Repurposing

I get a fair share of emails asking me what I do with all my leftovers. A good question. After all, the beauty of having weight loss surgery is that we can only consume so much food. So I thought I'd give you guys an idea of how things get used up at my house because I hate waste. I call it "repurposing."

Leftover steak goes on a tortilla pizza, leftover meat or veggies turn into a soup, leftover chicken becomes chicken salad.

I generally freeze 1/2 a casserole and eat it for lunch the next week. Nice to have a day off from cooking but still have a warm yummy home cooked meal. You can also take a casserole and turn it into a pizza like this or this or this.

Here's a recent example of repurposing...


Shelly's Beef & Bean Taco Salad

1/2 pound Ground Beef
1/2 a Maui Onion, diced
3 cloves Garlic, minced
1 (15 oz.) can Pinquitos (or Baby Pinto) Beans, rinsed & drained
1 cup Cooked Corn Kernels
1/2 teaspoon Oregano
1/2 teaspoon Southwest Seasoning (I use Emeril's)

Shredded Cheese
Sliced Black Olives
Sour Cream or Fage Greek Yogurt (I made a Spicy Yogurt Dip)

Brown ground beef till no pink is seen. Drain any fats. Add onions and garlic. Saute till onions are soft. Add corn (I used corn from a leftover ear I had BBQ'd the night before), beans and seasonings. Cook till heated through. Serve a dollop of beef & bean mixture on top salad greens and top with cheese, olives and Spicy Yogurt Dip.

Shelly's Spicy Yogurt Dip

3 oz. Fage Greek Yogurt (I use 2%)
1 teaspoon Mayonnaise
a few splashes of Cholula Hot Sauce (or your favorite)
a dash of Southwest Seasoning
Kosher Salt to taste

Mix together. Great to top Taco Salads or use as a dip with veggies or soy crisps.


The leftover Beef & Bean mixture from the salad became Beef & Bean Bites (Crustless Quiches) the following day. Any leftovers can become a Bite...


Shelly's Beef & Bean Bites

About 2 cups Beef & Beef Mixture (leftovers from Shelly's Beef & Bean Taco Salad)
1/2 cup Colby Jack or Cheddar Cheese, shredded
5 Eggs, beaten
1/2 teaspoon Kosher Salt

Preheat oven to 350. Mix all ingredients together. Spoon into lightly greased (Pam works great) mini muffin tins.

Bake for 30 minutes at 350. Makes 24. They freeze great too.

More Eggface Bites