Leftovers Make Great Lunches

Packing leftovers for lunch is a great way to save both time and money while sending a healthy lunch for your family. It's also a good way to cut down on food waste. Instead of throwing leftovers away, or putting them in the fridge and forgetting that they are there until weeks later (and by that time you can't tell if that funky stinky mess used to be pasta, rice, or some kind of soup)... you can just pack them into a dish and send them for lunch!

This one was pretty simple. For dinner I made baked salmon with steamed vegetables and rice. For lunch, I packed the rice into an EasyLunchbox and placed a piece of the fish on one side and the veggies on the other. Add in a few strawberries and a handful of blueberries, and then a pair of cookies for dessert, and it's a complete meal!

The Dude took the lunch to work. To reheat, he only had to pull out the cookies and berries and pop the rest in the microwave for a minute or two.

Another way to use leftovers is to take just one part of the meal and add other components to make it into a completely different meal. For this lunch I used leftover bratwurst from the previous night's dinner. I sliced it up into bite sized pieces and added a few sides for a picnic-y sort of lunch.

Along with the bratwurst bits, there is a cup of guacamole with tortilla chips, stuffed green olives, spicy trail mix, chocolate bar pieces, and kiwi chunks.

Here is another lunch using leftover bratwurst. For this one, I tucked in mustard for dipping. There is also leftover Buffalo chicken dip with celery and potato chips, plum slices, and kiwi.

Packed lunches are a great way to use up leftover food after a party or get together. It's like a mini party in your lunch box!

This one took about three minutes to put together. Leftover rice with pork loin slices, topped with pepper. Peel and slice a kiwi and toss in a couple pieces of brownie for a basic quick lunch.

If there are enough leftovers, sometimes you can make two lunches out of them. This second lunch came from the same rice and pork loin dinner above. Instead of pieces, this time it is thin sliced. Apple slices and raspberries stuffed with white chocolate chips fill out the lunch and add a pop of flavor.

There are lots of easy, fun ways to use leftovers to make interesting and delicious lunches. 

For some more ideas, check out some of these other great posts!

More leftovers posts from Chaos and Confections:  http://chaosandconfections.blogspot.com/search/label/leftovers

Food, Family, Fun:  http://www.foodfamilyfun.net/2013/04/leftover-spaghetti-meatballs-for-lunch.html 

Bentos on the Bayou:  http://www.bentosonthebayou.com/2012/05/roll-those-dice.html

Biting the Hand That Feeds You:  http://www.bitingthehandthatfeedsyou.net/search/label/Leftovers%20for%20Lunch

iPack Lunch:  http://ipacklunch.com/tag/leftovers/

Feeling a Little Lunchy:  http://www.feelingalittlelunchy.com/2013/03/feeling-like-i-may-like-lunchbox-love.html

Eats Amazing:  http://eatsamazing.co.uk/tag/leftovers

JDaniel4's Mom:  http://www.jdaniel4smom.com/2013/04/earth-day-lunch-leftover-signs-of-spring.html

Becoming a Bentoholic:  http://www.becomingabentoholic.com/search/label/Leftovers%20on%20Friday

Beneficial Bento:  http://www.beneficial-bento.com/2013/01/how-to-add-bento-touch-to-your-leftovers.html

What the Girls Are Having:  http://bentoformygirls.blogspot.com/2012/10/day-295.html

Zoe's Lunchbox:  http://www.zoeslunchbox.com/2013/03/leftovers-for-lunch.html

The Roxx Box:  http://theroxxbox.com/2013/07/23/mexican-black-bean-frittata-bento-108/

Keeley McGuire:  http://keeleymcguire.blogspot.com/search/label/leftovers

Ladybug Lunches:  http://www.ladybug-lunches.com/search/label/Leftovers%20for%20Lunch

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