Your mornings may go more smoothly than mine, but in order to get the kids out the door on time I need to have a bunch of lunch staples on hand. And sometimes those supplies come right from last night’s dinner. Hint: Make it even easier on yourself by packing up these lunches as you clean up dinner, while everything’s still out.

1. Homemade Pizza: Some schools balk when you send kids with takeout pizza, but the fresh stuff should be fine. We love ham and pineapple, as well as good ol’ cheese. But Ree Drummond’s 5-star Pepperoni Pizza and Four-Cheese Pizza (pictured above) look so good, we’ll venture out this week.

2. Rolls: Any time we serve rolls or crusty bread, I always use the extras for sandwiches the next day. We have small kids and the size is perfect. If yours are bigger, pack two of these mini sandwiches. (Feeling industrious? Bobby Flay has 164 [and counting] perfect reviews for his Parker House Rolls.)

3. Any Soup, Stew or Pasta: Almost any leftover can go into sliced-up store-bought pie crust or puff pastry and become tiny pot pies (pictured above), perfect for serving at lunchtime at room temp.

4. Quesadillas: I like to use whole-wheat tortillas stuffed with a mix of cheese, meat and a few veggies too, like  these with beef. Add shredded carrots to cheddar cheese or slide a couple of pieces of baby spinach in. I tell the kids to look for their piece of spinach and it becomes a bit of a game, rather than something to fret about.

5. Roast Chicken: Just because this was my favorite sandwich growing up as a kid. Mayo + leftover roast chicken with a sprinkle of salt and pepper = heaven on bread.

Charity Curley Mathews blogs at Foodlets.com: Mini Foodies in the Making…Maybe.