Leftovers Made Brand New!

For Christmas I cooked a great meal; fried chicken, pork roast, collard greens, mushroom rice, squash casserole, corn bread and iced tea. A meal worthy of ooo’s and aah’s. Due to the fact I only know how to cook for a family of 5 now, I had a ton of leftover in the fridge. In my family, the leftover meter ranges from one child that is totally opposed to eating leftovers to a husband that will eat anything in the fridge that doesn’t have fur on it. I was able to make three meals out of those leftovers. With a little bit of craftiness, I saved time, money and food. Here how I did it.

For Saturday lunch, I warmed up fried chicken, mushroom rice with roast gravy and corn bread. I added some new vegetables of green beans. This meal was a big hit at the table with the picky child. He had no clue it was the same food.

For Saturday dinner, I reheated the pork roast and collard greens. I added a parmesan flavored pasta-roni for the starch and kool-aid for the drink. Once again, big hit at the table. I reminded my husband that leftovers are best if eaten within 3 days.

Finally Sunday came around and I needed just one more meal. The fridge was almost cleaned out and I was struggling to find a recipe for the last pieces of the pork roast. Then an epiphany occurred; pork fried rice. We had barbeque ribs, pork fried rice, spring mix salad and tea.

I did it! I used all the leftovers from Christmas dinner. Do you know how much money we saved? Saturday’s lunch and dinner side additions only cost $2.50. Sunday’s dinner only added an extra $10.00 to the food budget. That means three days worth of eating for a family of 5 for $12.50. I impressed myself. I should earn honorary “Iron Chef” status for this one.