The days are getting colder and the nights are longer, and many of us are getting ready to celebrate with friends and family. My favorite part of the holidays every year is eating and sharing my leftovers.
Growing up we cherished our food and would never throw any of it away. My mother taught us that wasting food was wrong with so many people in the world going hungry. My mother was right--food is too precious to waste. According to the Environmental Protection Agency one is six Americans lacks a secure food supply and suffers from hunger. And as much as 40% of food in the U.S. goes uneaten. According to estimates we are throwing out $165 billion in wasted food every year. Just 15% of this wasted food would be enough to feed more than 25 million Americans every year.
If that's not reason enough to save food, think of all the great dishes you can make with leftovers. My favorite is the simple sandwich. Take some meat and place it between two slices of bread or biscuits. You can always add chile, stuffing, mashed potatoes or cranberry sauce. If you don’t eat meat you can make it with tofu or hummus. Other favorites are soup, tacos, and Shepherd's pie. One very easy dish that comes to mind is mashed potato pile up. Take mashed potatoes (either sweet or white) and put them in a bowl, add vegetables, meat, beans, gravy or chile and gently mix them. Voila! We wish you a safe and happy winter season full of leftovers. My best advice is to always wash your hands before handling food and do your best not to waste anything. If you can't eat it all, send food home with friends, or invite them over for leftovers.
Happy Holidays everyone!
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