Leftovers

The goat cheese wasn’t technically left over so much as - a thing in my fridge. But come on, goat cheese and beets is a no brainer.

For some people leftovers is this terrible word, being stuck eating what was once a lovely meal - except this time is been sitting in the fridge for a couple of days.

I see them as a challenge. How can I take what remains of dinner from Sunday and make it something delicious on Tuesday night.

So tonight when I looked in the fridge and saw the remnants of Saturday’s roast chicken and veggies and a half head of red lettuce just starting to wilt - I knew what I needed to do.

So I started by I chopped up the remaining chicken and warming it through in a pan, then I did the same the root vegetables I had roasted for Saturday’s Linner . While that was happening I chopped the lettuce and went back to the fridge for some mustard.

I found the a jar of Kozlik’s Mustard that was nearly empty, the perfect companion for my leftovers dinner - a quick mustard vinaigrette mixed right in the jar

Full disclosure, I have a small obsession with mustard. Especially Kozlik’s Mustard. They have a stand inside the St Lawrence Market and all they do is make really really good mustard (and some delightful mustard cheese puff pastry sticks that are ridiculous in their deliciousness!).

Every time I go to the market I stop by and dip 1 (or lets be honest 5) tiny pretzel sticks into the samples to pick out a new mustard. The Bordeaux is my new favourite, it’s got white wine, garlic, and tarragon, and just enough heat. So dreamy.

So you can bet that I am going to get every last drop out of the jar. So I eyeballed some rice wine vinegar, which is my favourite for a mustard vinaigrette because it’s tart but mild and doesn’t overpower the flavour of the mustard, and then a healthy glug of olive oil. Put the lid back on and shook it up. Tasting it I realized it needed a little more oil so I added it, shook again , and voila 30 second emulsification!

I poured what I needed onto the salad

I plated tossed it together, plated it up, poured a giant glass of Chianti - because let’s be honest it’s been a day.

So in less than 15 minutes, I used up the leftovers in my fridge my and got a super satisfying dinner - that didn’t feel like a compromise at all.

P.S. after three bites I looked up and saw some pistachios on the counter. Kicking myself for not realizing it sooner I added a small handful. So good. They added a little crunch and a lovely buttery, nutty flavour.