You have to Let Go to Make Room

This is a great mantra to have in any life experience. In this case, I am talking about the fridge :) Cooking is and always has been about experimentation then perfecting/adjusting the things you come up with that actually tasted good. I had some ingredients in the fridge that were on the brink of going bad this week. However, we didn't have access to much food (given the recent icy road conditions in Atlanta and the stores running low on food). Besides that, it hurts to throw food away (ouch). This is where creativity comes in! Anyone who says not to play with your food is Wrong! By all means play with it! 

Items: some potatoes (included red, purple and white), yuka (a starchy root vegetable used in a lot of African and Caribbean Cuisine), some onions and peppers. 

End result: A New Variation to Home Fries. The Yuka adds a different texture and flavor that blends in wells with the potatoes. The Purple Potatoes add an earthy flavor. And not to mention how COLORFUL the dish was. FAB!

Items: blueberries and blackberries

End result: a berry syrup. I put it on low heat with some sugar and some leftover white wine and reduced it. Strained the liquid and it taste YUMMMY with ginger ale or maybe some libation like vodka. 

Items: Hamburger Patties

End Result: Meatloaf! Make this your own. I like to add jerk seasoning to it :)

Items: Veggies: Onions, Carrots, Celery, Yellow Squash (on the brink of going bad) and Chicken bones.

End Result: Chicken Stock, OR you can do this with any left over bones or even Shellfish casings. OR leave out the bones and just make a veggie stock. Make sure to add a bay leaf and maybe some peppercorns. In school we are taught a formulas and times to make different base stocks. Typically stock is made with out seasonings (salt, etc). But, once again EXPERIMENT, Make this your own. Just remember that when you are done you need to strain all the ingredients so it is best to use ingredients that can be strained off. 

Make Room for experimentation!