What to do with extra white rice?

We have had Chinese 3 times in the past week- that's a lot!  Each time it was delicious, but once again I was faced with the dilemma of what to do with another carton of white rice.  I made the rice into a tangy salad, that you'll hopefully love.  It's a great change from all of the 'winter' foods we've been eating lately.




Tangy Rice Salad


Ingredients:
3 Cups Cooked White Rice
1/2 Large Green Pepper- diced
20 Small Green Olives- sliced
1/4 Cup Large Red Onion
1/2 Cup Small Cubes of Colby Cheese
1 Cup Frozen Peas
3/4 Cup Mayonnaise
1/4 Cup Italian Salad Dressing (I used the Pasta House dressing)
1 TBSP Dijon Style Mustard


Pour the rice into a large bowl, breaking up the clumps as you pour it into the bowl.  Mix the Mayonnaise, Salad Dressing, and Mustard into the rice.  Add the Veggies and Cheese and stir.


The vegetables I added to the salad are what I had on hand.  Other veggies that would be good in this are artichoke hearts and black olives.

What to do with an extra loaf of bread?

I love grilled cheese.  They are one of my comfort foods.  It reminds me of my childhood when my mama would make me fried bologna grilled cheese sandwiches.  I think I used to even dip these in ketchup.  Tonight I made my family a variation of these, but I used ham (Do people even buy bologna anymore?), and made the sandwiches French toast style.  It turned out to be a great variation of an old favorite.  Of course, I cut them into four small triangles for my kiddos, just like my mama used to do when I was little. 


French-Toast Style Grilled Cheese


Ingredients:


5 Eggs
3/8 Cup Milk
2 tsp Spinach Dip Seasonings (the kind that comes in little packets to make a dip- mine was a PartyLite packet)
8 Slices of Colby Cheese
16 Slices of Deli Stye Honey Ham
8 Slices of Bread


Whisk eggs and milk together until creamy.  Add 1 tsp of Spinach dip seasoning and stir until mixed in.  Heat a large frying pan or griddle and spray with pam.  Dip both sides of a slice of bread in egg mixture and put in pan.  Dip another slice in the egg mixture and put in pan.  Flip the first slice when browned like French toast.  Add a slice of cheese, two slices of ham and then another slice of cheese to this slice of bread.  When the second slice of bread is browned, flip cooked side onto cheese (like a sandwich).  Finish cooking the second side of the first slice, then turn entire sandwich over to cook the last side.  Made sure both sides are browned like French toast and cheese is melted before taking off heat.  Repeat to make the second sandwich.  Before making the third sandwich, add 1 more tsp of Spinach dip seasoning to egg mixture.  Mix in and continue making the third and fourth sandwich.

What to do with leftover McDonald's caramel dipper sauce?

Add it to your coffee!


Like most people who have toddlers and preschoolers, we visit McDonald's on a regular basis.  I almost always get the kids apple dippers, but I leave the caramel sauce in the bag.  When I have around 10, I usually make a really yummy fruit dip.  However, today was one of those days I needed a cup of coffee at 3:30.  I like my coffee like a dessert and we were out of all of my regular add-ins- powdered creamer and Splenda just weren't cutting it.  When rummaging through my fridge, I found the caramel dip.  I added it to my coffee and presto, coffee shop coffee!  It was delicious!

What to do with extra cole slaw?

I love cole slaw, but unless you're having a huge party or bbq, it seems to last forever.  This is a recipe that I ate when I was pregnant with Charlie.  I craved bbq all of the time.  There was a restaurant in Warrensburg, MO that served bbq potato skins and this wrap.  We probably went once a week.  That must have been why he scarfed it down tonight.  I used my blue cheese cole slaw from the other night, but if I was to make it again, I would use a cole slaw that has a sweeter, creamy dressing.  This is a really fun and fast recipe that can easily be adjusted for a large group.  I slow cooked my pulled pork, but leftover bbq pork would work just as well.  Let me know what you think!

Charlie's BBQ Wraps

Ingredients:
Pulled Pork
Cole Slaw
Grated Cheddar Cheese
Baked Beans
Fajita Wraps

Warm up the wraps so they are easier to fold.  Sprinkle a layer of cheddar cheese on the fajita wrap, top this with baked beans.  Next add Pulled Pork.  Finally, add cole slaw on top of pork.  Roll up the fajita and enjoy with a side of bbq sauce and a pickle.

What to do with leftover takeout rice?

My husband and I had a date-night Saturday night.  We went out for sushi and had a fabulous time.  You don't realize how nice it is to sit down and eat without interruptions until you have a two and a three year old.  Our dinner was fabulous and we took home an entire to-go box of fried and white rice.  I normally make a Chinese dish when I take home fried rice, but since winter came back to St. Charles today, I decided to make a soup.  Here's a super easy recipe for Creamy Broccoli and Rice Soup.  Remember to top off your bowls with sharp cheddar cheese to add a little extra zing.  Stay Warm!


