Thicken and encase in pastry to make pies, pasties, samosas, or filo parcels.

Add water or stock to use as the basis of a tasty soup.

Add curry paste, a tin of tomatoes and coconut cream or milk to make a curry.

Brown chunks of cook sausages and serve as canapes with chutney,

Add to pasta or serve on toast or with as a topping for polenta.

Top with mashed potatoes to make individual cottage pies.

Use as a stuffing for jaffles, pancakes or tortillas.

Make a chicken stock from the carcass of a roast chicken after picking off any bits of meat. Strain and add vegetables, herbs, seasoning and cook and at the last minute add the precooked noodles and leftover chicken to make a chicken noodle soup;

Cut up bits of roast meat and use in a frittata, or omelette, or use in fried rice;

Used roast meat in sandwiches an accompany them with soup to make a whole meal;

Coat cubes of roast meat, ham, bacon, salami in rice flour then fry until crispy and use as a garnish on a vegetable dishes;

Add roast pork or chicken, or leftover cooked steak to stir-fry’s. Do it at the last moment so the meat does not over cook.

Place slices in muffin tins and bake until golden and use as a case for serving food;

Turn into fresh and toasted breadcrumbs and panko crumbs;

Tear and use on top of gratin dishes such as cauliflower cheese;

Toast or brown in seasoned olive oil and add to salads;

Soak in a little olive oil and vinegar and stock or milk and use to thicken soups – bread is a classic component of gazpacho;

Make summer pudding or bread and butter pudding, add dried fruit macerated in some alcohol and a spoonful of marmalade to make your pudding truly memorable;

Make bread sauce;

Freeze in pairs of slices for use in toasted sandwiches later;

Use to make jaffles.

Save left over pieces of cheese and freeze in a snaplock bag, use to make a mixed-cheese white sauce for pasta or vegetables.

Use leftover cheese in quiches, fondues, as topping for pizza or on top of a gratin dish;

Add the rind of cheese to soups to add depth of flavour;

Add a little grated cheese as a garnish for dishes, grill on bread and float on soups;

Cream will last a long time, so keep opened cream and add it to enrich a dish;

Yoghurt is not just for cereals, season it with herbs, pesto, cucumber, spices, and serve as an accompaniment to a meal;

Yogurt mixed with pureed and chopped fruit makes a good dessert;

Make yoghurt ice cream;

If you happen to have a couple of litres of milk leftover, make ricotta. All you need is salt.

Make a white sauce, add cooked fish and vegetables, cheese, herbs, capers, top with pastry or mashed potatoes and brown in oven;

Add chunks of cooked fish to a pasta sauce;

Use to make a filo parcel with some thick white sauce and herbs;

Serve cold in a salad with baby potatoes and sliced pickled onions.

Freeze the peel of carrots, and bits of leftover hard vegetables such the stalks of broccoli, the ends cut off carrots and zucchinis etc in a snap-lock bag and when you have enough, make a vegetable stock. (Just be aware that potato peel discolours so don’t use it.) Freeze the stock in ice cubes so it is easy to use in casseroles etc.;

Use the whole vegetable when you cook. The skins of potatoes can be crisped up in the over to make a crunchy snack. Eat the tops of celery, turnips, radishes, beetroot, and fennel fronds.

Make Fridge Soup once a week using any leftover vegetables in the fridge, including onions and potatoes and the leaves of cauliflowers – just be aware that too many brassicas can make the soup rather strong;

Pureed roasted vegetables make a delicious soup;

Add bits of leftover vegetables to casseroles, minced meat dishes, bubble and squeak, savoury rice, frittatas, omelettes etc.;

Put leftover vegetables in a shallow pan, coat with a cheese sauce and breadcrumbs and bake in an oven au gratin;

Juice suitable leftover vegetables and fruit. The leftover pulp can be added to casseroles, frittatas and muffins, or use to make smoothies;

Stew any leftover fruit such as apples, pears, berries with sugar and serve with ice cream or use in the filling of pies or tarts, or in upside down cakes;

Make vegetable chips from potatoes, beetroot, sweet potato, cauliflower and broccoli stalks, but slice them very thinly so they cook through;

Freeze the zest of lemons, limes and oranges, and freeze their juice in ice cube trays.

Make pesto with left over herbs and nuts. To keep your pesto green and help it last, blanch the herbs for a few seconds in boiling water then cool down in iced water;

Make your own nut butter with leftover nuts – you will need to keep processing them until you see the oil forming. Make sure the nuts are not rancid. (Keep them in the fridge or freezer);

Use nuts in salads and chopped as a garnish for other dishes;

Use warmed up jams and marmalades as glazes when baking ham or roasting turkey, duck or pork or fillets;

Add little garlic and rosemary to warm marmalade and brush it on salmon steaks for the last few minutes of cooking;

Add some horseradish to a jam made from berries and use it to glaze meat or chicken. You can add also add mustard, chillies, and spices;

Use wine or stock to deglaze a pan that has been used to cook meat, duck or chicken and then add a tablespoon of jam and a little Worcestershire sauce or balsamic vinegar to counterbalance the jam’s sweetness and a little water to make a sauce;

Make a syrup from jam or marmalade to drizzle over cakes or desserts;

Jam and marmalade can be used as a topping for ice cream;

Use a dollop of leftover dips as an accompaniment to meals to add instant flavour;

Add a dollop of chutney to stews and soups to add flavour.