When I was a kid, the refrigerator was always full of little dishes and containers of leftovers. No amount was too small for my mother to squirrel away. She made the best lunches of reheated potatoes with chopped meat and odds and ends of vegetables … my mouth waters as I write this.

That said, I didn’t appreciate Mom’s ability to let so little go to waste. I think I may even have scoffed at all the clutter in the fridge and her uncool thriftiness (teenagers). Fast forward to today, and I wish I were as good as she was at using leftovers for something other than disturbing science experiments in the back of the fridge.

So, let’s take another look at the corn salsa I posted about recently. I made another batch of it on the weekend (this time just grilling the spiced corn cob without cooking it first, resulting in a crisper bite — bliss). It was an appetizer for the party my daughter hosted to celebrate Little Miss A’s fifth birthday (five already!). Unfortunately, the pizza she had ordered arrived early, right after the appetizers were set out and they were largely untouched. But maybe not so unfortunately, because that gave me leftovers to enjoy.

The salsa was a great way to dress up a breakfast of scrambled eggs, adding colour, a pop of texture and Southwest seasonings to start my day with flair. Waste not, and enjoy!

Scrambled Eggs with Corn Salsa

This dish hardly requires a recipe, but here’s how I made it. I had a piece of leftover onion wrapped up in the fridge, so decided to add some of that for extra crunch and flavour (and to use it up — my mother would be proud). For each egg, I used a heaping tablespoon of the corn salsa, but you may prefer a different ratio.

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• small amount of chopped onion (I used about 2 tbsp)
• 3 heaping tbsp leftover corn salsa
• 3 eggs
• dollop of light cream (I used the 10% coffee cream that was handy in the fridge)
• good grinding of black pepper
• couple pinches kosher salt
• optional: chopped cilantro or other herbs (parsley would work well)
• optional: pinch of sea salt

Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a small skillet. Add the chopped onion and stir a couple of times. When the onion is turning translucent, add the salsa and stir just to warm it through (not to cook it).

Whisk the eggs, cream and pepper with a fork and add to the pan. Let the bottom set a bit, then break up the eggs with a spatula and gently turn until the eggs are cooked to your liking. Sprinkle on the salt near the end of the cooking time.

Turn the eggs out onto your plate and garnish with the cilantro (or other herbs) if using. If you’d like a little more salt, use a pinch of sea salt to finish.