Recipe: Leftover Sweet Potato Cake

If you're looking for a sweet way to use up some of those holiday leftovers, treat yourself to this wonderful and unique cake! Leftover sweet potatoes add fiber, flavor, and beautiful color, while the rich flavor is accented with vanilla, spices, and a tangy hint of beer - it may sound odd, but try it - you'll be glad you did! (Feel free to cut down on the sugar - with the sweetness of the potatoes you shouldn't need this much - I would probably only use about a cup or so.)

Leftover Sweet Potato Cake

Ingredients:

(Photo credit: SheGotTheBeat)

1 3/4 cups white sugar
3/4 cup vegetable oil or coconut oil
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups leftover sweet potatoes, mashed
2 cups all-purpose flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 cup beer

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and grease and flour a 9x13 inch baking dish.
2. In a large bowl, add the sugar and vegetable oil and mix together until smooth.
3. Into the bowl with the sugar and oil, put one egg at a time, beating each one as you add them.
4. Into the same bowl, stir in the vanilla, then add the mashed sweet potatoes and blend well. 
5. In a separate bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon.
6. Add small amounts of this dry mixture to the sweet potato mixture, alternating with small amounts of the beer until everything comes together; but do NOT over mix. 
7. Turn this batter out into the prepared baking dish.
8. Bake in preheated oven for 35 to 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
9. Remove and cool, then slice and serve as is or top with your favorite frosting - cream cheese frosting works great!

Leftovers Recipe: Cranberry Apple Sweet Potato Crisp

The sweet potato casserole is often a favorite, so you may not always have many leftovers, but if you do, it sometimes seems lacking on subsequent days. Here is a creative and interesting way to dress up that leftover casserole, and make it shine anew. The tartness of the apples and cranberries provide a perfect foil to the sweet creaminess of the leftover casserole, and the addition of a crunchy topping provides textural interest as well as tantalizing your taste buds!

Cranberry Apple Sweet Potato Crisp

Ingredients:

4 cups leftover sweet potato casserole
1 pkg (8 oz) cream cheese, room temperature
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1 cup chopped tart apples
2 cups leftover cranberry orange relish
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
3 Tbsp butter
3 Tbsp flour
2 Tbsp brown sugar
3 cups oat or corn flake cereal

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a shallow casserole dish.
2. Put the leftover sweet potatoes in a bowl with the cream cheese and mix with an electric mixer until smooth.  Add the brown sugar and cinnamon and mix again until smooth. Note: If your sweet potato casserole is very sweet, you can omit the added brown sugar and cinnamon.  If your sweet potatoes are unsweetened, then be sure to add these ingredients. 
3. Layer the sweet potato mixture into the casserole dish, distributing evenly.
4. Sprinkle the apple pieces evenly over the top.
5. Spoon the cranberry orange relish evenly on the top.
6. Sprinkle the walnuts over the top.
7. Put the butter, flour, and brown sugar in a bowl and cut with pastry cutter or with forks until mixture is crumbly. Add the cereal flakes and toss until combined.
8. Sprinkle this mixture evenly over the casserole.
9. Bake, uncovered, in preheated oven for 30 to 40 minutes or until the casserole is hot and bubbly and the crunchy topping is lightly browned.

Recipe: After The Feast Turkey Vegetable Soup

Turkey soup is one of my favorite ways to use up holiday leftovers. It's easy, simple, and delicious, and it helps you get rid of that turkey carcass a lot faster!  We usually make this a few days after the holiday, when we've snacked on turkey sandwiches for a couple of days, and are ready to be done with it. But if you just want to get that big carcass out of the fridge sooner, pick most of the meat off the bones and put it in stackable containers in the refrigerator, and then use the carcass in this tasty soup. The stock is filled with flavor and good healthy stuff. To get the most nutrients out of the bones, add a tablespoon of white vinegar to the stock before cooking.

After The Feast Turkey Vegetable Soup
(Serves 4-6.)

