The Joy of Rather Random Food!
I learned a lot of what I know about food as a result of being in the kitchen with my mom when I was little.
Although my mom didn't formally work until I was at least 10 years old, one of the things she did do was have an informal catering business for local "people of note" when they had parties with "important" guests.
Naturally, she saw me as free kitchen labor and so I learned to peel potatoes and scrub carrots and chop things and grate cheese at a very early age.
Looking back on those days from about 50 years down the road, one way in which I have have come to differ considerably from my mom is in not following the ostensible "rules" that seem to govern much of the cooking world.
Under this particular heading, one of the things I developed skill for over the years is putting together something quite edible out of relatively random leftover bits and pieces.
One of the exclamations I have very often heard people say to me is "ewwww, those things don't go together!"
Wanna bet?
I suppose part of my penchant for putting things together that seem unlikely comes from the fact that I have spent an awful lot of my life eating leftovers. Living on leftovers. Money was always tight, so nothing could go to waste. And sometimes there would be some really odd stuff sitting in the "reduced for quick sale" bin the supermarket so that would come home even if it seemed a little dodgy.
I should add here that I do love food!
Food, to me, is far more than just "filler that will make a turd." Eating has also never been something that I would "forget," either. Frankly, I have never been able to fathom people who will say "oh, I forgot to eat" or parents who had to admonish their children "don't forget to eat!" I'm no more likely to forget to eat than I am to forget to breathe!
I just want to ask "doesn't your STOMACH tell you that you need to eat?"
Fortunately, I also happen to love garlic! You can overshadow a million sins with the addition of a hefty amount of garlic...
Growing up in Denmark — among other things, famous for its tradition of elaborate open-faced sandwiches — I was also very attuned to the idea of courses, from a very young age. It helped me understand that you can turn many small things into a meal.
Stated a little differently, dinner doesn't have to be all the same thing.
This evening — Mrs. Denmarkguy is out of town at the moment — I had quite an enjoyable dinner of six different "tiny amounts" of leftovers that had absolutely nothing to do with each other.
I know that in many households these remnants would simply have been thrown out.
We waste an almost obscene amount of food, here in the USA.
I think being raised in the tradition of growing our own food also helped me gain a greater appreciation for the fact that it takes work to create food... and thus I have less of an inclination to want to throw it away.
Beyond all this, though, part of the point of these words was to convey the idea that sampling a lot of different small things and calling it "a meal" is really enjoyable, and perhaps one of the things I enjoy most about the occasions when I find myself "home alone."
Thanks for stopping by, and have a great remainder of your week!
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Created at 2025.04.10 00:08 PDT
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Just like you, I learned things at an early age. Learning to cook rice at the age of six when Dad was away and had to work abroad for a living for his kids and wife. My Mom was a grade school teacher back then. I and my younger brothers had a division of work. My assignment was to cook rice and fry fish or poultry products in the morning before going to school, and my mom would cook the vegetables when we came home at noon. I enjoy cooking and it's not a problem with me. I still remember those happy days when we were living in the countryside. How time flies. Now, I am a silver-slate lady, just recollecting my younger years.☺️
I share your idea that nothing is thrown away in the kitchen as long as it is edible. Here we have learned through scarcity that everything can be transformed into food and even healthy.
When you cook with love everything is tasty to the palate and if you harvest it much more.
How to vote when there are millions of people who have nothing to eat.
Very nice your photos where we see the fruit of your work. Those apples are beautiful. You know I like to eat pumpkins and the roasted seeds have multiple health benefits. Thank you @denmarkguy for sharing your culinary experiences. Best regards.🤗
Growing your own food is amazing, and it is extremely satisfying. While I hated gardening as a kid because it was part of my chores, it instilled in my later in life a love and passion for it.
That row of squash reminded me of an occasion several years ago when I went to a discount grocery store and found a massive bin of assorted winter squash for pennies per pound. Overstocks of nutritious food could not be ignored, so I bought a lot. The kid at the counter was bewildered though. People often don't know how to cook, or how delicious just a simple baked squash can be, or how to dice it up and make a soup. And that's just one food.