Re-purposing Leftovers!

At this point in the week you maybe looking in the refridgerator wondering what are you going to do with all those leftovers?  It may have also crossed your mind that you really don't want to have to do a lot of cooking over this holiday weekend, well have I got some ideas for you!  You can take your leftovers add them to a few odds and ends and make meals your weekend meals a breeze.  Here are my top 5 ideas for re-purposing leftovers:

1) Stuffed Braided Crescent Rolls - This is a simple and easy way to use up a multitude of leftovers.  On a cookie sheet lay out your crescent rolls so that the pointed ends are out and all the flat ends meet in the middle.  After that get creative.  If you have taco leftovers layer them in the middle and then braid the dough over the top.  You can do the same with some leftover chicken, veggies, and cheese or even leftover roast beef and carrots with some gravy over top once it is cooked.  Once you stuff and braid the crescent roll, bake for about 15-20 minutes or until golden brown and enjoy! 

2) Leftovers Chili - A lot of leftovers can very simply be converted into a chili without the long simmer times.  Taco meat or even chicken can be the start of a great chili. Take and saute some onions, garlic, peppers, and celery (often you can find celery and onions pre-chopped in the produce section of your grocery store) then add your meat, tomatoes, and beans (for beef chili I use kidney beans, but for chicken I use northern beans).  Taste to see if you want to add any additional seasoning like cumin, chili powder, hot sauce, or taco seasoning and then allow to simmer for 15-20 minutes. I would plan on checking this about half way through just to see how the spices are blending.    Also, if you are feeling adventurous try adding just a little dark chocolate to it.  It helps to deepen the flavor.

3) Soups or Stews - This one is a lot like the chili, but goes outside of the tex-mex flavors.  Left over mashed potatoes, corn, cream/milk, salt and pepper and you have yourself a simple corn chowder.  Some chicken, broth, carrots, celery, and noodles a quick soup.  Take left over roast beef, some frozen mix veggies, barley, gravy and beef broth for another simple soup.  The possibilities are endless.  I once took left over jerk chicken and made a really hearty chicken stew!

4) Meat & Gravy over noodles - This is one of my favorite ways to use up left over roast beef dinner.  I will chop up the roast beef, mix it with gravy, simmer and pour over egg noodles.  If I don't feel I have enough gravy left over I will add a can of cream of mushroom soup.  I have also been known to do this with left over chicken, cream of mushroom soup, and a little milk.

5) Quiches - This is one of the best ways I have found to use up all kinds of leftovers.  Start with a store bought pie crust.  Mix a ratio of 4 eggs to 1 cup cream or milk to make about 1-2 quiches depending on how much mix-ins you add to your pie crust.  The more mix-ins you use the less room you will have for eggs.  I have been know to use leftover ham, chicken, bacon, broccoli, shish-kabobs, spinach, mushrooms, and the list could go on.  Pretty much anything is fair game.  I like to have a good mix of cheese on hand.  Parmesan is good in here as well as colby jack, gruyere, you can pretty much use any good melting cheese that you like.  If you don't want to have a big pie or you want a variety of quiches, muffin tins with a refrigerator biscuit flattened in the bottom also makes a great quiche crust.  For the pie plate you will want to bake them at 350F for about 20-30 minutes or until cook through and golden brown, the muffin should bake at the same temp for 15-25 minutes or again until cooked through and golden brown.  The other great part about these is that you can also freeze them after you have baked and cooled them and bring them out for another time.  Just thaw in the fridge and reheat in the over!

Leftovers can sometimes seem so over whelming and very unappealing, but with a little dash of creativity and courage you can turn those plain old leftovers into a whole new meal!

Grub's On!