Havana Goulash?

Sounds strange, no?

Well... the whole thing got started with mint. I still get a weekly box of local vegetation from Greenling, and one of the things this last week was mint. The first thing I did was make minted simple syrup, in preparation for this weekend's Kentucky Derby. I need to be able to make easy Mint Juleps. But that only used half the mint. So... I decided to finally try the super-popular mojito. But the weather and menu were against me. Rain and clouds and pot roast (which was INCREDIBLE, sorry, I didn't even bother to take a picture) just don't go with mojitos.

Tonight was finally right. The sun was shining, the mojito was tasty, and I devised a way to throw a Cuban twist on dinner. I used some leftover roast (that I stuck in the fridge in all the leftover brothy goodness, which gelled... om nom nom) and basically made a quickie Ropa Vieja. Since we had rice last night, I decided to have pasta tonight (kids don't like food in their food, so goulash is right out, they'll stick with plain pasta, thanks.) I know it has a decidedly Rachel Ray flair... not very authentic... but it was plate-licking good.

And, no, I'm not kidding. I licked.

What created this fabulousity?

1/2 onion, sliced
1 jalapeno, sliced
1 tablespoon lard/bacon fat/whatever
However much leftover roast beast for two
about a cup of leftover roast juicy goodness
about a cup of pureed tomato
1 dried, smoky chipotle pepper
1/2 tsp oregano
salt, to taste
1/2 cup fresh peas

Cook onion and jalepeno in fat until soft, add meat, juicy goodness, and tomato puree. Stir. Plop the pepper in a brothy part of the pan, sprinkle on oregano and salt, and simmer until the pasta is done. When there's just a few minutes left, stir in the peas, slap a lid on it, and turn off the heat. Remove the chipotle (unless it's somehow soft enough to mash up and stir in, although taste first... it adds a LOT of flavor!) Put on pasta.

Don't forget to lick your plate!