The Challenge of Leftovers...Make Some Magic!

We have all experienced it.  A refrigerator full of leftovers.  Bits and pieces of ingredients left from making the meals for the week.  Well, today was refrigerator clean-out day.  Why let it go to waste.  Plus, it can be a great challenge for any foodie.

So, this morning when I woke up I opened the refrigerator door and looked inside.  I decided on soup and grilled cheese sandwiches for dinner.  Taking inventory of the contents, I thought that this would work.  I have my mom to thank for teaching me that you can really make a great pot of soup out of practically anything.

Two cups of homemade mashed potatoes with caramelized onions, half can of whole kernel corn, half can black beans, can of mixed vegetables, vegetable broth, chicken broth,a quick flour roux, and leftover grilled chicken breasts.  Perfect for Mexican Potato Soup with Grilled Chicken Breast.  Everything in the pot and thirty minutes of simmering, and voila, a tasty soup that really went over well.  I seasoned the soup with chicken base, salt, white pepper, cumin, and chili powder. 

I also had some flour tortilla shells which I cut into 1/2 x 1-inch strips, sprayed with butter-flavored non-stick spray and sprinkled with chili powder and cumin.  Baked at 350 degrees for 10 minutes these made great "croutons" for the soup.

Soup so easy made out of the left-over ingredients most people would throw out.  So my advise to you all is...be creative and go for that challenge.  What is the worst that can happen?  A quick trip to the local McDonalds?