Never Throw Anything Away

I recently had a back yard barbeque, and as usual, I overbought. I've got hotdog and hamburger buns for the rest of my life! What can I do with all those buns? At first I just stuck them in the freezer, but upon further thought I realized my freezer would be crammed full of buns forever. So, I went to the internet and started researching how I could use the leftover buns. I found so many innovative ways to use up the buns. Below is a summer fruit pudding recipe which I hope you'll enjoy. There are lots of other ways to use the buns. I heard that most Americans waste (throw out) about 27% of the food they buy. I don't want to be one of them.


Plum and Berry Summer Pudding

Ingredients
3 red or black plums, sliced 1/2 inch thick
1 6-ounce container blackberries
1 4-ounce container blueberries
2 6-ounce containers raspberries
3/4 cup sugar
grated zest of 1 lemon
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
4 hamburger or hot dog buns, split
whipped cream (optional)
Directions
1.In a saucepan, over medium-high heat, bring the plums, blackberries, blueberries, half the raspberries, the sugar, and ¼ cup water to a simmer. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the blueberries begin to burst, about 5 minutes.
2.Remove from heat. Stir in the lemon zest and juice and the remaining raspberries. Transfer to a bowl and let cool for 15 minutes.
3.Line an 8-inch square baking dish with 2 sheets of plastic wrap, allowing at least 6 inches to hang over each side. Place the bottoms of the buns in the dish, cut-side up. Spoon half the fruit mixture over the buns.
4.Top with the remaining buns, cut-side up, and the remaining fruit mixture. Cover with the overhanging plastic wrap, a plate, and two 15-ounce cans. Refrigerate until chilled, at least 1½ hours. Spoon the pudding into bowls and top with whipped cream (if using).

Here's another way to use the extra hotdog and hamburger buns.

Tomato Bruschetta
Serves 4| Hands-On Time: 15m | Total Time: 20m
Ingredients
2 hamburger or hot dog buns, split
4 tablespoons olive oil
6 Roma (plum) tomatoes, seeded and diced
6 kalamata olives, pitted and roughly chopped
2 tablespoons fresh oregano or basil, torn
kosher salt and pepper
Directions
1.Heat broiler.
2.With a rolling pin, roll the bun halves until flattened.
3.Place on a baking sheet and brush both sides of the buns with 2 tablespoons of the oil. Broil until golden brown, about 1 minute per side.
4.In a bowl, combine the tomatoes, olives, oregano or basil, ½ teaspoon salt, ¼ teaspoon pepper, and the remaining oil. Transfer the buns to a platter and spoon the tomatoes over the top.

The website realsimple.com has these and many other ideas for using leftovers. Croutons and bread crumbs are other ideas to use up the old buns. I've got many other leftovers from this party, and will look later on ways to use sliced olives (I bought them by mistake), sweet pickle relish, and sauerkraut. I don't want to waste 27% of the food I buy so I better be creative!