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Creamy Broccoli and Rice Soup



Ingredients:
2 Cups Cooked Rice (Mine was a combination of white and chicken fried rice.)
1 1/2 Cups of Frozen Chopped Broccoli, thawed
1- 12 oz Can of Fat Free Evaporated Milk
1 Can Fat Free Condensed Broccoli and Cheese Soup
1 Cup water
1/2 Packet of Ramen Noodle Chicken Flavoring
Shredded Sharp Cheddar Cheese


Pour Evaporated milk into a pan.  Add Rice, Broccoli, Broccoli Soup, and Water to the pan.  Cook until boiling.  While stirring, make sure you break up the chunks of rice.  Add 1/2 packet of Ramen Noodle Chicken Flavoring and stir.  Continue cooking and stirring (so it won't burn) until soup starts to thicken.  When serving, top each bowl with a generous sprinkle of Sharp Cheddar Cheese.

What to do with extra spaghetti sauce and celery?

I'm half-Italian.  My father is full-blooded.  This makes me a rather emotional person sometimes, it also makes for great cooking.  Growing up, we had a dish called spedinis for special occasions.  They were delicious.  Several times I have tried to order spedinis in restaurants and they're never made like my grandma's or as delicious.  Either the restaurants are getting it wrong or my family is mistaken of what a spedini is.  The restaurants always serve marinated meat, that might be breaded, on a skewer.  My family took a cut of meat (chicken or flank steak) and pounded it.  We then created a stuffing out of tomatoes and breadcrumbs and stuffed the meat.  We rolled the spedinis up, coated them with breadcrumbs and baked them- yum!  Our spedini recipe was the inspiration for this casserole.  I had some extra spaghetti sauce and celery I needed to use up, so presto, Italian Chicken Spedini Casserole.  This would be great with a side of pasta, salad and garlic bread.  Mangiar Bene!


Italian Chicken Spedini Casserole


Ingredients:
6 Small Stalks of Celery
1/2 Green Pepper
1/2 Medium Yellow Onion
1 TBSP of Minced Garlic (mine was not dried)
4 Boneless Chicken Breasts
Olive Oil


1 1/3 Cup of Spaghetti Sauce
1/2 Cup Italian Style Breadcrumbs
1/2 Cup Cottage Cheese
3/4 Cup Mozzarella Cheese
1 tsp Italian Seasoning
1 tsp basil
1 Egg


Cut up chicken into to chunks.  Dice celery, green pepper, and onion.  Pour 1/8 cup of olive oil into frying pan and heat.  As soon as it gets warm, add celery, green pepper, onions and chicken.  Saute until chicken is no longer pink and veggies are completely cooked.  Mix in garlic towards the end of cooking.  Let mixture cool.


After cooled, pour mixture into a large mixing bowl.  Add spaghetti sauce and bread crumbs.  Mix thoroughly.  Add cheeses, egg, Italian seasoning, and basil and mix.


Spray your pan.  I used a round, 10 inch, deep dish Pamper Chef baking pan.  Pour chicken spedini mixture into pan.  Sprinkle 1/4 Cup parmesean cheese on top.  Sprinkle 3 Tbsp of breadcrumbs on top of the parmesean cheese.  Bake at at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.  Broil for 3 minutes until toasty on top.




 

What to do with extra bananas?

This morning, Celia, Charlie and I sat down to a nice breakfast of bananas and yogurt. They promptly peeled (or took the tape off, as Charlie says) their bananas and said they were done. They didn't want to eat them. I did not want to eat three bananas, so I had to figure out something to do with them. I made a caramel sauce and cut them up into it. I put the sauce on top of their pancakes. You could also put it on top of ice cream or waffles. I thought it was great. Celia and Charlie still wouldn't eat their breakfast. I guess it wasn't a breakfast kind of day for my two and three year old. Oh well. Here's the recipe. It was just enough to top the pancakes for two little ones. You'll probably want to double or triple the recipe if you're going to serve more people.

Banana Caramel Sauce

Ingredients:
2 Bananas
3/8 Cup of Honey
1/4 Cup Olive Oil or Butter
3/4 tsp Vanilla
1 tsp Cinnamon

Heat butter or olive oil up in skillet. Slice bananas into the hot oil. Add honey, vanilla, and cinnamon to the skillet. Stir constantly because the mixture will burn easily. You want the liquid to boil and become sticky. After boiling, turn stove off and mixture will continue to thicken. Serve warm.

What to do with blue cheese and cabbage..

