LEFTOVERS and How To Use Them

On Tonight's Menu

2011-11-22T22:22:00.000-07:00

Chicken Nugget Casserole

2011-11-03T13:12:00.000-06:00

I made this this other night using leftover chicken nuggets. Really good!

Chicken Nugget Casserole from tasteofhome.com: http://www.tasteofhome.com/Recipes/Chicken-Nugget-Casserole

2011-06-16T17:46:00.014-06:00

Beef Barley Soup

Today was cold and dreary, which is horrible weather to be having in June when I want to be out in the garden, but what can you do?

This is simply a variation on Beef Barley Soup. I don’t usually add tomato paste but it was an interesting change of pace.

Here is the "recipe":

- About 2 cups of diced BBQ’s steak

- Two large baked potatoes, the pulp scooped out, and the peeling saved

- One Corn on the cob kernelled

- ¾ cup of BBQ’d mushroom and onion medley

- One 156mL/5.5 Fl oz can on Tomato Paste

- 6 Cups of beef broth

- ½ Cup of Pot Barley

- 2 Tbsp each of Fresh Parsley and fresh thyme

- Black Pepper to taste

All the above ingredients were placed in a slowcooker and turned on high for 30 minutes and then tuned to low for 6 or more hours. I served it with freshly baked bread, of course!

*Bonus: Remember those empty potato skins I saved? Sprinkled with bacon, green onions and cheese, then broiled for a couple of minutes = YUMMMMMY!

Shepherd’s Pie

I still had two ears of corn and one steak to do something with. I could have froze them and created something with them later, but I had the time today to do something with them. So that’s what I did, then I froze the Shepherd’s Pie to use at a later date.

I had used all of my potatoes in the soup, so I had to boil and mash some more. I also used all of the BBQ’s mushroom and onion medley in the soup, so I slice an onion as well.

I diced the last large BBQ’d steak and mixed it and the sliced onion with a package of mushroom gravy mix. I layered the kernelled corn on top of the meat mixture and then the freshly boiled and mashed potatoes on top of the corn.

I let everything cool in the fridge and then packaged it with saran wrap and tin foil. I marked clearly what it was, when it was assembled, when it should be used by, and in the freezer it went. Ready for a hectic day in the future!

Until next time ... eat your leftovers!

A Long Hiatus

2011-06-15T11:24:00.000-06:00

I am back from a horribly long hiatus! No excuse for it except LIFE!

Today I will make up for my absence by making two dishes out of our leftovers.

What is leftover? Baked potatoes, corn on the cob, BBQ’d steak, and BBQ’d mushrooms and onions.

Shepherd’s Pie

2011-04-28T22:47:00.000-06:00

What was leftover? Meatloaf, peas, gravy and mashed potatoes.

I chopped up the meatloaf which equalled to about 1 ½ cups, then I mixed it in a casserole dish with the peas (1 cup), gravy (1 cup), and some additional chopped onions and sliced mushrooms. I topped the concoction with the mashed potatoes and placed it in a 400⁰F oven until it was heated through, about 30 minutes.

Shepherd’s Pie is so yummy (not to mention EASY), and this version was no exception.

Until next time ... eat your leftovers!

Cheesy Macaroni Pie

2011-04-26T18:20:00.001-06:00

What was leftover? About six cups of “Mac and Tomat”.

I didn’t want to just heat it up and I really didn’t want to add meat to it, simply because once a week we go meatless.

To the bowl with the leftover “Mac and Tomat” I added:

1 tsp of dried oregano

1 minced garlic clove

2 Tbsp of Sundried Tomato Paste

Then in a medium sized sauce pan I melted 1/3 cup of unsalted butter, to which I whisked in 1/3 cup of flour, and a sprinkle each of salt and pepper, and cooked for one minute. I whisked into it 4 cups of milk and added a Bay Leaf. I simmered this white sauce mixture for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

In a medium bowl, I whisked 3 eggs and once the white sauce was complete, I slowly added it, whisking all the time. (Be sure to remove the Bay Leaf from the white sauce.)

I greased a 9” glass pie plate and then proceeded to layer the leftover “Mac and Tomat”, white sauce/egg mixture and grated marble cheese, ending with cheese.

I baked at 400⁰F for about 30 minutes, until the cheese was nice and bubbly.

