So, the scones I made last week (2 batches) went dry.  That’s the problem with those little buggers – they last a day and then become hockey pucks.

With my grandsons coming over to trick and treat, and my grandmotherly job of making a dinner they’ll eat (I haven’t mastered pizza rolls yet) on the docket, I decided to put those scones to work – in bread pudding.

Why not? They were sweet. Had raisins. And were crying out to be eaten, not tossed.

My recipe has a lot of room temperature ingredients in it, and believe me, it DOES make a difference. So while the butter, milk, cream and eggs come up to Florida, air conditioned room temperature, I’m sitting at the computer writing about it.

My mind wanders to leftovers and how I’ve become a leftover genius. My Costco chicken becomes individual pot pies the day after it comes home with me. Leftover pork loin or steak becomes the base for stir fry. (Pho is on my bucket list of recipes.) And mashed potatoes and either peas or Brussels sprouts become Bubble and Squeak.

Thankfully, Paul likes my mish-mashes that I come up with using leftovers, and frankly, they’re some of the best meals I’ve made. Pure comfort food. And you can do it yourself so easily.

Go through your refrigerator and crisper and pull out anything that’s on the edge of ripe. Start chopping and dicing. Throw in an onion, a slice of ginger, or not. The goal is to use up everything that’s leftover or at the end of its days.

Sauté the leftovers on medium-low in veg oil and a big knob of butter. At the same time, boil a pot of thin spaghetti.

When the veggies and leftovers are soft, add some chicken broth, some seasoning (even leftover herbs will add a punch) and reduce for a few minutes.

When the spaghetti is done, use a pasta scooper and add the pasta directly from the pot of water into the saucepan of leftovers. Stir to blend. Then – the pièce de résistance –

Cream. Heavy cream.

Just pour about a quarter-cup of it in, stir, adjust seasonings and add more cream if necessary.  Then serve!

In the meantime, my Scone Pudding is waiting…

Enjoy!

PS: Let me know if you want either the Scone or the Bread Pudding recipe and I’ll send.