Leftovers! And the Spiciest, Creamiest Pasta Ever...

Oh.... Aren't you lucky? You get to see a couple great meals all in one post!

A couple nights ago I decided to clear the fridge of the leftovers, the half eaten veggies, little bits of things that needed a purpose. "Leftovers for dinner" can be such an ominous pronouncement. But leftovers at my house are rather upscale.

A half a cabbage, leftover corned beef, a few potatoes, a small package of tomatoes, half a cucumber, and a couple lemons that were beginning to toughen were the inspiration for this lovely dinner.

Of course I set the table as I normally do, cloth napkins, wine glasses, salad forks and all that.

This is the picture of the roasted cabbage before I roasted it.

Cut up half a cabbage, making sure to get rid of the core.

Cut or slice up carrots, any shape you want, though the thinner the better, so they will roast more quickly.

A little bit of onion is good, too.

Over the top of the veggies that you've placed in a baking pan, trickle olive oil, salt, pepper, maybe a little ground chili pepper, and freshly squeezed lemon juice.

Roast until tender.

Tomato, cucumber, and onion salad.

Dice tomatoes. I kept all the seeds and juices, although you don't need to.

Dice cucumbers. Again, I kept the seeds, but you don't have to. I didn't peel them either.

Dice a little bit of onion. I think I used a quarter of an onion.

Toss them all together, and mix in some salt, pepper, and lemon juice. Yum!

Upscale corned beef hash - again, before I baked it.

Dice up leftover corned beef, mix up with a bunch of chunks of red potatoes, a little bit of the broth from the corned beef, then bake. Less fat than the fried version.

Last night I made a great spaghetti sauce. It's spicy and creamy and totally satisfying! The picture is before I added the sour cream, but you can clearly see the thick consistency of the sauce.

One package of spicy pork sausage

Half a package of pepperoni (I used the little tiny ones, but you could use regular ones, or just cut 'em up)

One bell pepper

One onion

One or two carrots

Two Roma tomatoes

Some Vodka (or wine if you prefer. I like the vodka in this case)

Two cans of tomato sauce

Bloody Mary mix, maybe 3/4 c or so

Seasonings as desired

Half a regular container of sour cream

Cook the meats in the pot, then toss in the diced veggies. Deglaze the pot with some vodka. Once it's all sort of melting together and tender, add in the tomato sauce, Bloody Mary mix, and seasonings. Simmer for a while, then stir in the sour cream. This is a spicy and creamy sauce to pour over any pasta you like.

A note - I don't make a singular kind of pasta. I take several packages of different kinds of pasta and mix them together. It's more fun, and if you have colored pasta, it makes for a brighter dish.

Thank you for checking in. I like showing people the possibilities when it comes to our daily meals. Share with me your own favorite meals! Your blogs! Your photos! I'd love to see and be inspired by them.