The comeback

Wherein a creative embrace of leftovers turns into something truly special.

Last Friday, I hoped to spur a discussion about weeknight meals—the old reliable recipes that we can put together quickly and without too much thought but that keep us fed in between the big weekend meals. I was very pleased with the results; dozens of you commented and shared your recipes, and it gave me a lot of great ideas for shaking up my weeknight stable.

One comment, though, from longtime Friend of the Letter Thomas H., made a great point about weeknight meal planning:

The best weekday workhorse is not something you cook on a weekday night. Sunday gravy is what East Coast Italians call their big pot of "sauce" (It's not sauce if you simmer meat in it, don't make that mistake around a nonna with a shoe she can grab at the ready). It is time intensive, yes, but you can make enough of it to last you for two or three more meals after the first serving. One day of intensive labor provides for several weekdays where you only have time to defrost and boil. 

Now, I’m not making Sunday …