So great! So good!

Note: I only used about 4 cups of the “Mac and Tomat” and only about 2 cups of the white sauce/egg mixture. I froze these leftovers to use in soups or other casserole type dishes at a later date.

Until next time ... eat your leftovers!

PS: I forgot to take a picture. It was so good, it was gone before I even thought of it! :-)

I adapted this recipe from another recipe found at KraftCanada.com.

Leftover "Mac and Tomat"

2011-04-20T10:18:00.000-06:00

We love macaroni and tomatoes mixed together with a bit of margarine, salt and pepper. It is divine when you’re real hungry and don’t feel like cooking! But, we always make way too much (you’d think we’d learn!).

What do you do with leftover “mac and tomat”?

Check back soon...

Lasagna Soup How To

2011-03-30T08:38:00.001-06:00

Super-duper easy, super-duper yummy!

The best type of lasagna recipe to use for this soup is one with ricotta/cottage cheese and spinach, though if that’s not what you have, you can always add some frozen or fresh spinach to it.

Refrigerate the lasagna until it is firm, then cut into ½ inch squares. Plop it in a slowcooker and add enough broth to cover by about 4 to 5 inches. You can use either chicken or beef broth.

This soup only needs 5 hours at low in the slowcooker, but you can let it simmer away all day if you wish.

Lasagna Soup is super-duper yummy, especially when served with homemade bread straight from the bread-maker.

Until next time ... eat your leftovers!

For more tips and tricks, please visit: http://www.moms-stay-at-home.com/

Lasagna Soup

2011-03-29T15:36:00.002-06:00

I don't make big 9x13" lasagnes unless we're having company, but we do like lasagne. So I assemble and freeze several 5x9" loaf lasagnes, then it is just a matter of thawing and baking!

We had one of these loaf lasagnes yesterday and there was some leftovers with which I'm going to prepare Slowcooker Lasagne Soup.

Prepare to be amazed!

Until next time ... eat your leftovers!

For more tips and tricks, please visit: http://www.moms-stay-at-home.com/

Mozza Chicken Casserole

2011-03-28T16:53:00.002-06:00

What was leftover? 2 cups of pasta sauce, 3 cups of tri-coloured rotini, 1 cup boiled peas and carrots, and 1 ½ cups bite sized/diced chicken breast.

I sliced and sautéed another small amount of onions and mushrooms. In a buttered casserole dish I mixed together the pasta, the sauce, the onions and mushrooms, and the peas and carrots. I diced the remaining* chicken breast into bite-sized pieces and mixed that in too. Then I topped the dish with mozzarella cheese and baked it in the oven at 350⁰F for 35 minutes, until it was heated through and the cheese was bubbly and golden.

Everyone loved it!

Until next time ... eat your leftovers!

*There was still some more chicken left over after removing the breast, so I froze it for another day to make chicken soup or the like.

For more tips and tricks, please visit: http://www.moms-stay-at-home.com/

A Safeway Rotisserie Chicken and Store-Bought Pasta Sauce - how can they be recreated?

2011-03-24T11:32:00.001-06:00

I didn’t feel like cooking last night, so we had a rotisserie chicken from Safeway. GASP! I know... How horrible of me, not cooking. There you have it, it happens.

We had the chicken and I also made tri-coloured rotini and heated some bottled pasta sauce (again, GASP!) to which I added sautéed onions and mushrooms, with garlic cheese buns on the side.

There were leftovers: pasta, pasta sauce, chicken; there were also some peas and carrots from the previous night’s supper.

How will the leftovers be twisted and turned? Stay tuned...

For more tips and tricks, please visit: http://www.moms-stay-at-home.com/

Dumplings

2011-03-23T13:57:00.001-06:00

I have never tried to make dumplings before, because my memory of dumplings are of my mother's pasty bits of glue.

The Simplest Dumpling

My husband, though always asks for dumplings. So, I decided to try my hand at them. You know what? They're yummy!

I went with the simplest recipe I could find:

Dumplings
1 Cup      50/50 flour*
1 T          baking powder
1 t           white sugar
1/2 t        salt
1 T          margarine
1/2 C       milk

In a bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt. Cut margarine into this mixture until it is crumbly, then stir in milk to make a soft dough.

