third story(ies)
Menu
  • ABOUT
  • CONTACT
  • HOUSE TOUR
    • PROJECT ADDITION / “PROJECT BACK POCKET”
  • LET’S EAT
  • (STORY)TIME
  • AROUND TOWN
  • MAKING
  • ADMIRING
    • blogs i love
Menu

let’s eat: the basics

Posted on January 20, 2016 by thirdstoryies

image1 (5)

One of the things I mentioned in the post about my New Year’s goals / intentions, was to push myself a little more in the kitchen this year. (Before pushing myself out of the kitchen for awhile while the RENOVATION is going on.) I’m feeling more confident in my amateur skills related to baking and meal-making, and I’m in a constant state of mental note-making on how the new kitchen can work to support those roles and accommodate more people comfortably. I’m not going to lie – I enjoy the solitude of the kitchen quite a bit, but I also really like it when everyone is participating. So what I’m really ready for isย stations!

I’m trying to build my skills a little more, and I’m also trying to push myself further at the basic ingredient level. We’re most certainly not a whole foods kitchen – we’re a fairly “unprocessed” kitchen, but if we’re making dinner that includes bread, we purchase the bread, we don’t make it. I’m also realistic about time – and I don’t have lofty goals of scratch-made everything. But there are simple ways to make better use of the ingredients we have on hand that will also improve the flavors of the finished product.

I took that first photo after finishing up dinner prep one night. I do all of my prep on an 18″ wide countertop between the range and the sink. Now that I think of it – it might actually just be 15″. Whatever, it’sย small.

I chop everything and as I’m doing that I sweep the scraps off the cutting board and into this colander that I place in the sink. When I’m completely done with prep, I carry the scraps to the garbage can and dump them. If I had the time (and yard) for a garden, I’d most certainly compost everything, but for now, this is all just waste.

I decided I’d start a freezer bag for these throw-aways, and then I’d make my own veggie broth. I found a handy list of what to include / not include, and now I divide up my ingredients I’m prepping into two piles. I chop up the ‘include’ ingredients first, and throw those into the freezer bag, then I toss the rest.

Turns out we generate a LOT of scraps each week. So I now have enough vegetable broth to feed the planet.

After simmering and straining (and cooling), I filled muffin tins with a 1/4 cup of broth each and froze them. I did this in several shifts throughout the day and evening Saturday. It reminded me of my baby food making days – they seem like forever ago.

image1 (3)

And now I’ve got ready to use, easy to measure, veggie broth at hand.

image1 (2)

I used the first bit to make the Saffron Rice in this recipe. I highly recommend this dish, especially on these cold, snowy evenings. And most especially when your (veggie broth) cup runneth over.

…..

I’m curious what sort of pantry staples you make. We don’t buy salad dressing anymore, and I’d like to make more of our extracts.

5 thoughts on “let’s eat: the basics”

  1. NSK says:
    January 22, 2016 at 9:07 am

    Definitely make our own salad dressings, as well as any marinades and sauces (teriyaki comes to mind). We also make a bone-in ham or turkey on the reg so that we can make soup for lunches directly after. Mmmmm…lentil or split pea soup with ham stock. May need to make some of that soon!

    Reply
  2. Lauren says:
    January 22, 2016 at 11:14 am

    Definitely making that chickpea masala this weekend. Thanks for linking!
    Lauren recently posted…Vintage FindsMy Profile

    Reply
    1. NSK says:
      January 22, 2016 at 6:22 pm

      Lauren: The recipe notes that the yogurt is optional. I would disagree. The yogurt really elevates the dish and makes it so very lovely and creamy. ๐Ÿ™‚

      Reply
      1. Kristin says:
        January 22, 2016 at 7:13 pm

        I agree as well!

        Reply
  3. Caroline says:
    January 22, 2016 at 3:12 pm

    Love this. I wish I had a compost bin as well, but until we are somewhere for at least three years or so and have time to get a little garden going, not really worth it yet. But I would love to make my own broth. That seems like an easier and doable thing.

    We eat enough guacamole to call it a staple and I always make that ๐Ÿ˜‰
    Caroline recently posted…Finn Quotes; or, His Obsession with Taylor SwiftMy Profile

    Reply

Leave a Reply to Caroline Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

CommentLuv badgeShow more posts

Welcome!

Welcome.

This is a blog about an old house with a new life (and all the lives within it). There are plenty of stories to tell.

Recent Comments

  • your mom on soil, by Irene Mathieu
  • Alyson on holiday letter 2020
  • Kristin on holiday letter 2020
  • Kristin on holiday letter 2020
  • Julia A Hart on holiday letter 2020
  • Sue J. on holiday letter 2020
  • Kristin on holiday letter 2020
  • Kristin on holiday letter 2020
  • Kristin on holiday letter 2020
  • Kristin on holiday letter 2020
January 2016
S M T W T F S
 12
3456789
10111213141516
17181920212223
24252627282930
31  
« Dec   Feb »

Recent Posts

  • holiday letter 2020
  • modern victorian garden – an update
  • modern victorian terrace garden โ€“ part three, design
  • modern victorian terrace garden – part two, inspiration
  • modern victorian terrace garden – part one, existing conditions

Archives

Categories

  • (story)time
  • admiring
  • general
  • holiday story(ies)
  • house tour
  • let's eat
  • letters to my loves
  • local haunts
  • making
  • party(ies)
  • project addition
  • renovation
  • Uncategorized
©2021 third story(ies) | Design by Superb