ncbill
Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
I do a few things:
Say we have LOTS of leftover ham. Well, I have a few recipes for ham, but that won't have enough variety. I'll google 'leftover ham recipes.' I look at the images, select one new thing (ham/veggie strata), then read a half dozen recipes for ham strata. Look for the similarities and make it up from there. For example, most of the strata recipes use half-and-half. I have heavy cream on hand, so I'll substitute.
I usually make a menu early in the week, and plan dinner depending on our activities.
Also, at the grocery store, I'll often see a bargain that I want to incorporate into the menu. Say bell peppers. I'll revise my plan on the fly: Monday fried rice, Tuesday stuffed peppers, Wednesday carnitas, etc. Sometimes I even put the new dinner idea into my phone.
Finally, I keep some emergency meals (frozen dinners, egg salad) on hand in case I really screw up.
Used to buy the 'ends' from Honeybaked Ham before everyone & their brother caught on.
Home-made ham salad = bliss...