Are you frugal with food? If you are not sure, think about your relationship with your fridge. Do you save that last slice of meatloaf because it would be a shame to throw it away when you can crumble it in a little tomato sauce, onion and a few other ingredients for a quick sauce? Do you cube the small chicken breast to make a great chicken salad sandwich. If you answered yes, you are frugal. If your thought was it’s too little for such trouble, then read on.   

• All is not lost when you are left with  icky, sticky rice. Just put it in a large strainer run hot water over  it. If you don’t have a strainer, place the rice in a large bowl and add warm warm and stir gently to separate the grains.

• Make bread crumbs from stale bread. Preheat your oven to 250 degrees and put the stale bread in the oven for about 20 minutes to remove most of the remaining moisture. Then crumble to make large or small bread crumbs. Put crumbs in a zip lock bag until ready to use.

• DId you get a little heavy-handed while making stew or soup? A raw white potato can help to save your dinner.  Cut the potato in halve or quarters and add it to stew or soup, it will absorb some of the salt. If you tend to use the salt shaker to excess, use just a pinch to season  or leave unseasoned, and allow everyone to add his or her own salt.

And speaking of potatoes:

• If you have a cup or so of leftover mashed white potatoes, add an egg and some finely chopped onion to make potato patties. Just shape and saute in vegetable oil or margarine until brown on both sides.
• Form leftover mashed potatoes into balls around around cooked and browned ground beef, pork or a cube of cheddar cheese. Then cover roll in bread crumbs mixed with grated Parmesan cheese or and broil until golden brown.