HALLIE EPHRON: When my husband was in graduate school, he used to make something he called STAPLE STEW which involved throwing together whatever he could find kicking around in the kitchen.
Canned tomatoes might get mixed with frozen corn, elbow macaroni, and tuna. It wasn't gourmet but it fed the beast, cost almost nothing, and you didn't have to put on your snowboots to get the ingredients.
When the last thing I feel like is getting in my car and driving to the supermarket (it's 30 degrees out now and getting colder and the world is icing up...) Jerry's Staple Stew springs to mind.
When I'm reluctant to leave the house, I open the refrigerator and kitchen cabinets and find the makings for SOMETHING FROM NOTHING SOUP: a wintery brew of onions, carrots, potatoes, and whatever other vegetable that's at the moment expiring in the fridge or freezer, simmered in soup broth (chicken or beef or vegetable) until the veggies are soft and then zuzhed with an immersion blender... creatively seasoned and topped with something creamy and sprinkled with something herbal.
Serve with bread (thawed from the fridge) and voila, DINNER! With leftovers!
Here's last night's SOMETHING FROM NOTHING SOUP. I'm having leftovers for lunch.
1. Start w basics – Sautee in olive oil in a roomy saucepan: chopped carrot, celery, and onion (and garlic if you like).
2. Add chopped potatoes
3. Cover with soup stock to cover (I use "Better than Boullion" but use canned broth or bouillion cubes, whatever, just pay attention to the amount of salt is in the broth) and simmer til nearly tender.
4. Add: Pick a vegetable (frozen? canned? Perhaps nearing extinction in the fridge)… chopped up broccoli, cauliflower, orange squash, corn, mushrooms…
I added very old but not dead yet frozen corn and some similarly on-their-last-legs frozen peas.
5. Cook til tender and then beat til smooth with an immersion blender.
6. TASTE and add salt and pepper if needed and some other seasoning(s) that suit your fancy. (Hoisin, soy, vinegar, lemon, siracha, chili crisp ...) I added SMOKED PAPRIKA, salt, pepper.
7. Top servings with something creamy. A swirl of heavy cream? A dollop of sour cream or yogurt? Crumbled feta cheese? Blue cheese? Shredded cheddar?
8. For an extra touch, TOP with something green and herb-y. Chopped parsley, scallions, cilantro, chives, basil... whatever you happen to have if you think it will work. Last night I had none of the above
Do you have a favorite dish that you can whip up from what's in the kitchen?
