Child-Friendly Leftovers

"Beggar's Purses" are a great way to get your kids to eat leftovers through simple repackaging. They are finger food and relatively bite-sized which automatically makes them more fun to eat.


Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients:
1-2 packages of Pillsbury crescent rolls
or
12 pre-thawed Rhoades Rolls
2-3 cups of your leftovers
butter

Preheat oven to 375.
Stretch one roll (1 roll = 2 crescent rolls) into hand-sized round. Fill with 2-3 Tbsp of cold leftover mixture (honey mustard chicken, fajitas, meatloaf, spagetti sauce, etc). Fold dough around mixture and pinch together at the top. It should look similar to a teardrop. Place "purses" onto greased baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes. Once cooked, brush with butter and serve warm.

Mediterranean Chicken

Total cook time: 30 minutes
2-4 chicken breasts
3/4 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/3 cup Balsamic or Red Wine Vinegar
1 Tbsp. dried rosemary and/or oregano
1 Tsp. minced garlic
1 Tsp. minced onion
salt & pepper
1 loaf of bruschetta or focaccia bread

Combine oil, vinegar, and seasonings into a bowl and set aside. Pan grill chicken in large frying pan until lightly browned. Reduce heat and add oil mixture. Cover and simmer, turning chicken regularly, for 8-10 minutes.

Plate chicken and spoon oil mixture onto a plate. Add ground pepper and use for dipping bread. (Steamed zucchini goes really well with this.)

Navajo Tacos

Total cook time: 30-45 minutes
1 package of ground hamburger
1 large can of red kidney beans
1 packet of taco seasoning
1 can of tomato sauce
1 bag of Rhodes frozen rolls or 1 box of bread dough mix
4 cups of cooking oil (not olive oil!)
Your choice taco toppings: cheese, sour cream, salsa, lettuce, etc.

If using frozen rolls, thaw and let rise for approximately 5 hours ahead of time: Lay plastic wrap over a cookie sheet and coat with nonstick spray. Set out rolls onto plastic wrap far enough apart that they will not touch when fully risen. If using dough mix, prepare about 30 minutes before starting meat and oil.

Brown hamburger in a large frying pan. Drain kidney beans and put into a sauce pan to heat. Heat cooking oil in a large sauce pan. Combine tomato sauce and taco mix into the frying pan with browned hamburger. Add kidney beans and simmer on low.

Take risen one risen roll at a time and flatten into a 5-6 inch round. Using tongs, slide the dough into boiling oil and let cook for 30 seconds. Turn over in oil and cook another 30 seconds. Continue turning until fried dough is a light brown (the fried bread will get darker once you take it out to cool) and set on paper towels to drain off excess oil.

Top fried bread with meat mixture and taco toppings.