The food must not be thrown away: 9 recipes to be made with leftover food

Every year a lot of food is thrown away, how can we solve this problem? The reduction of food waste always starts from us anyway: from shopping in the first place, but also from the way of cooking and the use of the refrigerator. So here are 9 recipes to be made with leftover food, creative and exquisite ideas which allow you to make the most of all the ingredients you have at home, reducing waste and even cutting your expenses a little.

1. Pancake with egg whites

Let's start with breakfast and an ingredient that we often find ourselves throwing away: egg whites. There are so many recipes to use egg whites, let’s see three of them: the pancakes with egg whites, the soft cake with egg whites and the muffins with egg whites. Three real delicacies that are really perfect for breakfast, but also as a snack and, in the case of the soft cake with egg whites, as a dessert: a few simple ingredients that you already have at home with which to prepare three perfect anti-waste recipes.

2. Salted fritters with rice

What if we had rice leftover from some other preparation? With leftover rice, in this case boiled, you can make some delicious rice fritters, an ideal preparation for a brunch or a light aperitif. An easy dish to make, to accompany with a fresh sauce such as a yogurt sauce, a tzatziki or an aioli sauce.

3. Frittata with pasta

Frittata with pasta is a classic recipe to use leftover pasta. A recipe of Italian origin, with which to recycle the leftover pasta. There are a lot of first dishes you can make with leftovers: for example those who love gnocchi can make some gnocchi with stale bread, or you can also make a pasta pie with leftover pasta. Finally, there is also the baked pasta: there are a lot of ideas to empty the refrigerator with creative recipes and avoid all sorts of waste.

4. Polenta pizza

If you are not so fussy with pizza, it is easy to create "alternative pizzas" with leftover ingredients, such as polenta pizza. But if it is not really winter, know that pizza can also be made with simple bread, as in the recipe for bread pizza, but also with advanced egg whites, and finally with potatoes.

5. Pie with stale bread

Another recipe with stale bread, a super versatile ingredient: the pie with stale bread. A really tasty dish to be made with stale bread base, layered together with a tomato sauce flavored with garlic, and enriched with mozzarella cheese slices. Delicious and simple, this recipe is ideal when you want to minimize waste.

6. Croquettes of various types

Croquettes are always a fantastic idea when it comes to recycling leftover ingredients: they can be made of bread, ricotta cheese, broccoli, cotechino, cabbage. In short, almost everything you have in the kitchen can become a delicious croquette: just have a little imagination and you will create beautiful, inviting and above all anti-waste dishes.

7. Recycle the boiled meat

It is not a recipe that many do: preparing a meat broth properly is not so simple. But what to do with leftover meat? Instead of keeping the boiled meat in the refrigerator for days, you can recycle it for the preparation of many easy and tasty recipes: from tortellini, to veal with tuna sauce, to salads. A way to minimize waste and bring exquisite dishes to the table, suitable for different occasions. Here then is a series of recipes with which to recycle the boiled beef, with many ideas to surprise your guests.

8. Savory pies

Leftover vegetables, also already cooked, leftovers cheese, a single egg in the pantry, olives and various remains in the refrigerator: what to do with it? A savory pie, of course: there are so many recipes and variations on savory pies, you can try them all. Just make a light dough, often using foods we have in the pantry like flour, and make a filling that allows us to use, as far as possible, what we have in the refrigerator. So what are you waiting for?

9. Anti-waste cakes and desserts

And here we are finally at the dessert: also in this case, there are several options for recycling bread, egg whites, fruit, chocolate, eggs and milk. For example, with bread you can create an excellent chocolate cake, or even a very simple dessert, such as fried bread with sugar, or the caramelized bread pudding.