Leftovers for the Win!
Making the best of things as they are
It was quite a week. Two of them actually. Back to back weeks teaching 15 classes and weaving in all sorts of extra family stuff that included an urgent care visit, a birthday, and hosting a team dinner for my youngest daughter’s high school soccer team. Today begins a 3 day stretch of nothing on the calendar. Almost hard to wrap my head around.
But let’s go back to that team dinner. While this is not a plug for them, the catering spread from Qdoba was quite spectacular. I picked it up and we did our own setup but the service was spot on, the food was great and everyone enjoyed it.
As players departed, we were left with … well … leftovers. Not a massive amount, but certainly enough the overwhelmed the limited refrigeration we have in our temporary housing (our home renovation is going into the home stretch .. looking forward to being back HOME!). Leftovers. We’re not strangers to leftovers. I cook nearly every day and have for years. The large family gatherings have trimmed way down and we’re still mastering tapering down the amount of food to prepare. In my defense, though I prepare something every night, the head count at the supper table is hardly a fixed number and I continue to err on the side of plenty to go around.
Leftovers pro tip …. I took all the leftovers (beef, chicken, salsa, salsa verde, black beans, pinto beans, pico de gallo) and chucked them into pot. Added a single can of mild Rotel, a can of tomato paste, and about a cup of beef broth and just let it simmer for an hour or so. Pretty minimal effort turned out to be the best chili I’ve had in years. Leftovers cleared. Refrigeration space restored.
Leftovers for the win!