Do you have a refrigerator full of leftover holiday food? Don’t toss out good food; use your leftovers to help save money on your January grocery bill. You may not want to eat the same food for an entire month, but you don’t have to. Use your creative side to make use of good food without boring yourself with the same meal. Here are 5 easy ways to put your excess holiday food to good use:
Freeze leftover casseroles and vegetables. The quickest way to preserve any holiday casserole and vegetable leftovers is to bag them up and place them in the freezer. You can use large amounts to make a whole other meal; you can use small amounts for quick lunches or between-meal snacks. Even a half cup of food can be worth keeping. Soups, hashes, and sandwiches all beg for unique ingredients, so don’t so quickly toss out uneaten holiday food items.
Recreate the leftover meat. Leftover meat allows you the opportunity to create your own recipes. Use your leftover meat to make unique tacos, quesadillas, or other fun meat dishes that your family will love. You may even want to use leftover meat to make a unique sandwich spread or a fun dip for your family to munch on during a lazy Saturday afternoon.
Mix leftover desserts. Scoop that leftover Brownie Pie into bite-size containers, top off with Walnuts, and pop the containers in the freezer. Cut slices of cake in half and freeze the half slices in the tiny Ziploc bags. Wrap up individual pieces of homemade candies and toss them in the freezer. You will have then have a hefty stash of homemade goodies to help cure you of your sweet tooth from time to time. This can save you money and also save you from pigging out on sweets all at once.
Share the leftover dinners. Take plates of your leftover food to elderly couples to help them enjoy a hearty meal or two. Arrange the food nicely on microwaveable plates and cover with clear plastic wrap. Food and a short visit will show the elderly couple you care. Plates of food from visitors can help elderly couples enjoy nutritious meals without suffering the cost or without enduring the difficulty of preparing such meals.
Trade the leftover food in bulk. Trade out the food you have left over for some of the food you would like to have. Call up extended family and friends to see if they have any large quantities of food they would like to trade out for large quantities you may still have. Trade out that large bowl of uneaten potato salad for the rest of the green bean casserole that someone else has left.
*You lose what you don’t use, so save money by not tossing out perfectly good food.