Has anyone else out there only just accepted that it is now, officially, 2017? School resumes, the mercury dips, Easter eggs appear on supermarket shelves, and those frivolous new year resolutions have been made and broken. If, like me, it takes you until February to compute that we are in a new year, then now is the perfect time to put into motion some life changes your family will actually stick to.

The concepts of recycling, upcycling, and re-using are second nature for kids today, so why not extend that throughout your whole home, especially the kitchen. This is more than just patronising the organic stall at the local market, or endeavouring to eat only products from within a reasonable radius to your home, it has become about respecting what you already have in your pantry, and to be inspired to reinvent, reimagine, and resurrect yesterday’s scraps as appealing, nutritious dishes today. My family and I have had the immense pleasure of living off the grid and close to the earth for the last month. Without so much as a milkbar close by, conditions were perfect for encouraging resourcefulness and inventiveness amongst my kids at mealtimes. Resurrecting the tidal wave of Yuletide leftovers that holds most fridges hostage throughout January presented the perfect opportunity to practice ‘recycling’ in the kitchen. With a little culinary imagination, any leftover can live on.

We cannot talk about ‘leftovers’ without giving an honourable mention to bubble and squeak…and it’s slightly more street-cred cousin, the fritter. Whatever your leftover: meats, roasted veg, cheese plates, herbs, pasta, even salad veg left wilting in the chiller drawer, have the kids pull out the safety knives, chop the lot and fold through lightly mashed potato or a basic egg and flour mix. Roll the bubble and squeak mix into Palm sized balls and chill til firm. Heat a little oil in a Frypan, under adult guidance, and fry til crisply golden (as Nigella would say) Then all it takes to convert this humble dish into something worthy of any hipster cafe menu is the addition of a fried egg. Instant nirvana.

While on the subject of frying, leftovers make the most magnificent fried rice, and it is so easy for little hands to make. Chill a quantity of still firm steamed rice. Toss your chopped leftovers in a Fry pan with your child’s sauce of choice (soy, oyster, chilli) and fold through the rice. The addition of a little chopped pineapple at this stage and yet another fried egg makes for a truly Australian rendering of this fast food favourite.

You have heard of Mystery Flights, how about Mystery sandwiches? Assemble chopped and sliced leftovers; protein, vegetables, salad ingredients, and any sauces and condiments handy, with a loaf of bread, wraps, or crackers. Now allow your little people to invent their own sandwich shenanigans, with as many filling combinations as will fit between two slices of bread. Toast if your bread is feeling as worn out as you, and let them sample each others creations blindfolded. Word to the wise, however: Only submit to a taste test if you are confident in the participants respect for erring on the side of caution when combining sweet and savoury. Jam roly poly between sliced white does not a Heston Blumenthal masterpiece make.

Speaking of the the sweet stuff, Leftovers of the sweet variety really come into their own when reinvented, and plum pudding is the perfect example. My tribe will pick at their pudding post Christmas lunch, but when finely chopped and folded through softened chocolate or vanilla ice-cream, they cannot get enough. Add chopped nuts, or even some popping candy for fun and texture, then refreeze the mix in a clingwrap lined bowl. Demould when firm, slice and serve.

No matter what life throws at you, everything is better with a drizzle of chocolate. This is particularly true when it comes to sweet scraps and leftovers. Last piece of cake? Only one serve left of a favourite cereal? Too few bikkies to go around? Let your little people chop up leftover pudding, fruit cake, shortbread, add a smattering of nuts, seeds, marshmallows or crumbled candy, even a favourite breakfast cereal for extra crunch, in their own combinations, and spread in a single layer over a paper lined baking tray. Now melt some quality white, dark or milk chocolate (or a bit of each!) and drizzle over. Just enough to bind your ingredients. I pour a small quantity into a snap lock bag, and improvise a piping bag by securing with an elastic band and snipping one corner, so my lot can design signature squiggly chocolate treats. Set in the fridge and break into shards.

With a little culinary imagination, Any leftover can live on.

Once learned, this skill will serve your tribe for life. Alongside death and taxes, the one great certainty in life is leftovers, so corral the kids into the kitchen and get creative: it will keep little hands busy, little minds occupied, and with a little imagination, you can create something DELICIOUS and nutritious while teaching your tribe to respect where their food comes from. The perfect crime.