Drop by the teaspoonful into the simmering chowder (or stew, or soup, etc.) until the dumplings are barely touching (or you've run out of dough).

Cover the pot and simmer for 15 minutes without lifting the lid of the pot.

Since my experiment into dumplings went well this first time, I'm going to now experiment with other delectable varieties!

* I mix our flour using equal parts whole wheat and non-bleached white to make what I call 50/50 flour.

Until next time ... eat your leftovers!

For more tips and tricks, please visit: http://www.moms-stay-at-home.com/

Creamy Chicken Chowder

2011-03-15T21:58:00.001-06:00

With two chicken thighs, about two cups of mashed potatoes, the same amount of boiled carrots and peas, and mushroom sauce, and four cups of cooking water from the potatoes, carrots and peas - I created a Creamy Chicken Chowder to die for!

And not only that, but it had dumplings in it too!

I chopped the chicken thighs into small bite-sized pieces, and cut the slices of carrots into quarters, just to make them easier to scoop up into our spoons.

In a large pot I placed the potatoes and the cooking water, and turned it on medium heat. While it heated, I re-mashed the potatoes - again, just to make it easier to scoop up with our spoons.

The rest of the ingredients, along with a tablespoon of dried parsley, then went in the pot as well to heat through and simmer until dumpling*-dropping time.

I didn't feel the need to add any other flavourings than the ones that were already in the mushroom sauce, which were - onion, sage, garlic, salt, and pepper. I did add an extra pinch of salt while it was simmering

Until next time ... eat your leftovers!

*I'll post the recipe for dumplings in a separate post. Watch for it!

For more tips and tricks, please visit: http://www.moms-stay-at-home.com/

What Will This Become?

2011-03-13T22:58:00.002-06:00

Tonight for supper we had chicken thighs in a mushroom sauce, mashed potatoes, and boiled peas and carrots.

We have some leftovers...what will they become?

For more tips and tricks, please visit: http://www.moms-stay-at-home.com/

Apples, Apples, and More Apples!

2010-10-13T06:15:00.001-06:00

With fall comes an abundance of apples.

So good! Apple Muffins

With fall comes an abundance of apple-ly goodies! Apple pie, apple crisp, apple cookies, apple chomppers (my own invention), apple streusel cake, apple tart, apple popover, and …

Apple Muffins !

I have my own apple muffin recipe, but I decided to try something new. The recipe below was based on one found at http://www.forthebodyandsoul.blogspot.com/.

3 Cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
Pinch of salt
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg
3 Tbsp sugar
½ Cup + 2 Tbsp unsalted butter
3 Tbsp honey
2 eggs
170 ml milk (approximately ¾ cup)
2 apples

First, preheat your oven to 390⁰F. Then grease your muffin tin, or line it with papers.

Peel and core the apples, and chop them into bite-sized pieces.

Sift the dry ingredients into a large bowl and make a well in the centre.

Heat the butter and honey over low heat until they are melted. Be careful not to burn the butter!

In a separate bowl, measure the milk and eggs, then beat them slightly.

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredient well. Add the chopped apples and mix until no dry remains.

Spoon the mixture into the greased muffin tin, filling each to about ¾ full.

Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.
Remove from oven and let the muffins cool a few minutes before removing them from the muffin tin.

As an extra special touch, I sprinkled cinnamon sugar over the top of them and then drizzled it with a bit of extra melted butter after removing them from the oven. Delish!

You could serve these warm or cold. Warm with vanilla ice cream and caramel sauce drizzled over top; cold in your young one’s lunch bag, or for your grab-and-go breakfast.

Until next time ... eat your abundance (leftovers)!

For more tips and tricks, please visit: http://www.moms-stay-at-home.com/

Thanksgiving Feast Leftovers

2010-10-12T11:34:00.001-06:00

Thanksgiving Day Feast

On our Thanksgiving Day Menu we had Turkey (of course), mashed taters, boiled carrots and beets, and yummy stuffing. None of us enjoy cranberry sauce so the only time we ever include that is if we have guests.

We always have our Thanksgiving Day Dinner on Sunday, so that we have leftovers on Monday. Usually Monday we just re-heat and eat, or make hot (or cold) turkey sandwiches.

Tuesday we have a casserole and then the rest gets frozen for other meals such as soup or Turkey Tetrazzini.

