Pile Your Holiday Leftovers On Nachos

After a Christmas celebration, you’re often left with piles of leftovers that need eating ASAP. The solution, my friends, is nachos.

Holiday nachos solve a wide variety of late-stage leftovers problems. The textural contrast you get from crunchy chips suddenly makes those soft, squishy foods seem a lot more exciting—especially if you’ve been eating them for a couple days straight.

Since nachos work best with moderate amounts of toppings, you can finally take care of the random scraps left behind from the other leftovers concoctions you’ve been making. But most importantly, they’re a delicious treat.

All you need to turn even the saddest remnants of a holiday feast into a delicious treat is a bag of chips—any variety and any flavour will do—and a can of evaporated milk for cheese sauce. If you accidentally bought evaporated instead of condensed milk for pie this year, now is your moment to shine. If not, pick some up on the way home.

Heat your oven to 220 degrees Celsius and spread a lot of chips in a sheet pan or cast iron skillet. Then, make the cheese sauce: Crumble or shred 100-170g of cheese and toss with 2 teaspoons of cornstarch in a medium saucepan.

Stir in half a can of evaporated milk and bring to a boil over medium heat while stirring constantly. If the sauce looks too thick, thin it out with extra milk. Dollop some of the cheese sauce over the chips, then cover them with whatever’s taking up space in your fridge, including but not limited to:

• Shredded meats, mixed with gravy if you like

• More gravy

• Crumbled stuffing

• Chopped roasted vegetables

• Dollops of mashed potatoes

• Spoonfuls of casserole

• Salads made from hearty greens, like kale or cabbage

Once you’ve constructed a beautiful leftovers pile, dollop the rest of the cheese sauce over top and bake until the top is golden brown and the sauce is bubbling, about 10-15 minutes. Top with leftover fresh herbs (if you have them) and something pickled or acidic—like cranberry sauce. Those leftovers will be gone before you know it.