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Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Make over: Leftover tuna salad becomes Tuna Cheese Chowder

Let's talk about NEVER wasting food -- instead of hating leftovers, many of us RE-PURPOSE them instead!
   When feeding people that I don't see too often, I try to offer more than one thing, hoping to suit their tastes. Of course, that leaves me with leftovers, and I can only eat so many leftover tuna salad sandwiches!
   That's why I turned my leftover tuna salad (tuna, mayo, celery, capers, salt & pepper) into tuna cheese chowder. Cooked up some chopped onion & carrot sticks (too lazy to shred these, but a small dice cooks quickly enough). Stirred in a little flour then added some broth & milk and let the mixture thicken a bit before tossing it into the slow cooker with the seasonings below. About an hour before lunch, I stirred in the tuna salad; then stirred in some cheese about half an hour before eating. The slight crunch of the celery didn't affect the chowder a bit. I thought it tasted every bit as good as when I make it from scratch, as in the recipe below.
   I love changing leftovers into something new, don't you? Just found out Real Life Living has an idea for leftover French fries that I had never considered. Any leftover transformations you'd like to share?

Tuna Cheese Chowder 
2 med. carrots, shredded (1 c.)
1 med. onion, chopped (1/2 c.)
1/2 c. butter
1/4 c. all-purpose flour
2 c. milk
2 c. chicken broth
1 (6 1/2 or 7 oz.) can tuna, drained and flaked
1/2 tsp. celery seed
1/2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/4 tsp. salt
1 c. shredded American cheese (4 oz.)
In 3 quart saucepan cook carrots and onion in butter until onion is tender but not brown. Blend in flour. Add milk and chicken broth. Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly. Stir in tuna, celery seed, Worcestershire sauce and salt. Heat through. Add cheese - heat and stir until cheese is melted. Garnish with snipped chives. 4 servings. Recipe Source: Better Homes and Garden Holiday Cooking (Special Publication/Magazine from 1979!)

3 comments:

Annie Jones said...

Thanks for stopping by my blog and thanks for the link-back. :)

This chowder looks yummy. My 7yo loves anything with tuna in it, so this will be one we'll try soon!

BLD in MT said...

Though I've never been a fan of tuna I am a HUGE fan of re-purposing leftovers! I get a kick out of making something totally different out of it and the not wasting food is the sweetest cherry on top.

Way to go you clever chef!

Dmarie said...

@Annie, really enjoyed your blog...so glad to have found it!
@BLD, I get a kick out of transforming leftovers too...it's like alchemy! ;)

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