A new year means a new beginning or better, a new chapter in the book of life to write. I woke up to a frugal breakfast this morning. Just a coffee and a couple of cookies from last night’s test. In the solitude of my kitchen (weird, as my macaws start screaming as soon as I open the window shutters) the usual train of thoughts swallows my whole mind. It is cold outside, and I have a few errands to do for the school: new plates, maybe new silverware, new stemware for sure. Alessio will be ecstatic. He loves changes. I hate them. And then oh, I should not forget to call the guy who is putting new stainless steel cabinets in the test kitchen. We need more room.
Suddenly, the idea of going grocery shopping scares me. What am I cooking for lunch? We all have these days, when one has no creativity or any interest in eating or cooking. A chef is no different. And if someone says that a chef never has a no day…they lie. As I pick up my pen to write down all my appointments, the list of the to -do things and also the names of the people I have to meet this week, my mind goes to all those women who moved on to a better life centuries ago. They had dozens of children, work in and outside the house, no money, no help and yet they made it. How did they do it? These days if we do not have a fully stocked pantry, fridge and freezer we panic. “The brain is expensive even at the butcher’s!” I love this quote from my father. It makes a lot sense when you understand its meaning: a brain needs to be used. The incredible variety of recipes these women put together in the past centuries makes a Michelin star chef ashamed. Daily life, daily problems. All to be faced with the little resources available. Let’s fast forward to a thousand recipes later, where all the basis have been created, most of the ingredients used and techniques developed. Did we get better or did we penalize some of the essence of what cooking was about in the past? Well, well. This question needs an answer.
When did we start treating leaves, scraps, peels, and stems like garbage? When did we start choosing white naked cauliflowers, stemless and trimmed artichokes, shapeless chopped endives without a soul or personality? And more important…why? This life is racing humanity towards the abyss, leaving us with perfect and yet flavorless and very expensive food.
We are depriving our dishes of flavor, depth and color, to not mention nutrients.
A sustainable kitchen is the one which recycles the most part of every ingredient. Let’s go back to a few centuries ago, when cooking was just becoming an art, a science and also a way to keep money in the pockets. It’s been a slow process but what an innovation. Using beef, pork or chicken bones to make broths, brown stock and demi glace; using vegetable scraps to make stocks and soups; recycling cooked pasta from the day before and turn it into a timbale or a pasticcio al forno; turning leftover boiled potatoes into a nice gratin or a simple frittata; grinding leftover roasted meats to make a sauce or a stuffing, chopping leftover vegetables and turn them in a rich sauce. The list is very long.
Recycling means creativity and time saving, two qualities that are very limited nowadays.
One of the main reasons why I love ancient cooking is that nothing got wasted. Everything had the chance to live a second life. With wealth, we lost part of our real richness: the flavor. It is obviously easy and convenient to buy already washed and chopped greens or tomatoes. After a busy day at work, one gets home, transfers the content (I refuse to call it vegetables) of that plastic bag in a bowl, dress it and there you go. Salad is ready. The packed greens were just the beginning of a clever and fast way to help putting the meals together, but to also produce more plastic and waste.
The new generation is learning from what it is shown and served to them. And eventually, this mode will repeat with the next generation and so on. If you listen to someone else’s brain, you can fry your own! Second quote on the brain. Still from my father’s book of wisdom. Funny as when I was growing up, my father for me was a jiminy cricket, always praising and unfortunately, always right. I was a real tomboy, a rebel and even if in my mind I knew he was right, I would do the right opposite of what he would say, out of mere spite. I liked to see his reaction to my rebellions. Assuming and granting that I had my mind set on many things, I would listen to his suggestions and soemtimes treasure them for later. Just to please him. Only now, at my age, I recognize that he was right on many things. Too late.
So? What do we want to do? Go with the flow or stand up for our ideas, standing our grounds? If we realize, like we all do, that what we eat is not what we used to eat; if the flavors are no longer there; if the mountains of waste are getting bigger…why not stopping for a minute asking ourselves how we can make this better. The answer is simple. Start from your kitchen. Buy less, buy wise, buy seasonal and recycle more. It is a start. It is not difficult.
Pasta pasticciata
- 8 oz Leftover cooked short pasta such as penne, rigatoni
- 1 cup Leftover sauce ( tomato, fish, vegetable, meat sauce)
- Bechamel sauce
- Grated Parmigiano Reggiano
For bechamel sauce:
- 4 oz unsalted butter
- 4 oz AP flour
- 1 qt whole milk
- Sea salt to taste
- Freshly grated nutmeg ( to taste or optional if you make a fish recipe)
This is a quick way to recycle leftover pasta and a sauce. The recipe for bechamel can be doubled. Not knowing how much leftover pasta you may have, I kept the amount of ingredients for 2 servings.
First make the bechamel sauce by putting the butter in a medium pot. Let it melt on a low heat, then whisk in the flour until creamy and smooth. Cook for 1 minute. Now start pouring in the milk in a steady stream, whisking constantly. Increase the heat to medium low and cook the mixture until creamy and velvety, about 10 minutes. Season with salt and nutmeg. (optional)
Combine the sauce with the leftover pasta sauce you have. In a bowl, place the pasta and the two blended sauces. Mix thoroughly. Add parmigiano and keep mixing. Transfer the pasta to a buttered baking dish. Sprinkle more parmigiano on top and bake at 360F until nice and golden brown on top, about 25 minutes.