Instead of throwing them away, I save all the little odds and ends that are leftover from meals and put them in little containers in the fridge (or freezer if I know I can’t get to them for awhile). Then I make a big pot of soup, portion into lunch sized plastic containers, label and freeze. This was the garbage soup I made last night.

one can mixed vegetables (like Veg-all) with canning water

one small can tomato sauce

1/2 cup spaghetti sauce with ground beef

1/2 cup chicken gravy

1/2 cup beef gravy

1/2 cup frozen mixed veggies

1/4 can of corn

1/2 cup V-8 juice

1/2 cup whole wheat spaghetti, cooked, cut into tiny pieces

1/2 cup macaroni, cooked

1/2 cup chicken broth

one small potato, diced and one stalk celery, diced

chicken soup base, Jane’s Crazy Mixed-up Salt, onion powder, marjoram, water to thin soup

I put everything in a big pot and simmered until the potato and celery were cooked. I adjusted the seasoning and thinned with water when it got too thick.

Yummy, cheap and a great way to keep those leftovers from going to waste.