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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

to ask what you do with the kids' leftovers?

72 replies

mrspepperpotty · 01/01/2012 18:15

Like many of you, I expect, I am starting 2012 with a resolution to eat healthily and lose weight. One of my biggest weaknesses is finishing off the kids' leftovers. So tonight me, DH and the 3 DCs have just eaten spinach and ricotta cannelloni for supper. There are 2 bits of cannelloni left. I am NOT NOT NOT not going to eat them however much I want to! But what would you do?

Throw them away. Seems like such a waste!
Put them in a tupperware box the fridge. But it's not enough for a full meal for DH or me. Would be enough for 1 of the DCs but it's rare I'm feeding just 1 and not the other 2. And cannelloni isn't really something you snack on between meals. So I'll just end up throwing them away anyway in a week or so.

OP posts:

BandOMothers · 01/01/2012 19:57

Bubble and Squeak?

Kristingle · 01/01/2012 20:00

Compost or birds.

OldMumsy · 01/01/2012 20:09

Bin it.

phyllisdiller · 01/01/2012 20:22

I used to pick at the Dc's left overs, now I bin them. I've lost about a stone since I've started doing that (it's not just the not picking that has made me lose the weight but it's made a big difference).

CheeseandGherkins · 01/01/2012 20:24

Yuck I couldn't eat leftovers and I wouldn't save them for anyone else other than the cats. Always throw them in the bin.

fifteenfiftyfive · 01/01/2012 20:27

There are rarely any leftovers in this household, just like when I was a child at my parents' house.

I'm sorry, but regularly leaving food for someone else to eat or get thrown away is not acceptable in this household at all, and I say that with the strongest of disapproving tones.

I'm happy to try and accommodate people's palettes, and I know I'm relatively lucky compared to some parents, as ours will eat 70 - 80% of what DH and I like, but I do not entertain the idea that they should leave food as the norm, for three reasons... primarily, the cost of food... but also from an evironmental point of view (animals died to serve that meat on the table, gas was used to cook it) and from a respect point of view (I've better things to be doing than making food that's not going to get eaten).

If you regularly have leftovers, I'd look at:

1. Are they genuinely unable to finish off the food?

For example:

What time are you feeding them, and can it be optimised?
Are they snacking on things beforehand?
How big a portion are you serving, and is it age-appropriate?
How do you serve? Do you plate everyone's food up or let them serve themselves? If the latter, are their eyes bigger than their bellies?

2. If there's no reason for them to be able to not finish their food...

Are they not eating it because they are just being fussy eaters? A few lessons on table manners, such as being sent to bed with the option of dinner or nothing will suffice - and it's a good opportunity to teach them about food waste, for example.
However, if they honestly, genuinely don't like what you're eating, you need to accommodate them more. For example, I cannot abide peas - never have, never will. I'll eat most vegetables apart from them. My oldest is the same with leafy veg (can't stand spinach or cabbage), so when that gets made for the rest of us, I just make sure his plate doesn't have any on, and he gets extra of another veg instead. I'm certainly not going to force him to eat something he genuinely doesn't enjoy.

In closing, I'm actually genuinely shocked at the relaxed attitude a lot of people have towards food wastage - when I've been to dinner with friends or on play dates with our DCs to their friends, and food has been served, I'm often surprised at the food portions being given, or the timing it's being given out at.

Case in point - last week I went to visit my sister in law with our 3. When we were there, she served a lovely lunch, but plated everything up for us (cold meats lunch) - the children's portions were about 80% of the portions she gave for the two of us - there's no way my 8 year old could finish that... so I didn't have a problem with him leaving any. I apologised and next time I'll make sure I (politely) reduce the portions in future when we're over... I just cannot abide seeing things thrown in the bin like that if I can help it.

FredFredGeorge · 01/01/2012 20:27

put it in the fridge, not a meal on its own, but with the left over whatever from the next day then it is.

Don't throw it away!

FestiveFriedaWassailsAgain · 01/01/2012 20:29

I wouldn't eat anything that has been on their plates and messed with. But the extra fishfinger that is still on the baking tray and 2 handfuls of chips I rehome to my stomach. The dogs sort the rest.

fifteenfiftyfive · 01/01/2012 20:30

p.s. There's nothing wrong with serving leftovers (which haven't been eaten by someone, of course) the next day. I've misjudged a few times with pasta dishes - the next day, I just serve up the leftover portions with extra salad and some garlic bread or something.

There is no reason to throw things away at all (or force yourself to eat it).

FredFredGeorge · 01/01/2012 20:30

Unlike fifteenfiftyfive I fully believe leftovers are entirely appropriate, and they can just be eaten another time either as a snack, another meal as a whole or part of another meal. They shouldn't be thrown away as that is a waste, but if you never have any leftovers people are going hungry surely?

tinkertitonk · 01/01/2012 20:32

I wish I'd thought of eurochick's comment.

