I love to cook, however, that doesn’t mean I like to slave in the kitchen every single day! I love to eat good meals that are fresh and delicious, too, so that means when I AM in the kitchen, I like to make good use of that time in ways that will help me for future meals!
I thought I”d show you how I have recently cooked foods that allowed me to have DIFFERENT meals using things I cooked earlier. Say no to Leftovers! These are fresh, different meals each time they’re served!
I love using the grill, and I figure while it’s hot, I may as well do extra of whatever I’m making! I grilled Barbecued Chicken and we enjoyed it as a meal in and of itself. I love that crispy, charred skin and cooked-in flavor of the sauce!
Here it is with mashed potatoes, glazed carrots and green beans. Yum!
But if I cook extra, I can cut it up and use it on Grilled Barbecued Chicken Pizzas! I made the dough and cooked it on the grill, then added barbecue sauce instead of pizza sauce, then topped it with the barbecued chicken, fresh pineapple, red onion, red peppers, and Mozzarella cheese. Then I put it back on the grill to melt the cheese. Wow!! It transforms the chicken into a whole different meal!
Grilled chicken can be used in sooooo many different ways! Always, always grill extra, cut it up and pop it into the freezer for use on salads, Chicken salad, Quesadillas, casseroles, pot pies and on and on!!
We love these Salmon Croquettes with herb sauce! They are so fast and easy to prepare, but I always end up with a couple extra when it’s just my husband and me here. So I served them as is the first time. I served it with brown rice, corn on the cob and fresh fruit. So good!
The next time I served them, I made a salad and topped the greens with a Salmon Croquette…
With the remains of the Salmon, I made an easy lunch by putting the fish into a tortilla and topping it with cabbage, mango and sour cream.
Do these meals look like leftovers? I don’t think so! I hope these ideas inspire you to get creative with your meal prep so you can maximize your time in preparation, but have lots of tasty meals that come from your good efforts!
What foods do you like to reuse in wise ways?
Refresh you time in the kitchen,
RefreshHer 
This made me smile because I’m fixing mostly your recipes this week. Yesterday we had the Salmon Croquettes for lunch. I doubled the recipe to be sure there was enough for all five of us (which includes two teenage boys). And we just had watermelon and sliced up cucumbers to go with it to keep it simple. The sauce was good, and everyone enjoyed it. My daughter cannot have gluten, dairy, or eggs, so I did use gluten-free bread crumbs, and I just left out the eggs, but they seemed fine without it. There are a few leftovers, so thanks for the suggestions. The salad sounds good. I might try that tomorrow and send it for my husband’s lunch. We’re also going to have the BBQ chicken pizza this week. I told my family at lunch yesterday that it was Denise Cunningham week for my menu 🙂 I do have to adapt various recipes to fit what she can eat, but I’m able to make quite a few of them work. We had the taco casserole the other night with Aldi’s gluten-free cornbread mix, and I just let everyone put cheese on their serving since she can’t have that. Anyway, love you and appreciate the time you put in this blog 🌸
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This made me smile! Sometimes I wonder if anyone is out there and benefiting from my simple efforts. Thank you for encouraging me once again, Karen. I’m so glad the recipes are helpful for you and that you can adapt them for your daughter’s needs. I know your family must appreciate your good efforts!
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