It's time for the end of the year condiment clean-out. Yes, I know they probably last indefinitely...but should they? My refrigerator is overflowing with all the fun things I found in the supermarket over the past year or so, wasn't sure I'd ever see again, and immediately snatched up. Now I've got opened cans of horseradish sauce, three kinds of mustard, jalapeños and a nearly-full container of anchovies in oil languishing on the shelves.
Time for some creativity.
Dinner tonight, half a boneless ham that's been pulled from the freezer, is bathed in a sauce stolen from my mother: dark mustard, honey, brown sugar (or molasses), and horseradish. I added the dregs of a container of hot pepper jelly and dumped most of the sauce over the ham and tossed it in the oven. I'll heat the remainder and serve it alongside if we want extra sauce. Damage? Only one jar fully emptied, but the other two are now solidly on their way to retirement. A couple roast beef sandwiches should do the trick...
I made a batch of cornbread to go with the dinner and after pouring half into a cake pan for dinner, added jalapeños and chunks of cheap-o Brie to the rest, which plunked into muffin tins. We'll be having those for breakfast tomorrow with fried eggs. Damage? I get to sleep in later AND the jalapeños are all gone. Score!
At dinner the other night, I succumbed to the appeal of fried zucchini flowers at an Italian restaurant. Stuffed with a single anchovy and mozzarella, they were surprisingly good. Now I am dreaming ways of using up the anchovies (other than in anchovy butter, which is scheduled to appear on steaks in the near future). I'm thinking stuffed zucchini, perhaps, with lots of cheese, a touch of rice and a couple of the little hairy fishies...
I don't know if anyone actually reads this blog, but if you do and have ideas for anchovies, or anything else that uses up the bottles that clog the refrigerator shelves, please share!
