What to do With Scraps

Leftovers Pie: Cover with flaky crust, problem solved

Managing Editor Mark where I worked directed my attention to an article in the NEW YORK TIMES on how to make leftovers work for dinner, as well as lunch. Photojournalist Andrew Scrivani made me feel so good about trying to make a civilized meal out of scraps that I just had to share with y’all. In this piece he says, “Even the word 'leftovers' carries the negative connotation of the unwanted, the uneaten, the scraps.”

He embraces the idea that those of us who really aren’t foodies, but who cannot stand to see food go to waste, need to embrace the idea of making leftovers out of disastrous food errors. Today, I had a lunch from a completely failed attempt at CHUCK BLADE STEAK.

Chuck blade steak in herbed wine sauce

I had opened up epicurious.com and it directed me to a recipe with terrific reader reviews, but the result was less than edible. So, instead, I stewed the steak and bones in red wine and stock and made YANKEE POT ROAST that Emily and I devoured last night.

While imperfect, it was so much better than I’d imagined it’d be.

“Judith Jones, the editor who famously championed Julia Child’s Mastering the Art of French Cooking said as much in her memoir, ‘The emphasis is always on the dish that will impress your guests, and yesterday’s lamb, even topped with mashed potatoes and called Shepherd’s Pie, is not likely to do that.’” 

Yet so many of the world’s great dishes, like cassoulet and moussaka, were born out of leftovers, notes Scrivani.

So beware of the foodies and ALunchBoxBlog readers, Judith Jones is wrong. I served that Yankee Pot Roast from a failed meal that Scoots and I had tried to consume earlier in the week. The results were terrific. And a two pound steak didn’t end up in the trash. Keep calm, gentle readers, and lunch on!

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