How I Prepared a Three Course Meal Using Only the Leftover Ingredients

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I hosted a party the other day and was left with a ton of leftovers that took up all the space in my fridge. I was exhausted and did not want to cook the next day, but more than that, I did not want the leftovers to go to waste. Throwing food away really irks me, and I knew that my kids would not have the same meals again, so I decided to get creative.

Since I had the entire day to myself, I thought I would prepare a three-course meal using only the leftover ingredients that were stocked in the fridge from last night. It would be a great way to utilize everything, and since it had only been 12 hours, there was nothing that a splash of water and a couple of minutes on the stove would not fix.

How I Prepared a Three-Course Meal Using Only the Leftover Ingredients

1. Starters- Beetroot Rissoles

I had loads of peeled beetroot kept in the fridge from the salad leftovers I decided to use to make this dish. All I did was add a can of chickpeas, but other than that, I used all the ingredients in my pantry and fridge to make this light summer dish.

Ingredients

Beetroot: 700 grams
Extra virgin olive oil: 200 ml
Cumin seeds: 2 teaspoons crushed

Chickpeas: Two 400-gram cans, drained and washed
Potato flour: 100 grams, extra for dusting
Parsley: 2 tablespoons, chopped

Lemon: 1, juice and zest
Balsamic vinegar: 2 tablespoons
Mixed salad leaves: 150 grams

Goat curd: For serving

Directions

I started by preheating the oven to 200 degrees Celsius. Then, I placed the beetroot in a big piece of foil and drizzled some oil and 1 teaspoon of cumin on top. I packed the foil from all ends to make it look like a parcel and then popped it into the baking tray. I waited for 30 minutes so that the beetroot could become tender.
Meanwhile, I drained and rinsed a single can of chickpeas and threw them in a food processor. The idea was to pulse till they were finely chopped.

When the beetroots were ready, I got rid of their skins and cut them in half. Then, I added them to the food processor and pulsed them again.
I threw in the remaining cumin seeds, potato flour, coriander seeds, lemon zest, and parsley and then mixed everything well.
I kept some potato flour aside to ensure that my hands stayed dry, and then I started to shape the beetroot mixture into rissoles. I aimed to make 12 patties. Once done, I heated 2 tablespoons of oil in the frying pan and cooked the beetroot using medium heat. Each side of the patty took 3 minutes to cook.

Once I was done with the beetroot rissoles, I took them off the frying pan and heated 100 ml of oil. I threw in the chickpeas and cooked them until they were crunchy. I don’t like extra oil, so I used a paper towel to pat them dry once done.
I took another small bowl to mix 60 ml of olive oil, vinegar, and lemon juice.
Once everything was done, I plated the rissoles with the crunchy chickpeas, salad leaves, and goat’s curd. I also added some freshly ground black pepper for extra flavor.

2. Entrée: Chicken Wraps

With the leftover chicken tenders, I decided to make light and simple wraps that only required a total of 5 ingredients. This was a perfect, no-nonsense meal that was easy to make and tasted great.

Ingredients:

Leftover chicken tenders: 6

Buffalo sauce: ½ cup
Flour tortillas: 4
Blue cheese: ¼ cup

Shredded lettuce or cabbage: ¼ cup

Method

The chicken tenders I had were pretty big, so I decided to chop them up into 1-inch pieces.
I poured some buffalo sauce on top of the chicken tenders and mixed everything so that the chicken was well coated.

I started making the wraps by putting ¼ buffalo chicken and the lettuce and blue cheese into each wrap. To ensure that the tortilla did not open, I also stuck a toothpick in there.
The best part was that even though I used old chicken to make this recipe, the dish tasted fresh. These wraps can also be eaten cold if that’s what you prefer!

3. Dessert: Sparking Wine Blueberry Jellies

Surprisingly, I had lots of sparkling wine left from the previous night, and I did not know what to do. I decided to try something new and incorporate the wine into a dessert.

Ingredients

Powdered gelatin: 15 ml
Water: 50 ml
Hot water: 450 ml

Castor sugar: 50 grams
Sparkling wine: 500 ml
Blueberries: 250 grams

Topping: Fresh mint

Method

I started by adding 50 ml of cold water to the powdered gelatin and allowed it to thicken.
I combined the hot water with some sugar in a pot to get a smooth mixture.

Once the sugar had dissolved, I poured the gelatin into the pot and started stirring.
Once the gelatin had dissolved, I poured the wine and mixed the blueberries. The key was to allow the blueberries to burst so that they could leave their flavor behind.
Once ready, I took tall glasses and poured the mixture into them, and popped the glasses into the freezer for a bit so that everything could set.