between2worlds

It's my turn to cook today and tomorrow and so tonight I had a little of this and some of that but not quite enough of anything to go around the table.

So I dug out one of my favorite leftover recipes -

Cook some spuds - one large one per person (or a couple of medium sized ones). I cheat and use the microwave for this part.

When the potatoes are done, make a shallow slice across the length of the potato. Scrape the potato bits off the slice and scoop out the potato, keeping the potato skin intact. Put all of the potato in a bowl.

Make your favorite whipped potato recipe. Here's mine:

The "meat" of 6 medium potatoes, 1/3 C. milk and 2 tablespoons of sour cream. Sometimes I'll use unflavored yogurt or parmesan cheese - other times a generous slice of cream cheese.

Whip the potatoes with an electric mixer until they are stiff. When they are the consistency you like, add an egg and beat the potatoes and egg until it is well combined.

Now the fun part -

Look in the fridge and grab leftovers that go together. Tonight was some cooked bacon, canned mushrooms and sauteed onions.

It could've been chicken, mixed veggies and garlic OR ham, green peppers and onion OR pork, sauteed celery, cilantro, jalapenos and peeled chunks of seeded tomatoes.

Dump up to 2 cups of various left overs into the whipped potatoes, add a big handful (around 1/2 c) of your favorite shredded cheese and stir it all together.

Spoon the mixture into the potato skins, pile it high, there will be lots more stuffing than there is skin to put it in.

At this point you can freeze them, put them in the fridge for cooking later or bake them right away.

Bake at 375 until the potatoes are heated through and the outside has started to brown a bit (about an hour).

So what do you do with leftovers???

Pvt Butter

very clever and tasty ideas Patrick! I usually eat my leftovers for lunch the next day. If we haven't finished the leftovers by the third day, I make individual servings and freeze for a later lunch. I don't keep frozen leftovers longer than a month. For food safety, leftovers shouldn't stay in the fridge longer than four days and no longer than two months (depending on what it is) in the freezer.

wyo_rose

Those potatoes sound so good. I'll bake some spuds tonight and have them ready for tomorrow. I think I'll cut them in half and pile them high. Sort of halfway between a stuffed potato and potato skins.

We hardly ever have leftovers that don't get gobbled up. If we do have the odd item, it usually goes in an omelet the next day, a burrito, or soup.

If we have some leftover soup that's nice and thick by the third day, I'll put it in a baking dish and cover it with a topping and bake it. Some good combos:
Stew with refrigerator or homemade biscuit topping
Stew with mashed tater topping (shepard's pie)
Chili (red or green) with cornbread topping.
Chicken noodle mixed with extra canned veggies (green beans,corn and potatoes) and topped with a thick pie crust. If the broth is kinda runny still, take out some and mix with a packet of chicken gravy mix, and maybe leave some of the broth out.

between2worlds

Thanks! That recipe was born one day when, with miles to go until payday, I had potatoes, ONE chicken thigh, 2 stalks of celery, an onion, one egg, a couple of tablespoons of frozen peas, a dribble of milk along with some cheese and FOUR hungry people to feed.

Now, if I had had some flour I probably wouldn't have tried it. I'd have made flour & water gravy, shredded the chicken, put the veggies in and served it on potatoes.

A happy accident that is now a household favorite.

wyo_rose

Serendipity

wyo_rose

Note to self: dont' beat the potatoes until they start making glue!

But even at that, after mixing in all the ingredients and topping it with more cheese, everyone LOVED them. Next time I think I'll add it a little salt and pepper.