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Christmastime is here! And we Filipinos know that one of the best ways to celebrate this holiday is by throwing a feast.

Aside from our #OOTD and gifts, we bet you've given much thought to what you will include in your Christmas spread. After all, even when there's no occasion, we generally just love to eat!

It's crazy how food overflows on Christmas day, and it's crazier to think of ways on how to manage the leftovers after the merry-making and festivities.

You may find so much food left from the partying but don't consider throwing them away! Be economical, get creative, and turn your Noche Buena leftovers into new sumptuous dishes.

Christmas ham to pasta ham

Without a doubt, the Christmas ham is the star of the Noche Buena! And if you've cooked this in excess, you can turn to Chef Winston Luna's pasta ham recipe which you can complete in under 10 minutes.

To prepare this meal, cook your pasta, and make your ham the main ingredient of your toppings. Cut your ham slices into cubes, cook them in olive oil, and season with salt and pepper. You'd also need tomatoes, tomato paste, mushrooms, olives, parmesan cheese, and Italian herbs.

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Chef Winston also suggests using your leftover ham into artisan ham ice cream in the same episode of Pinas Sarap.

Pork lechon to crispy lechon express

Aside from the Christmas ham, we love serving lechon for a grandiose holiday celebration. This usually comes in bigger servings so we can't avoid having leftovers. We're so used to this happening that we've prepared ourselves to cooking and eating lechon paksiw for the next couple of days. But if you'd like to try a different recipe, you may consider recreating Jiji Calderon's crispy lechon express.

The steps to preparing this dish are by deep-frying the leftover lechon and whipping up the traditional Bicol Express sauce. To further level up this meal, consider using coconut milk, ginger, bell pepper, fish sauce, basil leaves, sigarilyas or winged beans, and chili in your ingredients.

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In the same episode of Pinas Sarap, Chef Manny de Leon introduces how you can transform your lechon leftover into lechon adobo sa alamang.

Fried chicken to chunky chicken soup

Fried chicken is also a go-to dish on holidays, especially for your kids. And as long as you have clean pieces left after the party, you can turn them into an easy yet hearty breakfast meal like Chef Anton Amoncio's chunky chicken soup.

Chef Anton, together with Kapuso comedian Boobay, demonstrates the simple steps to preparing this dish in a special webisode from GMANetwork.com. This tummy-warming soup is perfect for a lazy Christmas morning as it includes common ingredients such as your leftover chicken, bread, thinly-sliced ham, heavy cream, chicken stock, minced onion and garlic, carrots, celery, salt, pepper, and parsley.

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Chef Anton and Boobay also give tips on how to prepare other holiday recipes such as chocolate soda wings, tomato basil angel hair pasta, and buko pandan cheesecake.

Chicken lechon to chicken spread

Chicken lechon is yet another staple in the Filipino menu. And if you want to create a lighter dish, Judy Ann Santos shares her secret to making your leftover chicken lechon into a mouthwatering chicken spread.

You can easily recreate Judy Ann's chicken spread with the roughly chopped chicken meat and skin and available ingredients in your pantry that includes mayonnaise, celery, onions, pepper, and paprika. Toast your bread to prepare your sandwich, and you may also add apples, bacon, jalapeno, lettuce, avocado, and cheese; depending on your preference and appetite.

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Aside from her chicken spread, Judy Ann also shares her recipe for chicken adobo flakes and chicken soup as other alternatives for your leftover chicken lechon.

Reduce your food waste at home and use your imagination to turn your leftovers into new, appetizing meals. You just need to tap on your practicality and ingenuity to fill your tummy.

Happy holidays and happy eating, Kapuso!