My neighbor had a catered party on Thursday. As with most catered affairs, there were plenty of leftovers. I know because our neighbor asked my wife and me if we’d would put any of it to good use. Umm…Yes. (I don’t think she knows about this blog.)
For us, it was a total jackpot. Sort of like being a freegan, only without the effort or the food safety fears. We brought hors d’oeuvres to our friends’ house on Friday and basically enjoyed the food throughout the weekend.
There were chicken and beef skewers, stuffed mushrooms, hummus and a mystery appetizer that was pretty tasty. The amount of food illustrated just how much extra food catering companies bring to an event, deathly afraid of running out of anything. Anecdotally, I’ve heard that they plan for 3 to 10 percent extra.
It also drove home the idea that the caterers probably couldn’t have donated the food to a soup kitchen or food pantry. Unless the items had been served by catering staff, it wouldn’t be acceptable from a food safety standpoint.
But that doesn’t necessarily mean catering clients have to toss this excess. Customers can repurpose the food. Or give the goods to their neighbors, who’ll probably enjoy it.
Anyway, after a busy weekend of eating, only this pimiento cheese loaf remains. We’ve been nibbling on it for a few days and it seems like we’ve barely made a dent. That’s it in the photo, after some significant eating.
Because it’s basically flavored cream cheese, you can’t eat too much of it straight. And one can only eat so many crackers with spread. So I’m throwing it out to you guys–what could we make with this pile o’ pimento? How can we repurpose it?
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