Leftovers? Low End Larry’s Leftover Thoughts

Turn Leftovers Into Delicious Dinners

Thanksgiving evening has arrived. I don’t want to ever see food again! Leftovers! But, there’s always tomorrow, and, alas, I have planned well for it. Starting tomorrow, I’ll be back to my five meals a day diet, grateful indeed for having shared a meal with my family.

It’s not exactly the Thanksgiving meal or the family time that I’m grateful for. Mostly, it’s those five upcoming meals a day. My guess is that the leftover food (their food, now in my refrigerator,) will see me through to the neighborhood holiday party.

Is there a strategy for leftovers?

Thanksgiving leftovers are not a new phenomenon, of course. It is possible, though, that I am the first to put the leftover strategy into print. Here are some key points.

• Be careful whom you invite. This is where diversity can really pay off. I’m like the Statue of Liberty: give me your kosherness, your vegetarianism, your lactose intolerance. I welcome your gluten freeness, your nut allergies. “Oh, you’re leaving hungry? If only I hadn’t served Pork Parmesan in a cashew sauce. Was it too spicy?”
• Assign your guests certain foods to bring. It’s particularly important that the appetizers not only whet everyone’s appetite, but it should also sedate them. Baked Brie with a tryptophan cocktail should do the trick.
• How about a competition and some false flattery? “Gee, I love your sweet potato and pecan pies. I wonder if the guests will love yours more than Aunt Polly’s?” Tom Sawyer had nothing on me when it comes to whitewashing.
• Strategically placed mirrors are vital. Giving them out to guests as party favors seems to work. How many of your guests, ten pounds heavier than when they arrived and with turkey gravy coagulating on their shirt, are going to ask to take home the leftovers? Floss also makes a good parting gift.
• Try not to eat too much at the meal. The table needs to be cleared, promptly. To do that, one has to be at least a little lean and hungry. Have someone (perhaps, you, the host,) bring up the football game. Then, clear the table rapidly. The guests will not remember what happened to all that stuffing and, besides, it will be too neatly stowed for any possible divvying up action.

Leftovers Make Best Dinners

I know that you are reading this after the holiday, too late to utilize this recipe. Instead, I leave you with a thought and another recipe:

1. December is a time for grand repasts. Surely, you can find a way to implement your own leftover strategy.
2. If you have no leftovers of your own, you can get to work on creating Holly’s Crispy Southwestern Lasagna from my Eating Well to Fight Arthritis cookbook, a fitting after celebration feast. It’s delicious, and it sure beats having to eat five servings a day of Pork Parmesan!