As August’s temperatures soar and stores flip their ‘seasonal’ aisles to a heavy feature of school supplies, you may be trying to squeeze as much fun as possible into the home stretch of summer. If part of your strategy is to find ways to cut back on kitchen time, making use of your leftovers can go a long way - and save money!
However, there’s more to leftover meals than simply reheating and repeating. The following recipes and tips make use of elements of last night’s dinner in a new way. Reduce food waste and your grocery bill by putting your fridge contents through new paces.
Grain Bowl
Quinoa, rice, and other grains can be a great base for a whole new meal. Pick your favorite and prep enough to fill each bowl with about ½ cup when cooked. With your bowl base complete, it’s time to raid the fridge for leftovers to round things out.
That ear of corn no one ate last night? Cut the kernels and use it tonight. The carrots that never made their way into the dip you put out while the family was swimming in the pool earlier? Dice them up. The chicken breast that was left over? Cut it into bite sized bits. You’ll want about a ½ cup each of the vegetables and protein you select to add to each bowl you’re prepping.
Go ahead and add some toppings like seeds, sprouts, dried fruit, or other bits that complement your bowl. Add a favorite sauce or dressing. You can make one from scratch or use a bottled dressing you love. Drizzle your dressing over each bowl and enjoy!
Not sure what dressing to go forward with? Keep it simple. Combine lime juice with honey and oil for something quick and easy. Crunchy, Creamy, and Sweet offers a great dish featuring grains, veggies, and this sort of dressing in their Chickpea Quinoa Salad recipe.
Two-Purpose Meal Prep
Planning ahead can go a long way to helping you purchase and prep components that can be used for more than one meal. As an example, Fed & Fit offers up a twist on using black beans for both an enticing Enchilada Stuffed Zucchini Boat dinner, and then repurposing the extra beans for a vegetarian chili with vegan cornbread.
As written, the zucchini boats do use cheese and sour cream, however, you could easily swap out the dairy versions of each for a safe alternative if milk allergies are on your list.
Quesadilla Redux
Maybe leftover ribs are not a thing that happens at your house, but if it is, plucking tender meat from the bones of a good barbecue can set you up for a great easy dish another night of the week. If you’re avoiding wheat, classic corn tortillas can be a good starting point.
Warm up a frying pan and drop your tortilla in. Grab what works for your family and start layering on the flavorful ingredients. Whether it’s the leftover pork from those ribs, the hamburgers that never got eaten at your weekend cookout, or some chicken looking for a new purpose, use what you’ve got to create a custom quesadilla. Add peppers, onions, tomato, or other vegetables of your choice. Cheese is a common quesadilla ingredient, but you can nix it or substitute a dairy-free alternative if you’re avoiding milk.
It won’t take long to cook this dish. Once the tortilla is toasted, and the cheese is melted, you’re ready to fold the quesadilla in half and slide it from the pan to a plate. Cut it into triangles and serve with a collection of dips that compliment your combination of fillings like salsa, avocado, and allergy-friendly sour cream alternatives.
“Too Much Quinoa” Burgers
When you made those grain bowls to use up some leftover veggies and protein, did you overestimate how much quinoa you needed? Don’t toss the excess! Repurpose it into these homemade veggie burgers from Cookie & Kate! They are loaded with taste and texture.
As written, the recipe can also put to work leftover black beans if you want an alternative to chili after making the zucchini boats also shared above. Whether or not you use a roll for this sweet-potato-laden patty is up to you. Have it as is, or place it on a bun or wrapped in a lettuce leaf with a thick slice of tomato and other toppings.
