GrowingOlderHopeWiser

Today was “clean out the refrigerator of all leftovers day.” I am learning to adjust the portions for two people because, in the past, I would cook larger portions. Eating was like an Olympic sport for me and my family. My family gene pool consisted of eaters of large quantities of food! We were all fat or obese, to put it more simply. I was fat! I weighed 318 lbs and was 5 feet 1 inch tall.

I will leave the significant transformation from fat to thin for another blog.

Being creative and mindful of eating has made a massive difference in my life. Transforming leftovers and using leftover veggies on their last legs has helped me stay on budget, which is essential for a fixed retirement income.

Hmm, let’s see what we have. A small bunch of Baby bok choy, check. 4 scallions, check. assorted peppers, check, One-fourth of a squash—well, okay, we can do something with that, half a small onion and two cloves of garlic, five frozen shrimp—stir fry! With a few pantry items, such as soy sauce, rice vinegar, garlic, black bean sauce, sesame oil, and hot sauce, I got this. “Garlic Shrimp Stir Fry is easy enough. Let the transformation of leftovers begin!

Chop the Baby bok choy, onion, scallions, and peppers. Mince the garlic and set it aside. Heat the sesame seed oil in a stovetop wok and add the chopped onion and peppers. When the onion gets translucent, add the garlic and continue to stir. Next, stir the chopped Baby bok choy and scallions until they wilt; add the shrimp, soy sauce squirt, and a Garlic Black Bean Sauce squirt. Finally, add a bit of rice vinegar to the shrimp. Use Sriracha or any other hot sauce for a bit of a kick. I dissolved half a teaspoon of cornstarch in 3 tablespoons of water, and poured over the stir fry to thicken the sauce. Serve as is in a bowl or over a bed of white rice.

Ultimately, my roommate had a lovely meal. Because I am allergic to shrimp, I cannot eat them, so I get the squash and onion roasted with olive oil and garlic. Yum.

Presto-the-magic-of-leftover-veggies! The transformation of leftovers and stray veggies is not new; families on a budget know the routine. I did well—and so did my roommate. She said she could regularly eat my transforming of leftover meals like Garlic Shrimp stir-fry. Next time, I will share my “you put your foot in it.” leftover chicken pot pie recipe