Ingredients:

(Photo credit: churl)

Stock:
Carcass from roasted turkey, picked clean
1 large yellow onion, peeled, quartered
1 large carrot,  scrubbed, coarsely chopped
2 stalks celery, coarsely chopped
3 garlic cloves, peeled, smashed
1 bay leaf
10 whole black peppercorns

Soup:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
2 ribs celery, chopped
2 large carrots, peeled and chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp fresh thyme
2 cups leftover turkey meat, shredded or chopped
1/2 to 1 teaspoon salt, taste as you add
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper, to taste

Directions:

• Put the turkey carcass, quartered onions, coarsely chopped carrots and celery, smashed garlic, bay leaf, and peppercorns in a large stockpot.
• Cover with cold water and set over medium-high heat and bring to boil, then immediately turn heat to simmer and slowly simmer for 1-2 hours.
• Remove pot and pour the liquid through a fine mesh strainer into a large bowl or pot.  This should yield about 10 cups of broth.

• Dry the inside of the stockpot a little with a paper towel.
• To the stockpot add the oil and place over medium heat. 
• Add the chopped onion, celery, and carrots and cook until starting to get soft, about 5 minutes. 
• Add the minced garlic and thyme, stirring to combine for just 1 minute.
• Pour in the reserved stock and bring to a gentle simmer; simmering until vegetables are just soft, about 10-15 minutes. 
• Add the leftover turkey meat, salt, and pepper, tasting to adjust seasoning.
• Simmer just until turkey is heated through. 

What to Do With Easter Dinner Leftovers?

The day after a holiday, often leftovers become old news. We eat them, because we don't want all our hard work of the day before to go to waste, but really we're not that enthusiastic about them - they've kind of lost their appeal. But your leftovers don't have to be a reheated repeat of last night's dinner. You can take your leftovers in a whole new direction by thinking about them in a whole new way.  It can be a challenge to arrange your leftovers into a main course without getting bored, but it can be done. Let's take a look at how to serve up a follow-up meal with as much excitement as the first time around.

Spicy Moves

Yay! Love those leftovers.  (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Trying to remake your leftovers into a main dish can seem pretty overwhelming at first. But, just like cooking a dish the first time, often the end result depends on the spices and seasonings. Take a look in your spice cabinet and you'll probably see a dozen or more ways to perk things up again. Open your refrigerator and look at the different mustard, salsas, hot sauces, vinegars, and other ingredients that can add new life to your leftovers.

Leftover green bean casserole can be given a new Asian inspired direction. Heat with teriyaki, soy sauce, and maybe a little sesame oil, toss with bean sprouts and chopped water chestnuts and wrap in wontons or serve over cooked rice. Instead of just using your leftover ham in yet another sandwich remake classic, marinate cut up chunks Cajun style in a little cumin, cayenne pepper, thyme, hot sauce, smoked paprika and a bit of oil and vinegar and add to gumbo or jambalaya. Think of the seasonings you like in other meals and take your leftovers for a trip to that side of the taste palate.

Put On a Fresh Face

Leftovers are often unappreciated as a replayed main course because the dishes just don't have the pizazz they did the night before. One of the reasons is that chilled foods can lose their color, aroma, or texture. It is important, if you want to successfully use your leftovers as a main course, to recreate the appeal in new ways.

If mashed potatoes are on the menu two days in a row, using the leftovers the second night takes some planning. The first night you may want to have smashed potatoes instead. Just lightly smash the potatoes with a hand-held masher with butter, salt and pepper and serve. These rustic potatoes are very appealing the first night, but boring the second. For the repeat, throw the potatoes in a bowl, add room temperature cream cheese, a touch of sour cream, more butter, and even some chopped chives, then whip with an electric mixer until fluffy. Blending in fresh herbs with leftovers that have lost their appeal overnight in the refrigerator is often all it takes to bring back the excitement of your favorite dishes.

Leftover ham (Photo credit: kregarious)

Costume Change Time

It is believed that almost 80% of a dish's enjoyment comes from senses other than taste, like aroma and appearance. If you take the time to make your dish look appealing and smell divine, it will usually taste better, too. This is especially important for leftovers since you have already experienced the flavors and your palate could get bored if repeated.

