2022
I’m a Master Chef #CommunityChefChallenge
I just want to begin by saying I DON'T have a recipe for my creations ?- really sorry. I go 100% by inspiration, taste, texture, and whatever is on sale at the market or whatever I have in my pantry. I LOVE to budget with food - but I don't skimp out on flavor. My husband and I eat mostly Vegetarian/Vegan.
Side Note: I'm very aware that a huge percentage of people are struggling in the world to put food in their mouths - right now more than ever! I'm in no way blind to this and I truly hope that you are okay, safe and have access to basic necessities. I have such a deep compassion for your situation and am praying for you every day!
This was one of the first things I made above:
'Mini Egg Frittatas'
Basically a few eggs, crumbled up feta cheese, crushed garlic, salt, pepper, and them dice up whatever leftover veg or even meats you have in the fridge laying around.
Whisk it all up really well, and divide evenly. Throw it in the oven at a lower temp heat until it starts to brown around the edges.
They are delicious and keep in the fridge for a week. Eat hot or cold ?
This was a simple - what do I have and throw it together type thing. ?
Cook up some spaghetti, a canned fish like mackerel, melt some milk and butter for the sauce with salt and pepper and ALWAYS garlic... and I'm guessing I have the greens either in the freezer or fridge that needed to be used, I probably steam or sautéd them.
I remember this being delicious! ??
I call this an 'English Breakfast Tray Bake':
Vegan sausages & butternut squash from the freezer, throw in some mini tomatoes from the garden - and bake the first batch at a low heat until it smells cooked through. (Add a few whole garlic cloves too for this one - yum!)
Then make a few 'wells' and crack in the eggs. Put it back into the oven until they're cooked though and garnish with either fresh or dried herbs (and more garlic of course) ?
This was a tasty healthy meal: Frozen root vegetables I seasoned & roasted, seasoned couscous from the pantry, and the special part of this dish was I bought some asparagus on clearance - did a light steam and roasted for only a bit with seasoning and added in some fresh tomatoes. Simple and tasty!??
The meal above was another vegan pantry meal, minus the greens.
I can't remember exactly, but it consisted of pasta I boiled up, some dried mince I slow cooked with a can of beans & can of tomatoes, herbs, garlic, etc...
Then to finish it off with sautéed leftover spinach and always have some living chives in the windowsill I add on top for garnish and flavor.
I remember wanting macaroni noodles for this recipe, but I didn't have any in the pantry. And all the stores were out of majority of food... so I had to make do with what I already was storing.?
For the meal above I had some bell peppers I cut up, and used about a quarter. (I would have saved the rest for another meal or stir-fry). I usually buy frozen bell peppers because it saves on costs and longevity, but sometimes they're on sale in the clearance area and the only caveat is that they have to be used up right away.
So for this meal I used frozen fish like tilapia from the freezer, put it in a 'pocket' of tin foil, and cook it on a lower heat for quite a while in the oven until it smelled done. I don't remember what sauce I put on top, but probably a soy-miso-ginger mix as when I bought the bell peppers and had inspiration to go Asian: I purchased Pak Choi as well that I steamed.
I added all the steamed veg to the cooked rice and seasoned with some sesame oil, soy sauce, ginger, etc. When everything was cooked up, I assembled and made into a beautiful looking meal. ?
This meal was one of those 'ready meals' you can buy here in the UK - Sometimes the grocery store supplies a mix-up of veg, a noodle, and a small packet of sauce for under £2! So I cooked it up, and added some of my fresh living chives. I also threw in some of those bell peppers too ?
~~~THE ABOVE were all during the FIRST UK LOCKDOWN~~~
LAST, but NOT LEAST!?
This was our special meal... during the ~~SECOND UK LOCKDOWN~~
Things during this second lockdown have not been as crazy - the grocery stores were prepared and the UK didn't run out of anything this time yet... only TOILET PAPER AGAIN!!! ?
So let me now explain this meal above - ***It by no means reflects our daily or even yearly eating/food style - it was for a special occasion***
My husband and I both have YouTube Channels. I started mine during the first lockdown this spring - my username on there is @BubbleTeaKristin, where I teach people how to make Bubble Tea Drinks from home - some recipes using normal ingredients and others using shop-grade products. (I used to own some bubble tea shops but sold this year)
It was quite a journey these last 9-months getting my channel and videos up and running - so this meal was to CELEBRATE my channel reaching 1,000 subscribers!!! This is a really big pivotal moment in the YT community. ?
So I said to hubby - we should celebrate! (But all the shops and restaurants are closed around the UK - and getting delivery is never cost effective or worth the value) So on my next grocery run, I saw these 2 lobsters in the frozen section and knew that would be our special meal.
The cost of the them was 1/8th the price of a restaurant, and believe me.. they tasted 8x tastier!!! I made up some stuffing & gravy from a box, and steamed a fresh broccoli. (Although I had frozen broccoli, this head was on clearance for 10 pence so I was like - why not!?) Melted butter with added salt - and that can of spritzer was a clearance item too.
The meal was delicious - and we were able to enjoy each other's company and reflect on the journey - without the annoyance of other patrons and a white table cloth at a stuffy restaurant anyways.?
~Reflections~
A few things lockdown has taught me:
To become more creative with cooking. Usually, I throw things together and they taste great! and sometimes... they don't. But luckily my hubby isn't a picky eater and if anything he is spoiled because he says "you could have just made soup for dinner and I'd be happy" ?
Also learning how to REALLY budget... I know and understand fully that some places around the world right now are truly struggling - no food, no fresh water - people are starving more than ever. And who's to say when or if our income stream or situation might change drastically as well? I think right now especially, we should be very mindful of every purchase we make and not spend money where it's not necessary.
I didn't used to cook alot from the pantry and the freezer, but now I do - during the first lockdown there was no fresh fruits and veg, and even no long life items either. But because I had a turnover supply in the ready, we were okay.
I could go on, but I feel I've made my point.
Next time you 'think' you need something in order to complete a meal... there's always an alternative ?
Thank you all for reading ?
Great post @TheRealKristin ! The challenge was for a single dish per post but you gave us a whole cookbook! 😅 And I agree with your style which is to cook whatever is in the fridge. While you are more conscious of the food situation around the world.. I'm just terribly lazy to make an effort to doing food shopping. Plus, I keep telling myself that being resourceful is a great trait to have! 😂
But in all seriousness, thanks for making the point and reminding us that for some of us, we are indeed very lucky and privileged to have the opportunity to eat well all the time. And the food/supply industry (I don't know what to call it) is not helping because there can be so much wastage even though there are many places that are struggling to put a meal on the table!
And congratulations on hitting 1000 subscribers! That's an amazing achievement in such a short space of time! I'm at 54! Whoop whoop!
