It’s taken 19 years, but my husband is accustomed to my frugal ways and so in these times of financial uncertainty we’ve more easily weathered some of the necessary changes caused by job loss and its aftermath.
I’m an ant all year-round so that in bad times, my grasshopper can come out and play to offset the worry and fill in the sudden wealth of time that comes with the sudden loss of money. Our friend Gus said just the other night that he’s heading to our house in case of a total meltdown since he’s aware of my hoarding nature and my stocked shelves in the basement. BTW, I finally figured it would be a smart idea to put a manual can-opener down there too.
The other day I made stuffed cabbage again (with beef this time, and barley and chick-peas) and though I made fewer than usual, I always put a can of crushed and a can of plum tomatoes into the pot. Usually the only other thing I add to flavor it is a little salt and fresh garlic cloves because the meat mixture is spiced up enough. Well, I had a lot of tomato sauce left over this time and it was so good–picking up the flavor of the cabbage-rolled meat after a few reheatings that I couldn’t just throw it away.
Being just enough for two people I added two cubes of pesto (homemade and frozen in ice cube trays), a splash of red wine, and some peeled shrimp and heated it to put over spaghetti. While the Italian cook may sneer at the bits of cabbage mixed in, I must say, it was delicioso!
The Lost Children: A Charity Anthology