Tips like these helped us pay off $127K in debt. You can read our story in Slaying the Debt Dragon: How One Family Conquered Their Money Monster and Found an Inspired Happily Ever After.
We all have those items in our fridge, pantry, and cabinets that aren’t quite totally gone but we don’t yet want to throw out. It feels wasteful to chuck it, but what do you do with that leftover peanut butter in the jar or bottom of the ketchup bottle that you can’t quite reach? Here are some great leftover hacks that will allow you to make the most of those ingredients and more.
Peanut Butter
We LOVE peanut butter in our house. But I can go batty when there’s that teeny tiny bit still clinging to the sides of the jar. Here are some great ideas for what you can do with it the next time you find yourself just about to run out.
- Oats in a Jar: You can actually make oatmeal in the peanut butter jar and the sides will naturally moisten and the leftover peanut butter will mix into your delicious dish. You can find great recipe ideas for Chocolate and Vanilla versions of hot oats on Happy Being Healthy and an overnight oat idea for Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookie Dough on PB Fingers.
- Salad Dressing: Add some vinegar (I love balsamic), soy sauce, garlic and/or ginger, a bit of honey or brown sugar, and some oil to create a salad dressing or peanut sauce
- Peanut Butter Whipped Cream: I LOVE this simple recipe for making your own Nutella Whipped Cream from the Cake Boss himself Buddy Valastro on the Rachel Ray Show. It’s a fairly simple and delicious way to use up your favorite nut butter, too.
Ketchup
Ketchup seems to stick to the bottom of the bottle like white on rice. It’s frustrating to get it all out and can cause a big mess, too. Believe it or not, Heinz and Ford are working right now to turn ketchup leftovers into car parts! Here are some ideas for what you can do with it:
- Salad Dressing: You can make a simple and delicious Catalina dressing from the bottom of the bottle and ingredients you probably already have on hand. I’ve also made a mustard vinaigrette before ala Rachel Ray for a Cheeseburger Slider Salad. It is amazing!
- BBQ Sauce: Ketchup is the base for many BBQ sauces and meat glazes. One of the simplest ideas I’ve seen is to combine the leftovers with a bit of cola. The measurements would depend upon how much is leftover in your bottle so it would be an add a little bit as you go, taste and see sort of recipe.
- Clean Your Pans or Silver: Have copper bottomed pans? Combine that bit of leftover ketchup with a bit of water and then massage it into the pans. The acid in the ketchup will help shine things up nicely. Begin by sprinkling the pan with table salt. Then, add just a bit of water to the leftover ketchup and shake it up to mix. Pour the mixture on top of the pan and scrub away the grime and build up. You can clean up your pennies this way too, making them shiny and new. You can also clean tarnish off of silverware or silver jewelry with ketchup.
- Bottles & Packets: If you have those tiny packets from the restaurant that you didn’t use, of course they can come in handy in a pinch. But did you know you can also freeze them to use as teeny ice packs for the kids? And the leftover bottles can be used for a host of purposes, including pancake batter, craft containers for paint or glue. Check out a round up of ideas here.
What would you suggest doing to use up the leftover goodness at the bottom of the jar or bottle?
My book is now available: Slaying the Debt Dragon: How One Family Conquered Their Money Monster and Found an Inspired Happily Ever After. You can also check out Inspiration to Pay Off Debt: 30 Days of Encouragement from the Queen of Free
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