by Jo Ann Wentzel

Created on: September 03, 2009

Many people still do not use leftovers and so each day much food is wasted. It is something older people find very distasteful and those much older are horrified as they may have been through the deprivations of the Great Depression or wartime shortages.

I do not believe in consuming or serving any food that is past its prime or dangerous to eat, but think we should be more careful of what we throw away especially in these times of tight money.

Being brought up to clean your plate and worry about the waste we left because there were unlucky starving children everywhere, made me more careful than some.

I attempt to use everything possible, but will throw things that look unappetizing. I do not always succeed with this noble goal of using it all up and I'm sure my family sometimes thinks I carry this too far, but it is a matter of principle. 'Waste not want not' comes to mind. I also believe my faith asks me not to waste as well. So there you have it my personal reasons, but the biggest one is it saves money.

If you are smart enough to cook just what you need and appetites are always predictable, this may not be a problem for you. But somewhere, possibly in my Italian heritage I learned to cook for an army and cannot seem to stop, so leftovers are frequently found at my house. It got worse when I fostered a group home of teen foster boys and even though we have been a couple for a long time, it still creeps into my cooking.

Usually any leftover meat can be made into a sandwich, possibly a spread or even a salad.

Vegetables are usually added to salads, other cooked veggies, or omelets.

Cheese is used constantly in my house so it once again can go anywhere between sandwiches, salads, eggs, potatoes etc. I often use it to top veggies or a casserole.

There are instances where one thing or another immediately comes to mind. If I have leftover bacon, I start to think potato salad. Small amounts of leftover ham will end up in scrambled eggs, but large amounts from a big ham, usually mean split pea soup or ham and green beans.

Chicken is the main ingredient in so many salads, sandwiches, and casseroles that the possibilities are endless.

Leftover ground beef can be served heated up over toast or potatoes. It is great in pasta with a bit of sauce and cheese.

Hard cooked eggs can become egg salad or an ingredient in potato salad. There are also many casseroles that use them. They make a wonderful salad bar garnish.

Leftover chopped tomatoes and lettuce from tacos will be the next day's salad starter. A lot of leftover tomatoes makes a small amount of fresh tomato sauce for pasta or stewed eaten hot or cold as a condiment . Recently I found a tomato tart which is just a delicious fresh way to use tomatoes, but would work for leftover ones as well.

When I make hot dogs and have only a couple left they go into a can of beans for a lunch addition or in cooked pasta for a quick meal.

Leftover spaghetti can be baked in a dish as can other pasta.

Leftover fruit can top pudding, ice cream, or be mixed with cold cereal or hot oatmeal.

Cake is rarely leftover, but can be turned into trifle with fruit, maraschino cherries, pudding, and whipped topping. Pound cake once eaten plain or with butter becomes a base for sugared strawberries or bananas.

Small amount of pudding or Jell-O left can be turned into a parfait, by adding the other one (a new pkg. of Jell-O or pudding) or cool whip.

Anyway, you see how easy it is to turn food left from one meal into the start of another. Nothing is wasted and it adds something to the new dish.

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