Over Christmas, our kitchens go into hyperdrive. Out come the oven mitts, turkey baster and probe. Potatoes are peeled en masse. Supermarkets open late so we can buy even more food. And our homes fill with aromatic wafts of deliciousness.

At the same time, according to Love Food Hate Waste, we waste the equivalent of more than 4m Christmas meals, including 17.2m sprouts, almost 12m carrots, untold numbers of potatoes and somewhere in the region of 7.4m mince pies. It’s a wonder to think who is wasting all this food, but when you break it down by our population of 66 million, that’s only a small amount per person (a quarter of a sprout each, say), but this shows the impact of our collective actions, multiplying our modest waste into a food waste catastrophe.

So keep your waste down by calculating the quantities you need per head: say, 125g potatoes, 80g of each vegetable and, if you eat turkey, about 250g.

Boxing Day is my favourite meal of the holiday. The bulk of the work is done and the leftovers can be reinvented into a tasty brunch or sandwich. I especially love refried sprouts with nuts and za’atar, and this frittata made with leftover roast veg.

Play Video 3:16 Thomasina Miers, Tamal Ray and Tom Hunt’s Christmas dinner - video

Leftover roast veg frittata

Frittata is a versatile dish that is quick and easy to make. It’s delicious made with leftover roast potatoes, carrots, squash, sprouts or any cooked vegetables, and is a delicious way to convert waste into taste.

Prep 5 min

Cook 10 min

Serves 4

1 good glug light olive oil

1 large onion, peeled and finely sliced

Up to 500g leftover roast potatoes, carrots, parsnips, squash, etc, roughly chopped into 3-5cm dice

Salt and black pepper

3 eggs, lightly beaten and seasoned

3 sprigs flat-leaf parsley, stalks finely chopped, leaves roughly chopped

Heat a glug of light olive oil in a frying pan over a medium heat. Slowly saute the onion until soft caramelised and brown, then add the leftover vegetables and season well.

Distribute the vegetables evenly around the pan then pour in the eggs. Turn the heat right down low and cook until the egg is almost perfectly set, but still a little soft. Serve topped with chopped flat-leaf parsley.