Something from nothing

Okay, remember my review of Hot n' Juicy Crawfish? Well, we ordered three pounds of shrimp for the three of us which seemed like the right amount but boy was it ever too much. We had a bunch of shrimp left over. So the next day we turned them into these super caesar salads. We actually had a leftover caesar salad kit (you know, the kind that come with lettuce, dressing, croutons and cheese? This one was from Fresh & Easy - gosh I love that store) and so all I had to add was some avocado and tomatoes. We peeled those spicy shrimp and added them. They were sublime. The combination of spicy shrimp with tangy caesar dressing and creamy avocado was to die for. We ended up with nine large shrimp apiece for our salads and we enjoyed every last bite.

This is an example of frugality. We could have abandoned those shrimp at the restaurant, leaving them to be thrown away. But in Gourmand Girl's house good food should never be thrown away. Don't be ashamed of the 'doggy bag'. Use those leftovers in a creative way and you honor the chef who created the food in the first place. When I was little and we would go to eat the $2.95 prime rib special, I would eat all of my salad and baked potato and roll and save my prime rib to make the most delicious sandwiches for school. So stop thinking of them as leftovers...think of them as planned overs, and let your imagination run wild.