Garlic Bread Sticks

Let's say that you have a bag and a half of unused hot dog buns. What to do with them? For the most part, it is just bread and not just any sort of bread. It's the kind of bread that one eats meat with. Why not add a some garlic powder and butter?

There are two ways to do this. The first is to use tin foil and bake them until the butter melts and the garlic powder gives its essence to the bread.

The second method is by stove top and is just as easy to do. First you need a flat grill pan or 10" skillet. Basically, a pan large enough to accommodate four halves of hot dog buns.

By the way, the same can be done with leftover hamburger buns too.

Ingredients

hot dog buns, halved lengthwise
unsalted butter
garlic powder
kosher salt, to taste

Directions

If your hot dog buns don't already come split in the middle, do so with a sharp knife and slather the flat sides of the buns with butter and sprinkle with garlic powder and salt.

Place butter-side down onto a hot skillet and fry until the bread is lightly golden brown. Remove from heat and eat.

Mildly Spicy Cheese Sauce (for Nachos)

Ever have leftover parts of food items from a BBQ? This is one easy recipe that uses those leftover slices of bulk cheese. 

Ingredients

8-10 cheddar cheese slices, thinly sliced

1/2 c half 'n half or milk

2 tbsp diced green chilies

2 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp smoked paprika

1 tbsp cornstarch

Directions

1. Toss the cheese and cornstarch together until the cheese is evenly coated. 

2.  In a small nonstick pot, melt the cheese over low heat. Add 1/4 c of the dairy and stir occasionally. Add chilies and spices. Stir to blend together. Add remaining dairy. Stir until cheese has melted. Pour over nachos or serve as a cheese dip. 

Mashed Potato and Cheese Soup

Another dinner of leftovers, again! Thanksgiving sure does make a lot of leftover food. This is a recipe that you can use with leftover mashed potatoes, in the event that you find mashed potato pancakes way too salty because someone thought it'd be a great idea to mix salt, butter, and some random dairy into the mashed potatoes for T-day.

Fortunately, the main ingredient is already cooked and mashed, so now I build a soup around it. There is no added salt because the mashed potatoes are already salted. If you don't have leftover turkey stock on hand, you can substitute the liquid component of this soup with water or chicken broth.

Ingredients

2 slices of bacon, cut into thin strips
1-2 carrots, diced
1-2 celery ribs, diced
1/2 onion, thinly sliced (optional)
2 c turkey broth
1-2 c mashed potatoes
3/4 c cheddar cheese, grated
Spice mix (optional): dried thyme, garlic powder, dried oregano

Directions

1. Fry bacon until crispy. Take bacon out of the pan and drain on a paper towel. This will be used to garnish the soup before serving.

2. Pour the bacon fat into the pot that will hold at least two quarts of soup. Over low-medium heat, fry onion slices until they are translucent and slightly golden brown. Add carrots and celery. Cook until vegetables are fork tender.

3. Add broth and mashed potatoes. Bring to a boil. Turn off heat. Puree with an immersion blender. Then, over medium heat, add grated cheese and stir until all the cheese has melted.

4. Serve hot in a bowl and top with some fried bacon bits.