Beauty on the Backroads

Stories of grace for life's unexpected turns

cooking

Scraps {and the stuff I want to toss}

We’ve been weekly regulars at the farmers market this year. Every Tuesday one or the both of us and sometimes the kids wander the aisles taking in the sights of our county’s bounty.

My husband has done the majority of our fresh vegetable shopping over these months, and it was always a surprise what he came home with. Sometimes, it was ingredients we needed for a specific recipe and other times it was whatever sounded interesting to him at the moment.

As we chopped and prepared and cooked these ingredients familiar and unfamiliar, we did something else. We saved the scraps. Instead of the tossing out the stems and ends of the vegetables, we tossed them in a sealed bag to freeze for later. Chefs in their cookbooks promised that these scraps could be used later, to make a rich and flavorful broth.

I waited until soup season arrived before I tested them on their promise.

Gathered before me on the counter were bags of scraps we had saved for months. Mushroom stems. Fennel stalks. Broccoli ends. Cabbage leaves.  All of this was supposed to make something delicious? I had my doubts.

Webvilla by Unsplash

Webvilla by Unsplash

But I followed a recipe, more or less, and sautéed the scraps in a bit of butter and added water and let the whole thing simmer on the stovetop for hours. Sometimes my favorite recipes are the ones where I can put in a little effort up front and then walk away.

It wasn’t long before the house began to fill with a pleasing aroma. I could identify some of the individual smells, the fennel, for instance. I am not a fan of licorice, but fennel has a sort of licorice fragrance that is appealing and appetizing.

When the time was up, I strained the vegetables and sure enough, I had a rich, dark vegetable broth. I couldn’t wait to make soup.

As I discarded the vegetables, I thought about how I could have thrown them away months ago. But then I would have missed out on something tasty.

And I wondered if there are other kinds of scraps in my life that I’m quickly discarding, thinking they are of no use, and maybe they just haven’t had their potential realized yet.

Some days I feel like those seemingly useless scrap ends of vegetables. Nobody looks at the ends when they’re choosing a robust green head of broccoli. It takes an experienced cook to consider the value of the stuff the rest of us would throw away. Can I also trust someone with more life experience that the stuff I want to throw away from my life might have some later value?

The homemade vegetable stock was a culinary treasure I didn’t know I was missing.

Could it be that with a little time, a little preparation, a little seasoning, the same could be said of the scraps of life?

Play ‘Symon says’ for dinner: Review of 5 in 5 For Every Season by Chef Michael Symon

My husband has a teensy-weensy bromance with Chef Michael Symon. We’ve eaten at B Spot Burgers. We own his Carnivore cookbook. He’s our most-watched Iron Chef. And he’s probably our second-favorite Food Network personality. (Alton Brown takes the top spot.)

And now we have a new reason to love his work.

5in55 in 5 For Every Season is the perfect cookbook for busy families who also like to eat–and cook–good food that doesn’t come from a box. No judgment, though, because we do that sometimes too. (Disclaimer: I received a free copy of the book through the Blogging for Books program in exchange for my review.)

So far we’ve tried three recipes from the book, all in one week. Each was low-prep and full of flavor, and after we had the ingredients in hand came together quickly. Dinner prep for us can be tricky between my husband’s work schedule and the kids coming home from school. Sometimes we’re scrambling to throw something together at 6 o’clock so we can eat before the kids have to go to bed. These three recipes were lifesavers, and like I said, so tasty you would not know how little work went into them.

The concept behind the book is this:

“You can get a from-scratch meal on the table for you, your family, and your friends in very little time, for not a lot of money, and without a lot of fuss.” (6)

I could hardly believe it was true. And what’s neat about this book, as opposed to his 5 in 5 cookbook, is that it’s divided into seasons, so you can cook with ingredients in season. I love this idea.

First, we tried spaghetti puttanesca from the fall section. Garlic, red pepper flakes, capers, kalamata olives and crushed canned tomatoes created a simple sauce unlike anything I’ve tried from a jar. “Why would we ever buy a jar of sauce again?” I asked my husband. Super easy, and delicious. I was sold after one recipe, but for thoroughness, we tried a couple more.

Next up was mushroom Philly cheesesteaks from the winter section. This one was a little more expensive because I had to make a quick run to the store for shiitake mushrooms, and they were not cheap. I think if I could have gotten to a farmer’s market, I might have been able to get them cheaper. Pennsylvania is home to the mushroom capital of the world, so they are plentiful. We already had a rib eye steak thawed from a previous meal, so this one came together quickly as well. In fact, we decided that it’s best to do all the chopping and prep ahead of time because there is little down time between steps. These were messy and sloppy but we gobbled them up.

Finally, we tried the spicy beef tacos with fresh salsa, also from the winter section. We used ground turkey instead of beef, and added queso fresco at the end because we like a bit of cheese. The meat is seasoned with a combination of chipotle powder, cayenne pepper, paprika and cumin seeds. No need for the store bought taco season. The down side to these was the quality of our corn tortillas. Our tacos fell apart, but we still ate the filling. Our kids don’t care for raw onions, so they disliked the addition of red onion, but the red onions, tomatoes and cilantro were the perfect topper for the meat.

I can’t wait to explore more of the book. There’s a holiday section, drink recipes, and a variety of meats used. Each time I flip through, something else draws my attention. Especially as more fresh ingredients become available in spring and summer, I expect to use this book often.

Add this one to your cookbook collection!