05/05/2026
Do you remember what, who, and where sparked your love of what you do or what's important to you?
I love cooking, and what it generates. For this, I have my parents to thank. For this, a puttanesca made primarily of ingredients that were this close to being composted or chucked, shouts to my father.
Way back in the day, when my mother was away and my brother either asleep or with friends, Sunday evening dinnertime came. And there was nothing new on the counter or in the fridge.
So, my dad retrieved unfinished roast chicken, remnant pineapple slices, half a can of mandarin oranges, and either rice or noodles from another meal.
And he proceeded to make something he aptly named Chicken á la Harvie. It was awesome. And my love of making sense of and new from leftovers began.
While, on Çinco de Mayo, I could have taken the Italian tuna, an enormous onion, a head of garlic who ought to have been roasted, two seriously ripe yellow tomatoes, an orange and a yellow pepper softer than cotton socks and made something with Calabrian chile, chile de arbol, and rice/tortillas/eggs, I chose to use the aforementioned whippersnappers, legit linguine (read: bronze cut, slow dried), passata, herbs, frighteningly lovely pecorino romano, S&P, and freshly grated nutmeg to make this.
Because, leftovers can be converted and elevated with love.
Happy Tuesday from me at Chez Harvé. I hope you are getting amongst something you love. Intentionally.
