Importance of Pantry

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I often come home tired from work, then I start my second job. But I also love to spend time with my girlfriend and my friends and family. Just like everybody else I have 24hrs in a day and well since my girlfriend and I love to dine together, we somehow need to find the time. This is where the pantry comes in.

When I talk about the pantry I dont mean a cupboard full of cans of ravioli, or prepared soups. I dont keep frozen dinners, or premade meals. In my pantry I like to keep, flours, unbleached wheat, corn meal, buckwheat, sugars, beans,and plenty of spices. I keep pastas and rice, chocolate, lentils, and a host of other dry goods just waiting, eager with anticipation to be turned into something fabulous.

Pantry extends from the cupboards of dry goods to the freezer and even the cooler. Fresh vegetables bought in small quatities and maybe a piece of meat, fish or poultry to flavor the meal and we are off. I try to save time and money at the grocery store by sticking to the perimeter. Since the real food is kept to the perimeter I am not distracted by the thousands of SKU’s (stock keeping unit) that linger, brightly coloured and garishly designed to grab my attention. So quickly and easily, the few items needed to compliment the pantry are collected and dinner is almost ready.

Sometimes it is what is left, fresh and waiting in the cooler from the day before, to be paired with inspiration from the pantry, and sometimes it is the pantry, panko crumbs crying for a piece of fish. I see the eggs, nestled in thier little cups in the cooler and listen as they whisper, desire for the brocolli in a frittata. Every item, stored in the pantry, is a dinner eager to be. A small pouch of frozen smoked salmon, long storing leeks from the fridge, garlic,  and a little olive oil take no time to prepare. In fact with the Pappardelle in the pantry it takes exactly 15 minutes to have dinner ready.

Its not just about saving time and money, its about the pleasure of company. Nothing is nicer than great company, sharing great food. Even when company is arriving by surprise or with short notice, something in the pantry will call, will holer, put me in coach, I am ready, I can do it. Risotto with dried mushrooms and salty parmagiano regiano is born. flour, water, and oil, combine to become flat breads, topped with olive oil and rosemary, or potato sliced thin, shallots, garlic and mozzerella. Olives, smoked meats, a frozen baguette and some cheese bring a tear of joy to my eye as my guests laugh and share stories from there busy days.

To me the pantry is about saving time, saving money, but even more so the pantry is about creation, and inspiration for great meals, shard with those I love. Try this delicious all pantry recipe using light and crispy Pate Sablee, with dried mushroom quiche.

Pate Sablee

250 g                      Flour, A.P.

125 g                      Butter

2                              yolks

Enough                 Water, cold

Pinch                     Salt

Combine the flour, salt and butter in a bowl and rub the two together until it becomes like coarse peas.

Add the yolks and then drizzle in cold water, (start small) until the dough just comes together.

Don’t over work this dough, don’t knead it, just work it enough to form a smooth ball then set aside for a half hour.

Dried Mushroom Quiche

125g                       Mushrooms, dried

1pc                         Sausage, air dried

100ml                    Chicken stock

3                              Eggs

2                              Egg, whites

100ml                    Cream

50g                         Parmiggiano

Hydrate the Mushrooms and sausage in hot chicken stock and set aside until ready.

Combine the eggs and cream, and set aside. Roll out half the Pate Sablee recipe, placing in a tart tin.

Drain the sausage, mushrooms, adding the drained stock to the eggs. Combine together into the tart.

Season with pepper, top with Parmiggiano and slide into a preheated oven at 350*.