You're probably asking yourself who has leftover blue cheese, well we do. And like so many other things in my life, it was given to me. My mom works as a secretary at a rectory. One of the priests had a party and served a cheese tray. The priest gave my mom all of the leftover cheeses, who in turn gave it to us. I've been meaning to use it and tonight was the night. We're having chilidogs with the leftover chili from last night, so I made coleslaw to go with it. While I initially set out to make Blue Cheese Coleslaw, it turned more into Blue Cheese/Ranch Cole Slaw when my little helper, Charlie, dumped half of the bottle of Ranch into the slaw when my back was turned. I've taken some of the ranch out of my recipe so it won't be so Ranchy (is that a word?).


Blue Cheese Cole Slaw

Ingredients
1/2 Cup Mayo
1/2 Cup Ranch
1/4 Cup Parmesean Cheese
1/3 Cup Blue Cheese
1/4 Cup Honey
3 Splashes White Wine Vinegar
1/8 tsp Celery Powder
1/8 Cup Blue Cheese Salad Dressing
Pinch of Salt

16 oz Bag of Cole Slaw Mix or 16 oz of Chopped up Cabbage
1/2 Cup of Bacon
1/4 Cup of Sunflower Seeds

Mix together the first 9 ingredients in a large bowl until creamy. Slowly pour cabbage into bowl, mixing as you go along. If your cole slaw is too dry, add a bit of milk until it reaches the consistency you like (I didn't have to do this because we have a ton of ranch mixed into ours! You might not have to do it either.). When finished, add bacon and mix in. Finally, sprinkle sunflower seeds on top for an extra crunchy treat.

What to do with left over pork steaks and turnips?

My dad owns his own business and has made friends with people who regularly come into "the shop". One of these customers is a farmer. He brings my dad boxes of fruits and vegetables and my dad hands them out to us, his family and friends. This is how I came to be the proud owner of about 15 turnips. I have quietly been adding them to all kinds of dishes: quiche, apples and tonight chili! Nobody ever notices. To make the chili extra special, I also used some left over pork steaks. It was a hit- my husband ate two bowls. I'm sending the rest of it to "the shop" tomorrow for lunch. Hopefully they'll like it just as much as Andy.

When cooking, I don't always use measuring spoons and cups. I'm definitely an eye-baller and a taste and add more kind of person. From now on, I'll be more diligent about measuring how much of everything I add.

Ingredients:
3 to 4 Leftover Pork Steaks cut up in small pieces
1/2 Green Pepper Chopped
1/2 Large Red Onion Chopped
1 Can Black Beans
1 Can Chili Beans
1 Can Diced Tomatoes
1 Cup Water
1 Turnip chopped into very small pieces (Optional)
1/2 Cup Spaghetti Sauce
1/4 Cup of BBQ Sauce
1 TBSP of Minced Garlic
1 TBSP of Taco Seasoning
2 Packs Taco Bell Mild Sauce
Chili Powder to taste
Ground Cumin to taste
Dried Cilantro to taste
Salt to taste

Shredded Cheese (I used Colby)
Tortilla Chips (Mine were stale, so I heated them up in the oven to crunch them up.)

Mix all ingredients except shredded cheese and tortilla chips in a slow cooker. Cook on high for 3 hours. You will want to make sure that the turnips, green peppers, and onions are cooked thoroughly. If you would like your chili thicker, take out 1/2 cup of the liquid after everything's finished cooking. Mix it together with 1/4 cup of flour to make a paste. Pour this paste into the chili, let it cook until it thickens up.

Top each bowl off with tortilla chips and shredded cheese. Enjoy!

Sherbert Jello

A little while ago I had a baby shower and served some punch. The punch was a hit, but I still have half a container of sherbert left. Tonight I decided to do something with it. My kids love Jello. It is a treat that is so easy to make, but I never do. I'm not sure why, something about the texture freaks me out. It's oooey and gooey and moves funny. But I decided I was going to make our sherbert into jello. Here's how I did it. Let me know what you think.


Sherbert Jello
Ingredients
1 Cup Sherbert (I used lemon lime)
2 cups juice (I used apple)
3 packs gelatin

Put the cup of sherbert into a square pan and let it melt. After it melts, sprinkle the gelatin over it. Let it sit for a minute or two. Boil the three cups of juice and then pour over the sherbert. mix until all the gelatin is disolved. Put in the fridge until jiggly.

What's for leftovers?

Welcome to What's For Leftovers?!



Like many others, I love to cook. I've been cooking for a long time, since high school. For me, it is a way to express my creativity and love for others. I've had some huge successes in the kitchen and I've produced some food that was well... horrible (sweet and sour hot dogs!). However, my real skill lies in leftovers. I have a talent for turning last night's dinner into something new and delicious. I hope to share my leftover recipes with you all and have an ongoing discussion about creating delicious food.



Happy Cooking!



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