Cook Once (Dinner), Eat Twice (Breakfast)

While the Organizing Dinner cooking class focuses a lot on dinner success, we get asked often about help organizing the rest of the meals. As the busy school year has begun, here are some “cook once eat twice” strategies where you can cook a delicious dinner and then use the leftovers to make quick and easy, protein-filled, freezable breakfast options. If its a challenge to find the time to make a homemade breakfast, or if other members of your family are always on a rush out the door, these grab-and-go options save you many preservatives as well as money in lieu of the similar packaged/drive-thru/frozen options.

Baked Ham & Ham and Cheese Muffins

Sweet & Savory Baked Ham

Serves 4-6 with extra ham for Ham and Cheese Muffins

Ingredients

• 1 (3 pound) ham
• 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 2 cups water or broth

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Place ham in roasting pan. Rub top and sides of ham with mustard, and then cover with brown sugar. Pour water or broth (I use Vegeta vegetable broth) in bottom of pan. Cover ham with a tent of tinfoil. Bake for 1 hour (20 minutes per pound if you are using a larger or smaller ham), until the internal temperature reaches 160 degrees. Remove from oven and let sit for 15 minutes before carving.

Enjoy a delicious Ham dinner, and then use the leftovers to make this recipe for Ham and Cheese Breakfast Muffins. You can freeze the muffins and thaw each morning for a quick breakfast that is also hearty and delicious.

Sausage Lettuce Wraps & Sausage Biscuits

Lettuce Wraps

Serves 4 with extra sausage for Sausage Biscuits

Ingredients

Cook sausage in large non-stick pan over medium-high heat until browned, breaking into small pieces. Remove 2 cups of sausage, cool and reserve for Sausage Biscuits. Add szechwan seasoning to remaining sausage in pan. Add water chestnuts, carrots, green onions, walnuts and soy sauce; cook, stirring until heated through. To serve, spoon about 1/2 cup sausage mixture into center of each lettuce leaf. Roll and eat.

Use leftover crumbled sausage to make Sausage and Cheese Biscuits as a delicious and hearty grab-and-go breakfast option. These biscuits can be frozen pre-made (in batter form) or after they are cooked so you always have protein-filled breakfast options on hand.