BluddyMoFo · 01/01/2012 20:32

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

fifteenfiftyfive · 01/01/2012 20:34

FredFredGeorge - some leftovers, absolutely, I really do agree - as per my "use it the next day" comment.

I certainly can't claim to have 100% accuracy when it comes to portion size (recent food price rizes have forced me to get better over the last couple of years). But regularly, after most meals - that's something I would have a problem with.

People aren't going hungry in this house - there's always a bowl full of fruit to eat at any time of the day, and as I said above, I've got quite good at guessing the right size for people's portions.

Oh, one other tip which I found useful for this sort of thing is getting rid of our old massive rimless table plates. I bought another cheap set with a rim on them - because I found that my portion sizes went a bit haywire a few years ago when we replaced a very old set and bought ones without rims on. Soon realised the mistake!

zukiecat · 01/01/2012 20:35

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

naturalbaby · 01/01/2012 20:35

do chickens really eat cooked meals like pasta?? what about if it's a meaty meal??? this may be the deciding factor on how soon we get chickens now.

our food waste goes in the green bin for the recycling men so i don't feel too guilty. i usually have smaller portions cause i know i'll be eating all the leftovers.

i did find myself stuffing week old chocolate pudding from christmas day, feeling sick with gastroentiritus and wondering if i have serious ishoos should just throw it away.

slavetofilofax · 01/01/2012 20:38

Fifteenfive, my closest friends Mum was like that with food. She was never allowed to leave anything, despite food being given at regular times, always healthy, no snacks allowed and normal portion sizes.

She is now dangerously obese, and her whole life revolves around eating or not eating.

I also know someone else who was brought up to never be allowed to leave anything, and even now as an adult he will finish food he doesn't want or need in restaurants just because he feels so bad about leaving anything on his plate.

I don't think worrying about waste to that extent helps create a healthy attitude towards food.

Kellogg · 01/01/2012 20:40

My chickens love pasta , mashed potato, any left over veg or cake. Dog or cats would eat meaty leftovers.

scottishmummy · 01/01/2012 20:41

depends what it is sometimes make leftover stovies/stew

fifteenfiftyfive · 01/01/2012 20:43

slavetofilofax, my DCs are "allowed" to leave portions. I'm not going to force feed them or anything

I just meant with my post directed at the OP that a few problematic factors that other people (like my sister in law) don't seem to filter out, can be easily solved, so that food waste is a rarity rather than the norm (checking portion size to make sure DCs don't keep getting adult portions, making sure you're cooking stuff they will enjoy).

Everyone has odd meals where they can't finish their food. But the levels of this should surely feed back into meal choice, portion size, food timing, etc? That's all

slavetofilofax · 01/01/2012 20:48

Fair enough Fifteen.

I have one fussy eater who either seems to eat loads or not very much at all, and there seems to be no reason or pattern for it at all. But other ds eats brilliantly and the dog gets most left overs, so I tend not to think about it too much. My only rule is that everything has to be tried, after that I don't mind if they don't like it.

squeakytoy · 01/01/2012 20:51

If you have leftovers regularly, then you need to cut down on the portion sizes.

I couldnt eat food off someone elses plate. We have a large hot dish with sections that goes in the middle of the table, and people help themselves to what they want. That way, anything left is untouched. If it is freezable/reheatable it goes in the fridge and someone will have it the next day. If it is salad stuff it goes back in the fridge and gets eaten later or the next day too.

Nothing gets wasted in this house, and nobody leaves food on their plate.

TroublesomeEx · 02/01/2012 08:27

I agree with fifteenfiftyfive - if leftovers are regularly a problem, look at the reasons for this.

With normal leftover situations, I eat the leftovers from last nights dinner for my lunch the following day. So it might be cold pasta with salad, cold curry, whatever. I only cook vegetarian food so meat's never an issue and Dh and I are good cooks so I quite often deliberately cook more so that there is enough for my lunch the following day.

Don't eat food off the plates though.

Original poster

mrspepperpotty · 02/01/2012 08:30

My younger kids are 2 and 4, so a bit young I think to help themselves from the dish and know how much they want.

Thanks all for the replies and ideas!

OP posts:

FannyBazaar · 02/01/2012 08:46

Shocked at how many people throw food away!

I have often found those small portions of leftover bits, not enough for one meal, annoying but try to combine with other things or serve as a starter and other small leftovers as the main course next time.

foreverondiet · 02/01/2012 09:13

When you say leftovers do you mean from their plate, or from the serving plate?

If in serving dish they get it the next day with something added, eg if it was canelloni could have that with some salmon the next day so the canelloni is the side dish IYSWIM. Or DH would eat it as a carb - and I'd make a more veggie and protein main meal.

If its from their plate I either bin it or if I sense that they will be hungry later as they didn't eat it I put in the fridge and offer it later or possibly to them (not everyone) the next day.

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