When there's still a little left in the jar...
The other week I had some leftover cooked broccoli in the fridge, plus a jar of mostly just the olive oil from a jar of Meredith Dairy marinated cheese (see here — this is not sponsored, I just really love their cheese, but it’s not cheap so I always want to make sure I use every last bit). I was craving pasta so I blended the cooked broccoli together with everything in the cheese jar (I even rinsed it out with some boiling water to GET EVERY LAST BIT). I seasoned the mixture with lots of salt. I did this with my immersion blender right in the container I had the broccoli in because I’m always about cleaning up as little as possible. I put this mixture on a pound of cooked pasta. I topped it with a bit more cooked broccoli, plus plenty of grated pecorino. It was so good and totally hit the spot. It also stretched the end of something (the oil from the marinated cheese) into something totally new. If you know me at all, you know I live for this kind-of moment. I was so excited about it that I made an Instagram reel about it (this is my 21st century way to show my excitement).
Using up the jar of oil from the cheese got me thinking about other ways I use up the little bits of things left in the jars and bottles of stuff like mustard, maple syrup, and ketchup. The things that kind-of stick to the sides of their vessels so even when nothing can be squeezed or poured out, there’s STILL MORE TO BE HAD. I made you a cute chart with some of my go-to moves to get everything I possibly can out of all of my favorite condiments. Here you go!
For paid subscribers with commenting privileges, let me know if there are ways you use up this and that in your kitchen. I love these little kitchen moments so much and I bet everyone else in this sweet community does, too.
Last weekend I didn’t teach because I competed in my first ever powerlifting competition (see here) which was SO MUCH FUN and I even placed first in my weight class(!!)
I will write about this whole other part of life at some point, but in the meantime I just want to say if you’ve ever felt disempowered in your body, lifting heavy things safely is a great way to feel empowered. Casey Johnston’s work is a great place to start (especially LIFTOFF). I also LOVED Corinne Fay’s guest post on Burnt Toast last week about her lifting journey (mass moves mass, baby!) and two of my favorite lifters I follow on IG are Tamara Walcott and Nadia Moumine (@thatqueerpowerlifter).
I will be resuming my normal Sunday afternoon class this weekend and it’s going to be a GREAT ONE.
A Kinda Retro Dinner! We’re going to make French 75 cocktails, spinach artichoke dip chicken that we’ll serve on baked potatoes, plus an incredibly beautiful and easy pineapple upside down cake.
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I look forward to writing to you every week. Thanks for being here! xo, Julia
My favorite bonus condiment is the oil in a jar of sun dried tomatoes. Add to cream for a pasta sauce, spoon by itself over eggs, add lemon juice or vinegar for a solid veggie dressing-the possibilities!
Always amazing suggestions! A nearly empty jar of jam is also a beautiful thing - swirl hot water to get all the bits and use that jammy water to cook oatmeal.