What's for Dinner Vol 1. Part 2: Leftovers

With a big plate of savoury mince leftover from last night I needed to think of what to do with it.

All wet dishes (casseroles, curries etc) taste so much better the day after, so I wanted to do something interesting, and didn't want to just heat it up on toast.

Inspired by a mix of enchilada and an old Eastern European recipe my uncle used to make, I stopped into the shop on the way home and picked up some cabbage, soured cream and grated cheese.

So, basically the theory was going to be using the mince as a stuffing in cabbage leaves, (could easily be done in pasta sheets a la canelloni or in tortillas a la enchiladas) topped with tomatoes and cheese and served with guac and soured cream.

After preheating the oven, I pealed some of the soft leaves of a savoy cabbage and began to create cigars using the mince as a filling.

I realised at this point, canned tomatoes or a pasta sauce would have been perfect, but my favourite part of cooking is thinking outside the box, so I decided to just cut up some of my beautifully ripe mixed tomatoes from M&S, and a hearty splash of Tobasco.

I love these colours.

Then voila, bung him in the oven with a couple of handfuls of cheese. I used a mix of cheddar and mozzarella. 

  Twenty five minutes later (and just in time for Come Dine With Me)...

So I plated up, with a side of leftover guac from last night and a generous dollop of soured cream.

I really can't explain how tasty this was. It was a beautiful mix of flavours with the meaty savoury mince whose flavours had intensified several times over in just one night. The cooling cream and guac against the heat of the chili and tobasco and the stewed veg and wonderul flavours of the roasted tomatoes.

I'm trying to really focus on being gluten free at the moment, and I'm really excited with the creations I'm coming up with.