Holiday dinners inevitably bring holiday leftovers, and eating the same leftovers again and again can get dull and unappealing. This can lead to wastefulness if the leftovers are not used. A great way to avoid this waste of food and money is to repurpose these leftovers and transform them into a whole new meal. Here we have compiled a list of a couple easy yet delicious recipes using some common holiday leftovers.
Easy recipes for repurposing typical holiday food leftovers:
Making a Ham Frittata could be a great way to use any leftover ham and vegetables.
All you need for this recipe is:
- 1 dozen eggs
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1 pound ham, cut into dices
- 1/2 cup (2 ounces) shredded mozzarella cheese
- 3 scallions (green onions), thinly sliced
- 1 small red bell pepper, finely chopped or any vegetable, such as broccoli
The instructions are:
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Coat an 8-inch square baking dish with cooking spray.
- In a medium bowl, whisk eggs and milk until well combined. Add remaining ingredients; mix well.
- Pour into baking dish and bake 45 to 55 minutes, or until firm in center. Allow to sit 5 minutes then cut and serve.
It is important to keep in mind that this recipe is just a guideline, you are of course welcome to mix in any combination of meat or vegetables as you please!
Turkey Leftover Lasagna utilizes any leftover turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, and cranberry sauce.
The specific ingredients needed to make this mouth-watering dish are:
- Butter, for greasing pan
- 2 tbsp. breadcrumbs
- 3 cups prepared mashed potatoes
- 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
- 1 cup shredded Gruyère cheese
- 1 cup chopped cooked green beans (or other leftover green vegetables)
- 1 cup leftover shredded turkey
- 1/2 cup cranberry sauce
- 1/2 cup gravy
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8”-x-8” baking pan with butter then coat with breadcrumbs.
- Mix together mashed potatoes and eggs until smooth. Spread about one-third of the mashed potato mixture into the bottom of the pan. Sprinkle with cheese then drizzle with gravy. Top with green beans, turkey, more gravy and cranberry sauce. Spread more mashed potatoes on top and sprinkle with more cheese. Top with stuffing then drizzles with gravy. Bake for 30-40 minutes, until the lasagna is warmed through.
- Let sit for at least 15 minutes before serving. Serve with more gravy, if desired.
To reiterate, you can always tweak these recipes to fit the exact leftovers that you have, these recipes are provided as guidelines.
While cooking, please remember that there is a limit to how long your leftovers can be utilized. Cooked poultry, whether it be chicken or turkey, is safe to keep refrigerated for up to 3-4 days. Cooked ham can also last for 3-4 days and still be safe to consume. Side dishes, such as mashed potatoes and vegetables, can last a little longer than the meats, by just a day, with a refrigerator life of 3-5 days. It might be a good idea to label the leftovers in your fridge to keep track of how long they have been in there. This can be done easily with masking tape and a pen.
It is important to take some general safety food precautions while cooking these leftovers, such as knowing what products can keep you safe in the kitchen as well as help prevent any kitchen disasters. One of the products offered by BlueStar SeniorTech to aid in the kitchen is the CookStop™. This product uses a computer-controlled, motion sensor technology to determine someone’s presence in the kitchen, CookStop begins a countdown when you leave the cooking area and will turn the power off to the stove if you don’t return to the cooking area within the countdown period. BlueStar SeniorTech offers many solutions to keep you and your loved ones Safe, Healthy, & Connected. Call or go online to learn more about what BlueStar SeniorTech has to offer!
