Friday Food: Commodities Cans

Friday

Short version: Tuna patties, mashed potatoes, creamy stewed leeks, garden salad, cookies

Long version: I was very amused, as well as pleased, to see tiny lettuce plants popping up in the most random places. The wind did its work in distributing the seeds of the lettuce plants in the garden. Many of them were outside the garden fence, near where A. parks the school bus.

I pulled one or two leaves off all these tiny lettuce plants, and then supplemented that with the arugula which also self-seeded, and some collards, to make a salad. I also put in shaved Parmesan cheese and toasted pecans. It was delicious.

Saturday

Short version: Leftovers

Long version: The kids had leftover cheeseburger casserole before we went trick or treating. I had leftover chicken soup.

And then there was candy. Of course.

Sunday

Short version: Commodities casserole, baby carrots

Long version: My goal with this casserole was to use as many things from commodities in it as possible, without making it gross. In addition to the regular commodities program that we've been getting things from for years, someone has been donating food for school kids in northeastern New Mexico. This means that the last week of every month sees an avalanche of cans coming into my kitchen. Some of it that's too gross to even eat (fake grape jelly, for instance) or just too overwhelmingly numerous (cream of wheat and beans) goes to the chickens. But I do try to use most of it.

This casserole had broken-up spaghetti, a small can of cream of mushroom soup, another of cream of chicken soup, the last bit of a can of spaghetti sauce, and several small cans of white chicken. All from commodities. To that I added some heavy cream, leftover stewed leeks, shredded cheddar cheese, garlic powder, pepper, and frozen corn and peas. We are getting canned corn and peas from commodities, but that would not have been good in the casserole, I didn't think.

Somewhat anemic-looking, but tasty.

This was actually quite popular with the children. I didn't add any salt to the water when I cooked the pasta, and to my surprise actually needed to add a bit to the casserole itself. I thought it would be way too salty with all those cans of things, but it wasn't.

I did not make a dessert. For obvious reasons of Halloween.

Monday

Short version: Leftovers+

Long version: The kids had leftover pasta. I made A. an omelet with feta, leftover stewed leeks, and parsley in it. And I had a salad with canned chicken.

Tuesday

Short version: Real Taco Tuesday

Long version: Someone gave us a big box of taco shells left from a party, which I used this night to make, um, tacos. I didn't realize I was having a Taco Tuesday until I was dishing up dinner. 

I felt very hip and with it. Ahem.

Anyway.

I just made pretty standard taco meat that I put in the shells and topped with shredded cheese before baking them. I also made a Mexican slaw that most people put on top of their tacos. That was just cabbage, onion, vinegar, spices, and this time a bit of sour cream, which made it much better.

These were a fun novelty, but most of the kids said they prefer soft tacos.

Wednesday

Short version: Sausage and potato casserole, green salad, garlic bread, apple and peach crisp with ice cream

Long version: I used one two-pound package of mild Italian sausage in the casserole, along with potatoes, collard greens, the rest of the leftover stewed leeks, spaghetti sauce, garlic, the very last of the basil from the garden, heavy cream, and a random cup or so of grated asadero cheese that had been in the refrigerator who knows how long.

The green salad was the last few leaves of store romaine, plus arugula, collards, and carrots from the garden.

A. had been to the store this day and brought home a tub of vanilla "frozen dairy dessert." That's what they call ice cream when it doesn't have enough milkfat to be true ice cream. It's good for topping a crisp, though, so I made one. 

That had the last quart jar of apples I canned last year (no apples this year, sadness), three cans of the peach slices in pear juice that we get from commodities, and a can of unsweetened applesauce I also got from commodities and couldn't figure out what to do with. And then brown sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, and cloves. Then the topping was just butter, flour, oats, pecans, and more brown sugar, cinnamon, and cloves. 

A. asked me what was in it, and then remarked he couldn't even tell it was just a bunch of things I threw together and wanted to use up. Good. That was the idea.

Thursday

Short version: Steaks with caramelized onions and herb butter, roasted potatoes, green peas

Long version: I think these were the last steaks in the freezer. I took out the last of the caramelized onions from the freezer, too, and then made herb butter as well. This is one boy's favorite way to eat steak, and everyone else likes it too.

Herby butter. In this case, green onions and parsley, because that's all that's left in the garden.

I barely fit all the steaks on the pan.

Refrigerator check:

Blurry, but I'm too lazy to take another.

Okay, your turn! What'd you eat this week?