When you dish up that leftover piece of ham, is there a pleasing aroma that makes you anxious to enjoy it?  The spices and seasonings from the first night's dinner have probably faded in the refrigerator.  Kick it up a notch by refreshing the seasonings, or pop it in the oven for a few minutes with sprinkling of brown sugar on top - that will really get your taste buds going! A variety of color, textures, heights, and aromas can, and does, make your leftovers taste better the second time around.

There are lots of ways to turn your leftovers into a great main course the second, third, or even fourth time around. It takes imaginative seasoning, creative construction, an eye for style, and a nose for all the fabulous aromas that cooking has to offer. Does that sound like a tall order?  It really isn't, all it takes is experimenting with what you already know to find the talent waiting in the wings (or fridge)!

Recipe: Turkey Gravy Gumbo

I hope you all had a lovely Thanksgiving!  In case you still have some leftovers, here's a great way to use the rest of them up - and it's not your same old "turkey sandwiches or soup" idea. Give your leftovers a Cajun twist on a classic favorite with left over gravy and turkey, combined with Creole flavors for a tasty treat that won't taste like leftovers!

Turkey Gravy Gumbo

Ingredients: 

Shrimp and turkey stock and the Cajun trinity (bell pepper, onion, celery) for gumbo. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

1 cup diced onion
1 cup diced celery
1 cup diced green bell pepper
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 garlic clove, minced
4 cups leftover turkey gravy
1 cup crushed tomatoes
2 cups chopped leftover turkey
1 cup chopped andouille sausage ( or any sausage you like)
6 to 8 cups turkey stock (depending on how thin you want the gumbo)
1 bay leaf
1/2 tsp cayenne (more or less to taste)
1 tsp salt
1 tsp gumbo file powder (which is powdered sassafras leaves)
1 lb. shrimp, cleaned (optional)
rice for serving

Directions:

• In large soup pot, add onion, celery, and green pepper along with olive oil over medium heat and cook until veggies are tender, but not soft.
• Add garlic to pot and cook for 1 more minute.
• Add the leftover gravy and cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly.
• Add the tomatoes, turkey, and sausage stirring to mix, then add enough turkey broth to make gumbo the consistency you want.
• Add seasonings and turn heat down to low; simmer very slowly for 15 minutes.
• Add shrimp (if desired) and let simmer just until shrimp is pink, about 4 to 5 minutes.
• Serve in bowls with a scoop of cooked rice on top.

Note: This gumbo doesn't need a roux because the basic idea of this thickening agent, roux, is replaced with the turkey gravy which contains the same ingredients - fat and flour - and it's already made, so it makes dinner easy!

Recipe - Leftover Spaghetti Pizza

Here is a fun one that the kids will love! (What kid could resist a pizza made of spaghetti?) :-)  You can use whole grain pasta to make it healthier, and she gives some suggestions at the end for additional veggies you could add as well. It can be made with or without meat, and of course you can try different kinds of cheese too. Feel free to experiment, and be creative, but this is a great way to use up leftover spaghetti, in a way that is healthy and delicious for the whole family.

Pizza di Spaghetti Recipe (a recipe for leftover spaghetti)
This yummy recipe uses leftover spaghetti with sauce to make a delicious meal. It is vegetarian or meat eater friendly. The leftover spaghetti used in this example is simply 100% whole grain pasta and jar spaghetti sauce. Below is my recipe which I a...



More Recipes for Leftovers:
    

How to Use Leftovers

After all the family picnics and barbecues this week, you may be stuck with a lot of leftovers. Not to worry - there are lots of ways to use leftovers and make them feel like a new meal altogether!  This article offers some suggestions for how to use leftovers creatively in ways your whole family will enjoy.

Image via WikipediaWhat do you do when a meal is finished? Most of us wash the dishes and wrap up the leftovers, but what happens to the leftover portions not eaten? Do they get consumed later or do they sit in the refrigerator until they start to smell and you finally throw them out? If you tend to do the latter, how about saving some time and money by learning how to use those leftovers in new ways to surprise your family at dinner time.

Some people like leftovers and some do not. Still then, many will eat them one day out, but quickly get tired of eating the same thing over and over. Here’s a way to fix the problem if you or someone in your family is the same way. Let’s start with an example.

