Louisville celebrity chef Damaris Phillips re-imagines Christmas leftovers

Louisville native and winner of Food Network Star Damaris Phillips is not a fan of leftovers.

"I like to eat something once and then transform it into something else," said the host of "Southern at Heart" and co-host of "The Bobby and Damaris Show."

Since the holidays, with their celebrations, parties and family meals, tend to generate a lot of uneaten food, Phillips teamed with Keebler and Townhouse Crackers to create a series of fun and simple recipes for your holiday food surplus.

Working with a cracker company is a natural fit for this chef, who says crackers are a staple in her pantry, like milk, eggs, butter, mustard and mayonnaise.

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"Crackers, with all their different flavors, are one of the most versatile carbohydrates —you can put them in the food processor to make breadcrumbs or a pie crust or crack them and use as a topping," Phillips said. "I love how I can whip up a meat, cheese and cracker platter when guests drop by but I can also create a dessert out of them."

When it comes to creative leftovers, it's all about taking a small amount of an uneaten food and adding to it to create something new.

Phillips uses a single piece of leftover apple pie as an example.

"I would make it into a parfait by breaking the pie up into pieces and adding broken crackers for some crunch," Phillips said. Then "I would serve it with some delicious Greek yogurt."

Reimagined as a parfait, that one piece of pie now feeds four.

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Before the holiday leftovers spoil in your fridge, check out the creative recipes Phillips created for Keebler and Carr's at pinterest.com/keebler and pinterest.com/carrscrackers. You'll find recipes for extra ham, turkey, casserole, pie and more.

Turkey Taco Casserole

Serves 8

• 1 box Club Original crackers

• 2 14-oz. cans of pinto beans, drained

• 2 1/2 cups turkey, diced

• 1 1-oz. pack of taco seasoning

• 1 1/2 cups roasted salsa

• 8-oz. sour cream

• 1 can cream of corn soup

• 8-oz. pepper jack cheese, grated (about 2 1/2 cups)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Line the bottom of a 9-by-13 inch baking dish with one layer of crackers.

In a large bowl, combine the beans, turkey, and taco seasoning. Cover crackers with the mixture.

Spoon the salsa onto the bean-turkey mixture evenly.

In another bowl, combine sour cream and soup. Dollop onto the salsa.

Sprinkle on half of the cheese and cover with the remaining crackers to create a top crust.

Cover with remaining cheese.

Back until warmed through and cheese melted and golden bubble, about 25-30 minutes.

Pie & Banana Parfaits

Yields 6 parfaits (1 serving = 1 parfait)

• 18 Club Original Crackers, crushed

• 3/4 cups rolled oats, toasted

• 3 cups honey Greek yogurt

• 1 1/2 pieces pumpkin or apple pie, chopped and mixed (about 1 1/2 cups)

• 3 large bananas, sliced and divided

In a small bowl, mix crushed crackers and toasted oats. Set aside.

To layer parfaits, scoop 1/2 cup yogurt into a 16-ounce mason jar.

Next, add 2 tablespoons of pie mixture

Then add a quarter of one-slice of banana.

Top with 3 tablespoons of cracker and oat mixture.

Repeat steps 1-5.

Reach Kirby Adams: 502-582-4336; kadams@courier-journal.com; Twitter: @kirbylouisville.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Louisville celebrity chef Damaris Phillips re-imagines Christmas leftovers