You don't throw away your leftover change so why do away with your leftover food

For me there is nothing worse then good food going to waste. Imagine how you would feel if you had holes in your pockets so that when ever you got change from a purchase it fell out onto the floor.  That is pretty much what is happening when leftovers or even fresh food goes to waste.  So for me it is so important to learn to get creative with the ingredients that you have on hand, especially when it comes to leftovers.  Even a good meal sometimes makes dull leftovers and it is often more tempting to have a fresh menu the next day rather then just heating up old leftovers.  So finding a creative way to make the leftovers into a fresh dish is a must.  It can often be a challenge but thanks to the internet it doesn't have to be impossible.  If you have a particular ingredient that you have no idea what to do with do my favorite thing and Google it, 'what to do with leftover blank'.  I guarantee you that there has been someone else who has already confronted and conquered the challenge. 

For this particular dish I was left with a large quantity of mashed potatoes and boiled cabbage after a wonderful roast meal with all of the family over the weekend.  I do love boiled cabbage but something about reheated boiled cabbage just doesn't get my taste buds excited.  So before they went bad I challenged myself to come up with a tasty solution.  Here in the UK a traditional use of roast meal leftovers is a dish called Bubble and Squeak, being a new resident of this country I challenged myself to create my own version of this dish.  

Bubble and Squeak Cakes

2 c. mashed potatoes

1 c. boiled cabbage

1 leek, chopped (or onion)

1/2 Tbsp butter
s+p to taste
1/2 c. Polenta

Chop up the cooked cabbage and set aside in a mixing bowl.

Chop up leeks in to small pieces and saute until leeks are soft and set aside with the cabbage.

How your mashed potatoes were cooked before will really be the deciding factor on how much you season and add butter at this point.  If they were already well salted and buttered then it is probably best to leave it as is.  As mine weren't I added 1/2 Tbsp of butter and a pinch of salt and pepper.  Heat the mashed potatoes until they are soften again.

Combine the leeks, cabbage and mashed potatoes into a bowl and mix well.





Divide mixture into eight balls and flatten them to form a patty.  Lightly pat each side with polenta.  Allow the patties to set in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.  This allows the mashed potatoes to set again; making it easier to fry.






Pan fry the patties on high until they are brown on both sides about 1 minute per side.  Make sure not to over crowd them in the pan so they are easy to turn.  They may break apart slightly but if you are careful they should stay together for the most part.

Serving size 4.