NEW LIFE FOR LEFTOVERS

How to repurpose the remains of the day

- OPR (Other People’s Recipes) NORMA O. CHIKIAMCO

OPR (Other People's Recipes) Norma G. Chimianco

You know you’re all done with the feasting when you find yourself staring at a stash of leftovers on the kitchen counter. What was once a beautiful golden roast turkey has dwindled into just skin and bones. The ham that had been a lovely rosy pink flanked by a syrupy pineapple sauce has been reduced to dried scraps of sinewy meat. And the lechon with the glistening mahogany brown skin is, alas, now a mere skeleton of its former self.

What to do with these leftovers? As scanty as they may be, throwing them in the garbage seems like such a waste. There’s got to be a way to somehow to salvage them and give them new life.

The good news is that you can repurpose these remains of the day. With a bit of creativity and a lot of patience you can rehash them into passable, maybe even delightful, meals.

The carcass of a turkey, for instance, is bound to still have some usable meat clinging to the drumsticks, wings and breasts. For that matter, even the carcass itself can yield some residual flavor.

Here are a few recipes to inspire you in their transformation.

TURKEY NOODLE SOUP

Ingredients:

1 whole carcass of a roast turkey

1-2 cups shredded turkey meat (from the carcass)

6-8 cups water

1-2 pcs. bay leaves

250 grams noodles (rigatoni, elbow macaroni or corkscrew noodles)

2 tbsps. olive oil

1 onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, chopped

1 medium carrot, cut into rounds (or any decorative shape)

salt and pepper, to taste

2 tbsps. chopped parsley leaves (optional)

Procedure: