I confess that I'm a control freak (abit like Monica in Friends). I plan my meals weekly and ensure that our diet is balanced (grains, veges, protein). On most weeks, the fridge is cleared of fresh produce and the cycle begins again. It is not often that I have leftover vegetables or meat to deal with.
On that particular week however, I found myself staring at a leftover red capsicum and tomato and some cream cheese. Being on a budget means no wastage so I had to come up with something to use them.
Two tins of tuna, some pasta and my must have in the pantry- 98.5% fat free evaporated milk= this creamy baked pasta. I love creamy pastas but hate the calories that go with it so I always use the light and easy evaporated milk to lessen the fat content.
Ok, now I sound like a calorie freak too! haha.
What do you do with your leftovers?
Light Creamy Baked Pasta (Serves 4)
400 grams of penne pasta cooked and drained
1 red capsicum
1 tomato
1/2 cup of frozen corn kennels
2 tins of sundried tomato tuna 98% fat free
3/4 tin of 98.5% fat free evaporated milk
1/2 cup of low fat cheddar cheese
1/2 cup of low fat mozerella cheese
knobs of 80% fat free cream cheese
seasoning
Mix drained pasta, tuna, chopped capsicum, tomato and frozen corn kenel. Pour milk over it. Season it to your liking. Toss it! Spoon it on a baking dish and top with 3 cheeses. Baked in a 200C oven for 25 minutes till the top is slightly golden.
Finally! A pasta dish for Pasta Presto!
leftovers...sigh
ReplyDeleteI'm not so good with them!
It's good 2b organised!! I try to plan but it never goes as planned at the end, haha :( I love the baked pasta dish u whipped up!
ReplyDeletei think my boiboi would love this w/o the corns though. sighhh we dun hv those low fat stuff here :(
ReplyDeleteSandwiches or a stew! That's what I do with my leftovers... Simplest solutions are usually the best, no? :)
ReplyDeleteAnd no lar, you're not a calorie-freak... there's much to be admired about taking on the challenge to be more nutrition-conscious especially when it's a decision for the entire family's well-being.
Good on ya!
I simply reheated my leftover, have it for lunch today... ^___^
ReplyDeleteNot with veggie.
if only i was as disciplined as you are, especially with regards to caloric intake. sigh. leftovers, let see, usually a simple pasta with lots of garlic.
ReplyDeletedo you understand how good this looks?
ReplyDeletehehe i generally don't have any leftoever...i tried to compose my meals daily based on carb, protein and veggie...so normally, rice, beef and veg hahaha...and generally i just buy enough to cook for 1 batch as buying in bulk wont help me save much here ^_*
ReplyDeletecreamy pastas are not my thang. i prefer tomato-based sauces :)
ReplyDeleteNice pasta! I am horrible about making something with left overs.
ReplyDeleteThis pasta sounds nice and tasty, especially for a clean out the fridge meal!
ReplyDeleteI wish I was as organised as you to plan for the week ahead. Sometimes I do but most time I don't. I usually do leftovers like you would - pasta or fried rice. I guess pies are great too. But I'm lazy to make pies.
ReplyDeleteSometimes, I cook more just to have leftovers. Usually, I do that with meat dishes then steam them the next day.
ReplyDeleteI don't plan my meals to a T because there are days I fall prey to laziness and everything just goes haywire if it was a 100% planned meal for the whole week. I have a lot more re-iterations and feed-forward, feedback loops in my meal planning - grocery buying + cooking.
oh its wonderful you can plan your meals a week ahead and budget ... i'm so bad at it. i'm so bad at budgeting.
ReplyDeleteso often i come back from the grocery store and realize i forgot to buy the most imp thing ...lol ...how i hate that !
jaden- i bet u r even more creative than me.
ReplyDeletenoobcook- budget! haha.it helps because i usually get lazy to cook..
babe_KL- that's true. I wonder why they dont import in.
kenny- stew is an excellent idea!
rita- me too!
dee-garlic and pasta, perfect.
doggybloggy- u always make me laugh!
mocha- u r even more organized!
jun- healthier, spoken like a doctor. =)
jessy- but u r great at bakes.
kelvin- oh yeah!
singairisgirl- pies! that's another keeper.
tigerfish- balancing work + cooking isn't east at all.
kate- I have a 10 second delay memory too. I have those moments when i forget and hv to head to another grocery store later in the week! glad i'm not the only one!