The Back of the Kitchen Cupboard

[Maggot]

I expect many people are sorting out their kitchen cupboards these days. Finding items which need to be used up or thrown away. To make this more interesting post up anything that you want to use up, but are stuck for ideas. Then other people can make suggestions, ideally with common ingredients. So we reduce food waste and don't need to go to the shops so often, and learn new recipes.


I'll get the ball rolling with Agar Flakes, which I can't even remember why I bought (Vegetarian recipes).

 

[Saul Goodman]

I expect many people are sorting out their kitchen cupboards these days. Finding items which need to be used up or thrown away. To make this more interesting post up anything that you want to use up, but are stuck for ideas. Then other people can make suggestions, ideally with common ingredients. So we reduce food waste and don't need to go to the shops so often, and learn new recipes.


I'll get the ball rolling with Agar Flakes, which I can't even remember why I bought (Vegetarian recipes).

You could mix them with a nutrient, simmer the mix in a little water, then decant it into Petri dishes, and use it to isolate a single strain of mushroom from spores.

 

[moose]

If you have a tin of coconut milk you could make a panna cotta type thing.

 

[Maggot]

If you have a tin of coconut milk you could make a panna cotta type thing.

I like panna cotta, never tried making it.

 

[Riklet]

Ive got:
Tin of 2 year out of date pinapple rings.
Small tin of pilchards in tomato sauce.
Half a tub of chicken gravy granules.

Thinking bout making pastry and making a pie with the gravy. Got potatoes and some veg and various pulses and dried things. No meat but too bad!

 

[moose]

I like panna cotta, never tried making it.

My local Sri Lankan restaurant makes something similar to this: Vegan panna cotta with coconut milk and cardamom - Electric Blue Food - Kitchen stories from abroad

 

[Riklet]

I have a jar of small lemons in brine

Over a year out of date but probs pretty well preserved. Suggestions?! Or just save them til the zombie apocalypse.

 

[Callie]

we had a cupboard clear out prior to all this nonsense - various out of date tins inc mackerel in some odd flavour sauce, peaches , low calorie soup, chestnut puree.

I want to make a peach and almond cake of some description - even bought ground almonds for it.

 

[Saul Goodman]

I have a jar of small lemons in brine

Over a year out of date but probs pretty well preserved. Suggestions?! Or just save them til the zombie apocalypse.

Definitely save them for the zombie apocalypse. They sound too wrong to eat on any lesser occasion. Maybe buy some Pot Noodles to stash with them.

 

[Maggot]

Ive got:
Tin of 2 year out of date pinapple rings.
Small tin of pilchards in tomato sauce.
Half a tub of chicken gravy granules.

Thinking bout making pastry and making a pie with the gravy. Got potatoes and some veg and various pulses and dried things. No meat but too bad!

The pineapple rings could go on my panna cotta!

For the pie filling just fry the potatoes and veg, add the gravy granules and water, and simmer for a bit. Add some grated cheese too if you have it.

 

[Callie]

I have a jar of small lemons in brine

Over a year out of date but probs pretty well preserved. Suggestions?! Or just save them til the zombie apocalypse.

do you have any chicken? bake salty lemons n chicken maybe some olives and any veg chucked in, few toms (ha;f a tin?) serve with carb of your choice.

 

[a_chap]

At the back of my kitchen cupboard I found...

...a secret door

 

[Mogden]

Tweet Jack Monroe, the Bootstrap Cook, she's a whizz with coming up with recipes from random tins of things.

 

[Saul Goodman]

At the back of my kitchen cupboard I found...

...a secret door

Your secret door's no secret anymore.

 

[Maggot]

Tweet Jack Monroe, the Bootstrap Cook, she's a whizz with coming up with recipes from random tins of things.

I see she is doing this already using #jackmonroeslockdownlarder, but I expect she is very busy, and we should help each other here if we can.

 

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

I've been on a no/low carb diet so all the pasta I stopped eating is luckily still in the cupboard, won't last that long though. No bread to make sandwiches for my daughter but amazingly I did have some flour and yeast that I bought absolutely yonks ago . . .but only maybe enough to make three small loaves, and with veg running out and nothing in the shops Mrs Suplex and I will be needing carby bread stuff soon just so that we are still eating.

