Day 27 of 30: Leftover Love

[dropcap style=”font-size: 60px; color: #71CCD5;”] L[/dropcap]eftovers can be a saviour or a pest.

It all depends on your perspective.

And of course the leftover!

Today’s lesson is about making leftovers more glamorous, or at least more delicious.

WHAT YOU’LL LEARN TODAY:

• 10 Tasty Ideas for Leftovers

10 Tasty Ideas for Leftovers

1. Take a break.
Having the same leftovers for more than one meal in a row can make even the most unadventurous eater get a little tired. But a break of even just one day can make them seem ‘new’ again. Most things will keep for 1-2 weeks in the fridge and much longer in the freezer.

2. Freeze some.
If you’ve got more than you can possibly eat in a week, be sure to freeze at least some. It’s amazing how a few weeks break in the freezer can make something totally ‘old’ seem fun again. Most things, with the exception of salads, freeze well.

3. Make a leftover leafy salad.
Make a classic green salad and turn it into a meal by scattering over your leftovers (chopped into bite sized pieces). Works with cold leftovers or warmed leftovers. If I need to make it more substantial I add some roast nuts. Or mayo. I love mayo.

4. The leftover soup.
Bring a few cups of water, tomato puree or stock to the simmer and add your leftovers (chopped into bite sized pieces). Instant divinely warming soup. Use this refrigerator soup recipe if you aren’t comfortable with ‘winging it’.

5. The leftover baked frittata.
Leftover cooked vegetables, protein, herbs and even cheese, can all go into making the most divine baked frittata. Use the recipe over here as a base and get creative.

6. Change the nationality of your dish.
This can be tricky with strongly flavoured dishes like curries. But for more European style recipes, a change in nationality can make your leftovers feel (and taste!) like a completely new meal.

For example, leftover roast broccoli could have curry powder added and served with yoghurt and fresh coriander (cilantro) to become an Indian curry. Toss it in plenty of pesto and you have an Italian salad. Or serve it on a bed of cauliflower hummus and it’s a Lebanese treat.

7. Try the ‘serving with a different side / accompaniment’ trick.
Take example from the humble meatloaf or as the Italians call it, Polpettone. You can serve it on a bed of cauliflower ‘couscous’ or cauliflower rice, or with zucchini ‘spaghetti’, on a bed of baby spinach or as a sandwich in some broccoli bread or even instead of a burger patty with these almond burger buns.

8. Make a curry
Curries are an excellent way to use up lots of bits and pieces of leftover meals and ingredients. The strong flavours of the curry sauce work wonders to tie everything together. See my Buy-Nothing-New Curry recipe for more detailed ideas.

9. Put an egg on it!
This is the basis for most of my Abundance Bowl lunches. Basically I grab whatever cooked leftover vegetables I have in the fridge. Sometimes I warm them, but mostly I just pile them in a bowl. Top with 1-2 fried or poached eggs. And if I need some extra veg add some rocket leaves (arugula) from the garden. Or some sauerkraut. Or both.

10. Make shakshuka
Shakshuka is a super delicious Middle Eastern dish of eggs baked in a spiced tomato sauce. It’s another super versatile leftovers recipe to have in your repertoire. See my ‘Next Day’ Shakshuka recipe for more detailed ideas.

SUMMARY:

Here’s what we’ve covered:

• Ideas for leftovers including, freezing them using them to make curries, soups, frittatas or shakshuka.

ACTIVITY

It’s time to play the look in the fridge game again!

Have a look and see what leftover ingredients or meals you have.

Make a plan for how you’re going to use them or prep them for later use.

LEARN MORE

See The Art of Leftovers from the Low Carb Love program. It includes tips on leftover safety and leftover ingredients.

Have fun in the kitchen!

With love,
Jules x

ps. What are your favourite ways to use leftovers? I’d love to hear about them in the comments below.