Using Those Leftovers - April 14, 2009

Dear Readers,

I hope you had a great Easter! We had a great one although it has taken mom and I two days to recover. I've had several people ask how I'm doing. I'm doing so so. (Mike: She's lying. She's not well...Please send food ;-) I am pretty much in bed from here on out due to contractions. I can't do a lot of standing or walking so I'm getting all those magazines read that have piled up. I'm due June 23 so it will be interesting to see if I make it that long. If I do Mom, will have a cute little birthday present. :-)

This week, we are having our huge Mother's Day sale, where you can get Dining on a Dime print books for 1/2 price and if you buy 3, you'll get 1 free! We still have a bunch of great books left from our Parade Magazine fiasco so we are passing along the savings to you! This is a good time to pick up great gifts for the coming year! Check it out here.

Check out the blog for some garden ideas and the story about my $15 "almost brand new" stroller and car seat deal!!

Have a great rest of the week!

-Tawra
www.LivingOnADime.com

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Today's Tips:

• Make up a large batch (12 or more eggs) of your favorite egg salad* after Easter.
  
  
  • Use the first part of it for sandwiches.
    
  
  
  • The next day, use another portion for potato salad; adding potatoes (one medium potato per person), extra mayo, seasonings and other veggies that you want.
    
  
  
  • For the third day, mix the rest with cooked macaroni, once again adding extra mayo, seasonings or veggies.
    
  
  


• If you want to cut back on the mayo in your potato salad but it still seems dry, add 2-3 Tbsp. of milk for more moisture.
  


• *Egg Salad from Dining on a Dime
  
  6 hard cooked eggs, chopped
  1/2 cup mayonnaise
  Salt and pepper to taste
  
  You can adjust the mayo or add extras like:
  
  
  • Onion, chopped
    
  • Celery, chopped
    
  • Olives, chopped
    
  • Yogurt
    
  • Sour cream
    
  • Or any seasonings you like, although egg salad is one of those things where less is often more when it comes to flavor.
    
  
  


• Don't toss all of those egg shells out. Fill a large container with water and place them in the water. Let them set for 2-3 days then use the water to water your house plants or flowers. They love it.
  


• If you use an egg slicer for your eggs, don't forget you can use it for other things like slicing mushrooms. Egg slicers are great for slicing kiwi into nice even slices.
  

Today's Menu:

Hamwiches*
Potato Salad (see above suggestion)
Sliced Tomatoes
Sugared Asparagus*
Crispy Peanut Butter Bars*

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Today's Recipes:

This recipe is a great way to use leftover ham. You can serve them cold or hot and they're great for something different in lunch boxes. They're also easy to freeze and use any time.

*Hamwiches

Frozen (thawed) or homemade bread dough; you can use canned biscuits too.
Ham, chopped
Swiss cheese, grated
Egg yolk and 1 Tbsp. water, mixed

You will need about 1/4 cup ham and 2 Tbsp. of cheese per sandwich.

Roll dough into 5 inch circles. Place ham and cheese on dough. Brush edges with egg wash and fold in half into a semicircle. Pinch edges. I don't usually bother with an egg wash myself. I just pinch the edges well. It's up to you.

Place on greased baking sheet. Bake at 375° for 15-20 minutes until golden.

*Crispy Peanut Butter Bars

This recipe is a great to use up some of those chocolate bunnies. Just remember, using a different kind of chocolate will give it a different flavor. This is also a great way to use those handfuls of leftover cereal that are always at the bottom of the bag.

2 3/4 cups flour
1 1/4 cup brown sugar, packed
1 egg
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or margarine
1/2 cup shortening (solid)
1/3 cup peanut butter
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. salt

Topping:

1 cup (6 oz.) chocolate chips, melted
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 1/2 cup corn flakes, crushed

Combine first 8 ingredients. Batter will be thick. Pat into an ungreased 15x10x1 inch pan. Bake at 350° for 15-20 minutes until set. Cool. While that is cooling mix chocolate chips and peanut butter. Stir in corn flakes and gently spread on crust.

*Sugared Asparagus

3 Tbsp. butter or margarine
2 Tbsp. brown sugar
2 lbs. fresh asparagus, cut
1 cup chicken broth

In a frying pan over medium heat, heat butter and sugar until sugar is dissolved. Add asparagus and saute for 2 minutes. Pour in broth; bring to a boil; cover and simmer for 8-10 minutes until tender. Remove asparagus and keep warm. Cook sauce uncovered until reduced in half then pour over asparagus.