I hope not! Today’s Frugal Friday post will highlight the financial benefits of reusing leftover food, as well as how to enjoy that extra slice of last night’s pizza in a safe manner!
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| LOL Dogs!?! Watch out LOLcats! |
When you've spent money preparing a filling, nutritious dinner, your wallet weeps when you go to throw out any leftovers. Instead of chucking those last two slices of cheese or scraping those lingering slices of chicken into the trash, there are ways to reuse that food at a later date.
Thanksgiving: The ultimate leftover's holiday!
Safety Tips for Storing Leftovers
- Keep stored cold foods below 40°F and stored hot foods above 140°F.
- Foods may be kept in the fridge to 2-3 days before spoiling. (Be aware that food in a lower-powered dorm fridge might spoil faster.)
- Label all leftover food, making sure to indicate the date it was stored.
- Do not leave uneaten food out of the fridge for more than 2 hours.
- Never reheat leftover food more than once.
- Frozen leftovers will freeze/thaw faster if you put them in a smaller container
- Do not reheat leftover food in a slow-cooker since gradual heating causes bacterial growth.
- Practice common sense: If food is discolored, moldy, or smells like your unwashed laundry, don’t eat it.
Meal Ideas for Leftovers:
- Soups: Add extra meat and veggies to a chicken or vegetable stock to create a steaming bowl of soup.
- Tacos/Burritos: Buy taco shells or tortillas, reheat chopped up, leftover burger meat, add taco seasoning, and sprinkle lettuce and cheese on top to make Chipotle and Taco Bell shudder with jealousy.
- Omelettes: Fold last night’s leftover veggies (tomato, corn, spinach, etc) into this morning’s breakfast omelette.
- Sandwiches: Add leftover meat and veggies to two slice of wheat bread for a super-easy meal
- Breads: Bake leftover carrots, bananas, and zucchini into mouth-watering breads.
- Salads: Leftover chicken can lead to a chicken Caesar salad, while leftover veggies can make a healthy chopped salad.
I have to add...after writing "leftovers" so many times, the word is beginning to look really odd. Haha :-)
Do you have any tips for re-using leftover foods?
GREAT POST!! I love left overs and you are never too old for pizza leftovers for breakfast. Have a great weekend.
ReplyDeleteThese are such wonderful tips!! I love this! =)
ReplyDeleteGreat post! I always hesitate with left-overs cause I'm not always sure if it's still good! I still don't understand the whole "reheat once" thing but I'm not really willing to find out the consequences if I try! Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteI strongly believe that leftover pizza is the best breakfast ever! My favorite food to use as leftovers is grilled veggies. You can mix them with chicken or any other protein as a stir-fry, put it in sandwiches or just mix them with a grain rice/barley/quinoa. Perfect for busy school weeks!
ReplyDeleteAnother great way to use your leftovers, homemade pizza. It's a GREAT experiment, cause we all know anything can go on a pizza, and then you can have leftover pizza for breakfast :-)
ReplyDeleteWhat a great post girl! Thank you! <3 I definitely love taking my 'gooey' leftovers and using them in wraps or sammies the next day, ratatouille being a personal favorite.
ReplyDeleteI have to be creative with leftovers because my husband never eats them. So if I make a whole roasted chicken one night for dinner, I'll take the rest of the meat off and make chicken enchiladas, and then take the carcass and make chicken noodle soup.
ReplyDeleteI think I do pretty good - I spend about $80 bucks a week on average - and we have meat at every meal too :D
@Savvy Ratatouille is a good idea! I've never made one before (although I've obviously seen the movie haha).
ReplyDelete