Never say, "oops." Always say, "Ah, interesting."

In looking for a quote for the title of this post I found myself in a sea of delightful comments regarding mistakes.  This is of great appeal to me since I spend a good amount of time fixing mistakes... my mistakes.  My family says that one of my great strengths in the kitchen is the ability to save my dishes from disaster.  I am not particularly proud of this reputation but, at times, it has it's rewards.  
Case in Point:  Thursday, we made beef dishes - Filet, Chateaubriand, Short ribs, New York steak, and Braised Short Ribs of Beef.  I was responsible for the Roqueford Demi-Glace, which was to accompany the Filet.  I needed to make the Demi-Glace first, but we had no Espanole (remember the Mother Sauce.) The strategy was to do a shortened version of that 2 hour sauce. Then add more veal stock and reduce to a demi-glace. The tomato paste was my downfall.  In trying to incorporate the 2 recipes together I didn't pay attention to volumes and ended up with too much of that darned red paste, which made a VERY red sauce. Big Mistake!  So, I called the Chef over and he said (don't forget the Parisienne accent), "It is too red; there is too much tomato paste.  You must start again." WHAT?  I rarely start again.  So, I said, "How about I take 3/4 of this sauce and save it and add beef stock to the remaining 1/4, then reduce it for the demi-glace."  He liked it and said, "Yes, and we can use this tomato sauce for the short ribs."  "Exactly what I was thinking!", said I.  In my humble opinion it was a lovely addition to the Braised Short Ribs. 
I don't know if the chef thinks I am hopeless or inventive... I am what I am.  Except when I am trying to be a better version of myself. :-]