You know what I hate? Throwing away expired groceries. Usually, it’s a matter of not using the whole portion in time, but sometimes I have the awful task of throwing away something that is unopened. This is such a waste! Luckily, I’ve become much better at planning my meals to ensure that ingredients overlap and will get used in time. But alas, every now and then, something slips through the cracks. It’s then up to my mad kitchen skills to find a way to use the leftover ingredients.

This week’s near-expiration item? Deli meat.

“Stone Sandwiches” adapted from my Mother adapted from Pampered Chef 

This is my all-time favorite way to use up the last few slices of deli meat. My proportions and ingredients are only guidelines, but this is my favorite combo. When creating your own masterpiece, you’ll be aiming for one meat, one veggie, one cheese and one sauce. Voila.

• 1 can ready-to-bake crescent rolls
• 1/4-1/2 lb chopped deli meat (ham is my favorite)
• 1 cup chopped frozen broccoli, semi-thawed
• handful shredded cheddar cheese (or whatever’s on hand… this has room for interpretation)
• 2 Tbs yellow mustard

1. Lay out crescent rolls in individual triangles on a non-stick baking sheet or pizza stone.
2. Combine meat, broccoli, cheese and mustard in bowl and mix well. Mixture should be wet and stick together. Use more mustard if needed.
3. Spoon little mounds of the mixture onto the wide part of each crescent roll. About 1/4 c mixture per triangle.
4. Form the crescent rolls by lifting the triangle point up and over the mixture, then tuck under to seal.
5. Lastly, bake according to crescent roll package. Remove when rolls are golden brown and cheese is bubbling.

 Like this so much you want to have it for breakfast? Replace the broccoli with a little scrambled egg.  Mm mm.