#KitchenClearout January roundup & February linky

With all that festive food to use up, I guessed that January would be a great month for #KitchenClearout and I wasn't wrong - there were a whopping 14 entries in this month's linky. I've been bookmarking lots of recipes because we all seem to have the same things to use up !

Galina kicked up things off with this Chicken Leftovers Miso Soup which sounds tasty, healthy and a great way of reducing food waste. Lovely :)

Over on The Nom Monster, there is a money-saving bid going on which resulted in a whole week's menu plan using nothing but stuff already in the freezer and cupboards - this sounds like a great idea and definitely one that I should do.

Jane from Onions and Paper made the most of her festive leftovers with this gorgeous-sounding festive fried rice, bubble and squeak, turkey in cheese sauce, turkey and leek pie ... she's a #KitchenClearout Queen ! I can't quite get my head around the idea of leftover pigs in blankets though - they're always the first thing to go in our house !

In fact, Jane's so good, she even made something with the leftovers from using up the leftovers and these (Sort Of) Eccles Cakes look like a truly fabulous way of using up scraps of puff pastry as well as the festive dried fruit and spices that are probably still cluttering up your kitchen cupboards. I've never eaten an Eccles Cake before so I may well have to give these a try. They look very tasty.

Salad is something that often gets thrown out at The Madhouse because it goes slimy before it gets used up, so this recipe from Alison at Dragons & Fairy Dust leapt out at me : Pea & Lettuce Soup. Not something I'd have thought of but it was apparently very nice so I'll have to give it a go.

Alison may be my birthday twin but Galina at Chez Maximka seems to be my kitchen cupboard twin - we seem to have the same sorts of things to use up and often the same ideas. Her Variation of a Korma looks very tasty.

I was a late entrant to my own linky this month but played catch up with another Indian-inspired dish -  pork & apricot curry. This was a family-friendly sweet and mild curry.

I delved into the back of the cupboard and used up this Honey & Soy Marinade In A Bag that had been lurking there taking up space for far too long.

Jane had a good clearout in her sauces and marinades too and came up with some great creations - Asian-style BBQ beef, Jerk chicken and spicy sweet potato wedges.

In honour of Breakfast Week, I made these Golden Syrup Breakfast Bars which were a great way of using up leftover Christmas pudding. You could make them with dried fruit though.

Galina used up a box of molasses sugar, as well as some ginger preserve, in this beautifully sticky Ginger Apricot Loaf. Perfect for a sit down mid afternoon with a cup of tea !

I love the vibrant flavour combinations in Alison's Goat's Cheese, Apple & Onion Tart, a sneaky way of using up cheese, chutney and wrinkly apples !

I made Mustard & Maple Chicken (based on an original recipe called Desperation Chicken !) that was a great way of using up some American yellow hot dog mustard that had been lurking in the fridge.

And finally for this month, an Ethiopian chicken dish called Doro Wat that was perfect for clearing out my exotic ingredients cupboard with all the odds and ends from past Kitchen Trotter boxes.

I think we've all been exceptionally creative this month and come up with some really innovative ways of using up leftovers, or those jars and sachets that have been taking up valuable cupboard space.

Fancy joining in? Have a rummage through your kitchen cupboards, spice rack, freezer or fridge and see if there's anything that needs using up then come and share your creations with us. Or if it's way past its sell-by date, throw it in the bin and come and tell us what you found ! It would be great if you could add my badge and a link to this post for anyone else who wants to get involved.