Today, I’m going to share my easy-peasy and delish Turkey Casserole recipe with you!

Keep an eye out for it ...

For more tips and tricks, please visit: http://www.moms-stay-at-home.com/

Holidays Over

2010-08-05T14:01:00.000-06:00

We’ve just arrived back from holiday.
Had a great time but now I’m ready to dive back into our leftovers!

Look for new posts soon...

The Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth - The Calgary Stampede

2010-07-16T10:51:00.001-06:00

We're off to the Stampede today!

There is sure to be many culinary delights to partake in. Can't wait!

Food Safety - Leftovers and Freezer Life

2010-07-14T08:52:00.000-06:00

I thought it would be a good idea to touch on the subject of leftover usage time, as well as food storage, particularly in the freezer.

Leftovers are wonderful fabulous things!

They can make a quick reheated lunch, or they can be reshaped into another fabulous meal. But when they’ve been in your fridge for a week and they’re beginning to look a wee bit green around the edges, not to mention smell a wee bit off...then they can be horrible, awful, dangerous things that can cause food poisoning.

Not a happy thing.

Follow these two links:
- Leftovers Food Safety
- Food Storage in Freezer

Read and heed.

The most important bit of advice to give and get regarding food is:

"When in doubt, throw it out!"

Until next time ... eat your leftovers - safely!

Roasted Chicken Leftovers

2010-07-13T20:06:00.002-06:00

It was COLD here today. It was less than 10 degrees C all day, rainy and windy.

So, tonight (to heat up the house) I roasted a chicken. It was accompanied by boiled potatoes, peas with onions and garlic, and, of course, gravy.

Were there leftovers? Why, yes, there was!

How will I form these lovelies into supper tomorrow night...or the next night...

Basic Tea Biscuit Recipe

2010-07-13T11:33:00.002-06:00

Tea biscuits are the go-anywhere-with-everything!

They’re good with soup, with a cup of tea, with a fancy dinner, with a thrown together leftover medley; for breakfast, lunch or supper.

The Recipe
1 cup     all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp   granulated sugar
1 ½ tsp  baking powder
¼ tsp     salt
3 Tbsp   margarine or butter
1 Tbsp   olive oil
¼ cup    milk

In a large bowl, mix dry ingredients. Cut the butter and oil into the dry ingredients until the mixture is crumbly.

Add milk and stir to form a ball. (You may need to add more milk if the ingredients are too dry to form a ball, but only a tablespoon at a time.)

On a floured surface, knead the dough ball a few times then roll to ¾ inch thick. Cut into 2 inch circles.

Place circles on an ungreased baking sheet and bake at 400⁰F for 10 minutes or until lightly browned.

This easy recipe makes 6 biscuits.

The recipe doubles well and anything can be added to it. How about grated cheese? Or chocolate chips? Blueberries? Or maybe some simple herbs, like oregano and basil? You don’t need to add a lot. For the basic recipe above - ½ cup would be enough; ½ tsp for the herbs. Whatever you add should be added to the dry ingredients.

Make it! Enjoy it! Let me know what you added!

Cheesy Green Bean Pasta Potato Medly – UPDATE with picture

2010-07-12T19:20:00.015-06:00

What was in my fridge for leftovers this evening?

There were small boiled potatoes, boiled green beans, small shell pasta and Alfredo sauce with onions and mushrooms in it.

I put the pasta and Alfredo sauce in a large bowl, cut the potatoes and green beans into bite sized pieces, put them in the bowl, and grated black pepper over the lot. I then mixed it all together thoroughly. I put that in a glass Pyrex cooking dish and liberally sprinkled grated mozzarella cheese over top.

I placed the covered dish in a 400⁰F oven and cooked it for 15 minutes until it was heated through. Then uncovered the yummy-bubbly dish and allowed it to cook until the cheese was brown and bubbly, about another 10 minutes.

Along with this awesome meatless dish I also served freshly baked tea biscuits. (Look for that recipe and other easy recipes in future posts.)

Until next time ... eat your leftovers!

Cheesy Green Bean Pasta Potato Medley

2010-07-12T16:29:00.005-06:00

Tonight we're having leftovers madness! Everything that was in the fridge is now in a glass pyrex cooking dish ready to be put in the oven.

Expect an update and pictures...