vinegar

Toss and refrigerate.

The classic way to make this salad is with slices of (regular size) tomatoes, slices of red onion, slices of mozzarella cheese, fresh basil, and a drizzle of balsamic vinegar. I'm not a fan of raw onion and used what was on sale to make my version.

It's a great salad for a change of pace.

Pamm

Subscribe to Leftovers On Purpose by Email

Treasure Boxes

2011-07-31T08:12:00.018-07:00

All I can say is "What a Blessing!" I picked up our Treasure Box food boxes yesterday. I oreded two boxes: Kids Box and Simply Enough.

The Kids box is full of kid-friendly foods: popcorn chicken, mini tacos, mini burgers, pizza, burritos, balogna, pasta, smiley fries, mac-n-cheese, turkey hot dogs, and more!

The Simply Enough Box has pizza, ham, peas, sweet potatoes, spring rolls, chicken meal, boneless/skinless chicken breasts and more!

This program is a blessing. There's a lot more processed foods than I am used to, but spread out over the month, I don't think it will be that bad. The value is definitely there! I will order again!

If you don't have The Treasure Box in your area, you may have Angel Food Ministries.

Pamm

Subscribe to Leftovers On Purpose by Email

Weekend Cooking

2011-07-30T18:58:00.003-07:00

Zippy Meatballs (recipe coming)

Turkey Burgers

Tomato Caprese Salad (recipe coming)

Spaghetti Dogs

Pamm

Subscribe to Leftovers On Purpose by Email

Blessed!

2011-07-21T07:15:00.001-07:00

I haven't posted much lately. I've been busy with summer and blessed with a full freezer!

Army Boy is Home!

After we get our Treasure Box at the end of the month, I should be back with some new recipes (I hope!).

Hope you're enjoying your summer!

Pamm

Subscribe to Leftovers On Purpose by Email

The Treasure Box

2011-07-19T07:06:00.001-07:00

Have you heard about the food box program called The Treasure Box? It's available here in Havasu, and in California, Arizona, and Nevada locations.

This is a monthly program where you can purchase a box of food valued at $60-$85 for $32 per box (you can purchase as many boxes as you like). They have a basic food box with a variety of items (and even include recipes!), then they offer other options such as a Protein Box, Kid Box, and even individual meals. You can view this month's menus Here. The basic food box is enough to feed a family of 4 lunches and dinner for about a week (or an individual for about a month)! Can you feed your family for $32/week?

For this month, you have until Wednesday, July 20th to place your order (online or in person at Calvary Chapel on Acoma if you're in Havasu and you prefer to pay with cash), and then you will pick up your box(es) on July 30th between 3pm and 4:30pm. The complete deliver schedule is Here.

For more information, watch the video Here and browse around the website and order your box! You can sign up for their email newsletter and reminders, too.

Note: This is available to EVERYONE! There are no income or other requirements, just purchase and pick up. Great for anyone on a budget, older people on Social Security, those who want to save money, and just anyone.

If it's not available in your area, check out Angel Food Ministries, they are more widely available, with the same concept.

Pamm

Subscribe to Leftovers On Purpose by Email

Motivated Moms Planner is Half Price!

2011-07-14T08:21:00.001-07:00

Motivated Moms Planner for 2011 is now available for download at half-price - $4.

From my previous post:

Meal Planning, dusting, vacuuming, filing the bills, mopping, changing the bathroom towels, cleaning the fridge, sweeping the porch, etc. can all get tedious, overwhelming, boring, and exhausting.

Over the years I have tried different systems from doing daily chores to trying to do everything one day of the week and making chore charts to divide up work. I usually put off spring cleaning until the fall, lol. Sometimes there's no plan, therefore the housework gets haphazardly done.

About a year ago, I came across this tool:

Motivated Moms Planner

From Motivated Moms Planner:

The Motivated Moms Chore Planner printable chore lists is an e-book to be downloaded and saved to your computer. You can then either print the full year out at once, print a week at a time or just view it on your computer. These printable chore lists are just what you are looking for if you need to know exactly what to do each day in your home and love to be able to check items off a list to feel that sense of accomplishment.

The planner gives chores to do each day, most days it takes less than a half hour to complete everything on the list. What I love about it, is you spend about 30 minutes a day and your house will stay clean, even keeping up with those "spring cleaning" type jobs such as cleaning out your refrigerator, wiping down your washer and dryer, and more.

You might be thinking that it would take a lot longer than 30 minutes to just clean out your refrigerator let alone any other chores listed for the day. Well, don't be afraid! Even cleaning out your refrigerator is broken down into small, obtainable goals such as clean the top shelf. The next day would be to clean the door, and so on.

In recent years, I have learned the value of breaking things down into smaller jobs or goals. I find if I have a big job in front of me such as clean out a dresser, if I make it a goal to sort out one drawer per day, I'm very likely to make that goal, rather than the big job of sorting through the entire dresser in one afternoon.

Setting smaller goals does two things: 1. gives me a sense of pride for accomplishing my goal, and 2. gives me momentum and more than likely I will sort through another drawer just be ahead of my self-set schedule.

That is how the Motivated Moms Planner works. The planner has a little bit of chores to do for the day. It's easy to keep up on it, gives you a sense of pride for accomplishing chores each day and gives you momentum, so you will probably do a few other things that was not listed.

Something else about the planner, is that if you have children at home, you can easily write their name(s) next to the chores and divide the work up.

I encourage you to take a look at Motivated Moms Planner. For only $4 how can you lose?

Pamm

Subscribe to Leftovers On Purpose by Email

Grocery Savings Testimonial

2011-06-27T06:39:00.001-07:00

I received this wonderful email last week:

Pamm, I wanted to bring it to your attention, that since I have started to work with your recipes, I have been able to cut down on my grocery list by..... believe it or not...... $100.00 per week. I did my shopping yesterday and the weekend before, and I was surprised. So... BIG THANKS to you and sharing your wonderful recipes that helps me keep my grocery bill down.

Jacqueline D
Early Childhood Educator

Really? $100 per week! That's incredible! It makes me happy that I can share my recipes and help others.

All my recipes are on this blog or you can buy my eBook, Cooking Leftovers On Purpose.

Pamm

Subscribe to Leftovers On Purpose by Email