At this sight, it is easy to call it quits, throw in the towel, jump in the car and drive to the restaurant down the street for some quick eats. I beg you though, STOP! You haven’t lost all hope quite yet, and in fact, you can probably pull together a few scraps from here and there to build a meal at home.

It’s hard to imagine this in a world that expects the creme de la creme, but a meal doesn’t actually have to be perfect.

More than likely, you have a meat of some sort stored away. That could be leftover pork chops, frozen beef strips or canned chicken. Either way, there’s a protein.

Even though the fruit or veggie drawer may be barren, don’t knock the frozen or canned veggies. Pull those out for a semi-homemade meal.

Sandwich bread or tortillas or rice or a potato? Any of those will work to build a meal. Pick one!

The key to re-purposing leftovers, no matter how empty your refrigerator or pantry shelves may be, is creativity. Use your imagination and the meal options become limitless (and MUCH easier to throw together at the last minute).

When I am in a pinch, here are a few meal ideas I keep in my back pocket.

• Grilled sandwich
• Loaded baked potato
• Pasta
• Tossed salad
• Quesadilla or taco
• Tortilla pizza
• Soup
• Enchilada or burrito
• Stir-fry
• Omelette
• Hash

Hopefully these meals don’t sound too foreign. And more than likely, you have enough ingredients on hand to throw one together.

Just the other day I was working with leftover rotisserie chicken and a spinach and artichoke dip. Well, nuking each for a couple minutes is OK, but how boring! Instead, I thought to boil pasta and combine the chicken and dip with the pasta for a delicious, creamy take on chicken alfredo. Strawberries and green beans were the fruit and veggie around that day, which will work. Now THAT puts a fun twist on those ingredients to make a meal.

What about the always-popular baked potato? It never fails, we have a bag of potatoes on hand and ready for action. Yes, wrapping the potato in foil to bake is an option, nothing wrong there. I’ll challenge you though, throw a curve ball in sometime by chopping the potato into cubes, tossing in a bit of olive oil and seasoning for roasting. Layer the roasted potatoes with leftover meat, a drizzle of barbecue sauce, dollop of sour cream and sprinkle of cheese. Served with a fruit and veggie to make a meal and balanced plate!

Or, earlier last week we had leftover pulled pork that needed to be used. After glancing through the pantry, I found corn tortillas that would work as a perfect base. A little further below, canned corn. Nailed it. Next thing you know, everyone is shuffling through the build-your-own taco bar: pulled pork, corn dip (cream cheese, ranch seasoning, corn and canned tomatoes), shredded cheese and lettuce.

It is important to me that I feed my family well. Sometimes though, I don’t quite have the time or energy to put together something fresh from scratch. By repurposing leftovers, I am able to save LOTS of time and energy, while still creating a meal that I know my family will enjoy and is nutritious for us, too. Both are important to me, food that fuels and tastes delicious.

The ideas listed above are just a few meals that work for my family. Which of these could you try with yours? Or even better, can you add to my list? What fun twist have you tried to repurpose leftovers?

Throw together a few pantry and freezer staples into a large stockpot, and you’ve got yourself a meal!

Hamburger Soup

Ingredients

• 1 pound ground beef
• ½ medium yellow onion, chopped
• 3 small potatoes, cubed
• 1 15-ounce can corn
• 1 15-ounce can beans, drained
• 1 15-ounce can diced tomatoes
• 2 cups water
• 4 beef bouillon cubes
• 2 cups frozen vegetables
• Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Cook beef and onion in large stockpot over medium heat.
2. Add potatoes, corn, beans, tomatoes, water, beef cubes and frozen vegetables. Stir to combine.
3. Cover and let simmer for 30 minutes.
4. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Notes: My hamburger stew used Yukon gold potatoes, dark red kidney beans, stewed tomatoes in Italian seasoning and frozen carrots and green beans. Those just happen to be what was in our freezer drawer and on our pantry shelf. Think you could master this new look to your leftovers and make a soup?

• chronic yo-yo dieting
• frequent weight fluctuations
• extremely rigid and unhealthy food and exercise regime
• feelings of guilt and shame when unable to maintain food and exercise habits
• preoccupation with food, body and exercise that causes distress and has a negative impact on quality of life
• compulsive or emotionally driven eating
• use of compensatory measures such as exercise, food restriction, fasting and even purging or laxative use to “make up for” food consumed

Decisions about eating must be made frequently throughout the day. The “eat this, not that” list that has been pounded into your head by social media can lead to feelings of anxiety, guilt and poor body image.

Instead, the goal should be for a normalized eating pattern: To start eating when you are hungry and to stop eating when you are full. To eat without regretting it immediately. To think about food far less often and to not crave foods constantly. To love yourself, to want to feed yourself the best food for your body and to eat the foods that make you feel your best. To have the highest quality of life possible.

Make this goal a reality by challenging yourself now to give up a disordered eating pattern and bring more mindfulness to your meals and snacks. The first step I recommend is to start eating all meals and snacks at a dining table. Eating in front of the TV, at your desk or in the car only distracts from what you’re eating and, furthermore, creates a psychological association that will make you crave foods the next time you plop down on the couch or are behind the wheel.

Next, ask yourself one question before consuming any food and drink: “Why?” Your reasons may include the clock indicating it’s a meal time, your stomach growling wildly, a need to stay awake while studying, or that it just sounds delicious. Whatever the reason, this exercise is an attempt to bring more awareness to your appetite and the other cues to eat.

Finally, make a conscious decision to eat and own your decision. Eat if you would like to eat, or pass if you would rather not.

You may feel less guilty when you give yourself permission to eat. Eating is one of your rights!