Anyway here is my first cake tin shaped loaf. A little bit flatter than most people would want, but not quite as flat as the picture makes it look. How do I make it rise more and be lighter?

 

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

we had a cupboard clear out prior to all this nonsense - various out of date tins inc mackerel in some odd flavour sauce, peaches , low calorie soup, chestnut puree.

I want to make a peach and almond cake of some description - even bought ground almonds for it.

Ha, I had three year out of date chestnut puree that I threw out only a couple of weeks ago.

 

[nogojones]

I have a jar of small lemons in brine

Over a year out of date but probs pretty well preserved. Suggestions?! Or just save them til the zombie apocalypse.

I mostly use them in couscous or grain salads

 

[Callie]

Ha, I had three year out of date chestnut puree that I threw out only a couple of weeks ago.

I can sort you a replacement if you are regretting your tin based life choices? I think mine was an Xmas purchase

 

[nogojones]

we had a cupboard clear out prior to all this nonsense - various out of date tins inc mackerel in some odd flavour sauce, peaches , low calorie soup, chestnut puree.

I want to make a peach and almond cake of some description - even bought ground almonds for it.

Make a chocolate, chestnut, truffle cake. The best use for chestnut puree

 

[nogojones]

I have jar of (probably 5 year old) marmalade that hasn't quite set properly.

I was thinking of making a steamed pudding with that as a sort of drizzle, but idealy I'd prefer something savoury - I shouldn't really be having pudding if I can help it.

Any ideas? I know it goes really well with mackerel, but I'm looking for something veggie

 

[Riklet]

I have jar of (probably 5 year old) marmalade that hasn't quite set properly.

I was thinking of making a steamed pudding with that as a sort of drizzle, but idealy I'd prefer something savoury - I shouldn't really be having pudding if I can help it.

Any ideas? I know it goes really well with mackerel, but I'm looking for something veggie

Grilled haloumi with a reduced hot marmalade and booze sauce and a rocket side salad? Savoury marmalade ideas are a toughie!

Are you sure it's ok btw? Def enough sugar in it?

 

[nogojones]

Grilled haloumi with a reduced hot marmalade and booze sauce and a rocket side salad? Savoury marmalade ideas are a toughie!

Are you sure it's ok btw? Def enough sugar in it?

Oh. that does sound good.

Yeah, it'll be fine to eat. More than enough sugar in it. It's a preserve. It just didn't quite hit the right temp when it was on a rolling boil

 

[Plumdaff]

I have a jar of small lemons in brine

Over a year out of date but probs pretty well preserved. Suggestions?! Or just save them til the zombie apocalypse.

As nogojones said, grain salads, but I'd also stick them in stews, especially Moroccan tagine type ones. I'm making a lot of variations on a basic tinned pulses/beans + chopped tomatoes + garlic and onions and paprika/ chilli with or without rice dinners at the moment and a little chopped preserved lemon thrown in would work well with that.

 

[Saul Goodman]

How do I make it rise more and be lighter?View attachment 203336

Easy peasy...





But joking aside... Was your yeast fresh? How long did you prove the dough for?
I'd hazard a guess your yeast was dead.

 

[Maggot]

Anyway here is my first cake tin shaped loaf. A little bit flatter than most people would want, but not quite as flat as the picture makes it look. How do I make it rise more and be lighter?

Add more yeast.

 

[Saul Goodman]

Add more yeast.

I don't think it's more yeast that's needed... I think it's more alive yeast.

 

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

Easy peasy...



View attachment 203344

But joking aside... Was your yeast fresh? How long did you prove the dough for?
I'd hazard a guess your yeast was dead.

Yeast was in a sealed packet, but pretty damn old. Proved for two hours. It actually expanded quite a lot, but out more than up, and went down again in the oven.

 

[Epona]

Yeast was in a sealed packet, but pretty damn old. Proved for two hours. It actually expanded quite a lot, but out more than up, and went down again in the oven.

Sounds to me like you've over-proved it, yeast is definitely not dead if it rose a lot on first prove. It should still have some oomph in it for after you've knocked it back and initial bit of cooking where it will rise some more, that is what is missing.

 

[Saul Goodman]

Yeast was in a sealed packet, but pretty damn old. Proved for two hours. It actually expanded quite a lot, but out more than up, and went down again in the oven.

Look at the date on the packet. Yeast has a shelf life.