Cleaning out the Fridge, Part 1

Our fridge has been filling up for the past few weeks between a bountiful harvest of tomatoes & peppers, not having time to cook as much as usual because work’s suddenly gotten really busy, and spending too much time at the farmer’s market and food co-op - so today I had to knuckle down and do something about it.

I have a “waste-not, want-not” philosophy, so pretty much nothing organic (as in “once alive”) ends up in the landfill.    When I had kids at home, everything we couldn’t use right away went into our huge chest freezer.  Every few months I’d clean it out & make “freezer soup” or “freezer stew” (my kids will remember this) - but now I no longer have the big freezer, so I have to get creative!

First, separate the "edible for humans" contents from the "probably not edible for humans."  I didn't throw out the "non-edibles," because they have their uses too, but you'll have to come back next week to find out about those!

Today's "edible" efrigerator contents yielded:  formerly fresh, but now wrinkly & soft sweet peppers, slightly dried-out carrots, yellowish celery, a couple garden tomatoes, 2 squashes that were getting soft, several slightly soft onions, an overripe avocado, half a loaf of bread (from the counter, not the fridge), a couple overripe peaches, 1 garlic bulb, 2 dried out lemons and a dried out grapefruit, 6 "old" apples, and part of a daikon radish.  Here's what I ended up with.

 

Roasted Pepper Soup

·        Roasted Pepper Soup:  Red, green & yellow sweet peppers, onions, garlic, and vegetable broth.  Slice and broil/roast the peppers till blackened/blistered (about 20 minutes on High). Peel, chop and add to vegetable broth, along with onion, garlic, salt & pepper.  Cook on low.   No veggie broth?  Make some with the rest of the past-their-prime veggies. 

·        Veggie Broth:  6 small potatoes (from the pantry), 3 carrots, 3 stalks of celery, 2 cloves of garlic, 2 small onions, 2 squash, and a handful of parsley from the garden – add water, salt & pepper.  Cook until soft – about an hour (while the peppers cool so you can peel them).  Remove the vegetable pieces.  

Veggie Broth

• Veggie Puree:  don’t throw out the leftover veggies from the broth!  My grandmother used to trick us kids into eating veggies by running them through the blender and adding them to soups, stews, pasta sauce, meatloaf, or gravy as a vitamin booster & flavor enhancer.  If you have too much to use today – freeze it.

• Guacamole:  Puree avocado, a tomato, an onion, 1-2 cloves of garlic, salt, pepper & a little lemon juice in the blender or food processor.

• Apple Jerky:  Slice & core apples, sprinkle with cinnamon & dry at low heat in the oven or in a food dehydrator for a couple hours.

•  Peach Syrup (also works with blueberries & other soft fruits):  Slice and cook with a little water & sugar until fruit breaks down & thickens.  Great over ice cream, pancakes or waffles.

• Dried Citrus Peel (for later) or Citrus Marmalade:  Dried peels can be chopped & dried to season breads, cookies, and cakes.  I could have also used the peel, fruit and juice to make citrus marmalade. For marmalade - bring chopped citrus peel, juice, and a little sugar to a boil, cook for a few minutes till thick & let cool.  I love this on homemade corn muffins.

• Dried Out Bread:  Sometimes I make turkey/poultry stuffing  (tear it up, add some herbs & freeze) OR bread crumbs (same as stuffing, but run it through the food processor).  Bread pudding is another good option.  Tear up stale bread, add eggs, milk, a little vanilla, cinnamon, a little sugar and dried fruit (raisins, currants, cranberries, apples), & bake in the oven for about an hour. 

And there you have it - refrigerator clean, and mission accomplished!

Next time I'll talk about what to do with the non-edible leftovers.

Early Autumn

"The Wheel Turns as the Wheel Wills." (Wheel of Time, by Robert Jordan).

I noticed the beginning of trees turning - just a few - last week. How the mornings are cooler, the sun is a little lower, and at night, the crickets are a little quieter. The hens are moulting, and the proud tomato plants, flowers and green plants in my garden are showing their age a bit, though still fruiting - a last burst before the dormant time of winter. The goldenrod flowers, in full bloom, practically glow in the lower sun. I hear the wind whisper, "Fall is coming" and I welcome it, for Fall is my favorite time of year.

This morning Rami and I walk our neighborhood - as we have many times before, and for many years. I notice how her steps have slowed even more since last Fall (she's almost 12 now; 84 in dog years) and I can't help but wonder how many more Autumns she'll see. Odgen Nash's poem, "On a Good Dog" comes to my mind, and I want to shed a small tear for all of us.

Yet, in spite of that, my thoughts are turned ahead to the future. I open myself to the breeze, the birds, the feel of the earth under my feet, to the sounds of crows cawing and the squirrels bustling about. The squirrels have more purpose now - less frolicking in the trees and chasing each other, and more searching for nuts and seeds. The squirrel and bird babies are grown, most of the fawns have lost their spots, and all the furred and feathered ones - along with the trees and plants - are preparing for what comes.

As the Great Wheel turns toward the Equinox, I feel the blood of the Ancients rising in me once again. My daughter and I have always called Autumn our "Witch Time" because now, more than any other time of year, the ancestors call, we feel the change of the seasons in our own blood, the tree sap, and the water that flows beneath the land. We become more aware of the ebb and flow of Nature and the elemental forces that surround and encompass us.

As the days grow shorter, yet still summer-like, my thoughts turn from beaches, salads and white wine, bright sun, heat, and green growth to pumpkin muffins, cool walks in the woods, bright golds and seasonal beer. I look forward to warm clothes, crisp afternoons, and the promise of a soon-to-be-glowing fireplace.

Happy Autumn!