It’s Works-for-Me Wednesday, and as I enjoy the leftovers of a meal made out of leftovers from my church’s Easter reception, I have to share this tip!

At the end of a party, usually there are some random vegetables lying around on the veggies-and-dip tray.  I have seen people throw these into the garbage!!!  What are they thinking?!  Yeah, the veggies may be kind of dried-out and limp and not so appealing for eating raw, but they’ll be just fine cooked in a soup, on a pizza, in an omelet, or whatever.

This Easter I took home enough leftover cut-up carrots, zucchini, red peppers, and mushrooms to make a full-sized batch of this recipe (named by a former housemate because of its resemblance to pasta primavera):

Cook some pasta.

Meanwhile, cut the veggies into small pieces, anywhere from bite-sized to diced depending on your preference.  Cook them over medium heat in a large skillet with plenty of olive oil.  Sprinkle with basil, oregano, parsley, and black pepper.  Add several cloves of crushed garlic.  Keep cooking, stirring frequently, about 15 minutes or until everything is fully cooked.

Serve veggies over pasta.  Maybe sprinkle with nutritional yeast flakes for extra protein.

For dessert, you might have leftover fruit like we did–bananas, strawberries, grapes, dried apricots, and a slosh of Passover grape juice made a very tasty and fluffy combination.