Leftover Surprise | Stuffed Croquettes

In my  household, men and leftovers don't mix.

Last week I made a tray of lasagna and with only three of us, this means leftover galore. I served it again the following day, and then another day, and my husband looked at me like "Ahhh... are you kidding me?", with my son also looking a bit puzzled.

"Oops sorry, I forgot about the unwritten rule..."  I minced.

So the other day, I made a ton of spaghetti sauce, and with potatoes being on sale, made lots of mashed potatoes the next day.  And yes you're right, today we had left overs.  But for a wife like me (and I'm sure just like most of you) I operate my kitchen expense with a strict budget... so these left-overs must be used in a productive/creative way.

Now the recipe I'm going to share with you today is what I call "leftover surprise".  It's one of those dishes that I whip up so that the men in my household will not suspect (or even care) that it was made from leftovers, haha!

So here it goes, my version of stuffed croquetas or meat-filled potato croquettes.

Stuffed Croquettes


Ingredients
left over mashed potatoes (if not follow the recipe below*)
1 cup bread crumbs (garlic and herb flavor)
left over spaghetti sauce (make sure to drain the liquid)
* 4 medium potatoes, boiled and peeled (TIP: For shorter time, microwave potatoes for 2-4 minutes)
1/2 c milk
1 large egg
salt and pepper

Directions:
Mash the potatoes.  Add butter and continue to mash until potatoes are smooth.  Add the egg and mix it thoroughly.  Add in the milk and 2 tbsp of bread crumbs (or until potato mixture is not too mushy). Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Divide the mashed potatoes into small balls. (ping-pong size balls)

Roll to an oval shape and flatten between the palms of your hands.  Add a spoonful of the spaghetti sauce (you could use any left over ground beef dish like picadillo).  Seal the top and the sides with more mash potatoes; using your palm re-shape the mashed potatoes just as like the photo..


In a skillet, add 2-3 tbsp of oil.  Pan fry each side of the croquettes until nice and brown.  Your family won't suspect that it's a left-over surprise... ***wink ***wink!