You prepare a roasted pork loin and rice for dinner one night. The family wants something else for dinner the following night so the pork loin gets pushed to the back of the refrigerator. Normally, that’s where it will stay until you clean out the fridge, right? Not anymore. Let’s do something to keep that pork loin from going to waste.

Image by chooyutshing via FlickrEating leftovers the way they were originally served, is probably what’s turning family members off from wanting it again the next night. Your family doesn’t have to eat the pork loin again as is. So, chop that pork loin up into bite size pieces.

Now you’re probably thinking, ok that’s great, but what do I do with it now? In a large skillet or wok, stir fry the leftover rice with a bag of frozen veggies, an egg, and some of the chopped pork loin to make pork fried rice. Add a little soy sauce and you’ve got a whole new dinner for your hungry family.

This is just one way that leftovers can be turned into a new dish with a new flavor. The same can also be done using chicken, seafood, or beef. Let’s take a look at beef.

If you have hamburgers left from dinner (or your 4th of July barbecue), chop them up until they resemble ground beef again. The meat can be combined with chili powder and taco sauce to make beef tacos. Or, add some beans, chopped peppers and tomatoes, and sauce to create a pot of chili. If you have the imagination, there are an unlimited number of possibilities of what you can do with meats and side dishes from a previous night’s dinner.

Image via WikipediaUsing a little leftover magic can make one meal last for two, three, or even four more days. But, you don’t have to eat it all in the same week. Fix a new meal with the leftovers and freeze it until you are ready to have that particular meat again. On that day, dinner will already be made, all you’ll need to do is heat it up. Yes, it really can be just that simple.

Your family will be amazed at your ability to transform any meal into a new creation they will enjoy. Besides that, you will save money on your grocery bill and won’t be throwing it away in the trash can as spoiled leftovers. Try these and similar ideas to expand your family’s palate.

What to Do With Christmas Dinner Leftovers?

Image via WikipediaAfter the big meal has come and gone, depending on the quantity of food you prepared and the number (and appetite) of your guests, you may have quite a few leftovers remaining!  Rather than eat turkey sandwiches 5 days in a row, check out this article for how to waste less food, and find creative ways to use up the remains of the day.

How to Waste Less Food This Christmas
If you do find some Christmas trimmings leftover in the fridge, consider using them up to make family meals. A traditional Boxing Day dinner for many families is cold meat, pickles and bubble and squeak - all made out of the Christmas ...
Publish Date: 12/13/2010 7:28
http://www.suite101.com/content/how-to-waste-less-food-this-christmas-a320111

 

Related articles on Holiday Meal Leftovers:

• Recycle Christmas Leftovers! (merrymicrofiberblog.com)
• Our five favourite ways to use up leftover turkey (recyclethis.co.uk)
• Planning for Christmas Leftovers (frugalrecipes.wordpress.com)
• Best Ham Leftovers Ever (wholefoodsmarket.com)

Leftover Turkey Recipes

Image via WikipediaTo those of you who bought an 18-lb turkey (or more!), you may be wondering, what the heck do I do with all these leftovers?  After all, there are only so many turkey sandwiches a person can eat, right? I found this great article for you, which lists 15 different recipe ideas for all those Thanksgiving leftovers. You and your family are sure to be less than bored with all these yummy options. In fact, you may just want to make another turkey!  :-)

15 Recipes for Thanksgiving Turkey Leftovers - Joelen's Culinary ...
Perhaps you'll warm them up and enjoy them as is or you'll be looking for something different to use them up in other recipes. Here are 15 recipes for Thanksgiving Turkey Leftovers that may come in handy! ...
Publish Date: 11/19/2010 10:27
http://joelens.blogspot.com/2010/11/15-recipes-for-thanksgiving-turkey.html

Related articles on Thanksgiving Leftovers:

• Turkey gumbo: Perfect for after Thanksgiving guests (mnn.com)
• Thanksgiving Gallery: 10 Recipes for Leftovers That Top Cold Turkey (blisstree.com)
• Autumn Turkey Stew (frugalrecipes.wordpress.com)