You might think, given the title of this book, that it was about foraging and found foods or economy-cooking. That it isn’t, although it certainly springs from the best kind of greedy opportunism, one that eagerly seizes upon any morsel or leftover to turn into an impromptu feast. What Alison Roman calls a Something from Nothing meal is what I grew up knowing as a Loaves and Fishes dinner, and it is so very much the province of the true home cook. Indeed, it is really what cooking is about. I think many of us who write recipes for a living regard it as the starting point for so many of the dishes that end up in our books. As Roman writes in her introduction: “Gorgeous meals come together easily with perfect produce and well-marbled meats, but nothing gives me more pleasure than rooting around the cans and tins of a dimly-lit kitchen and emerging with the best tomato soup of my life.”
Of course, few recipes can be made solely with storecupboard ingredients – there’s always a need for onions, lemons, seasonal vegetables and so forth – but, as Roman shows, a well-stocked pantry can make life very much easier in the kitchen. I thrilled to many recipes in this book, and not just because I share with Roman her emphatic love for anchovies! Though it’s true that her palate most definitely aligns with mine, which is always a most promising and pleasing start. I’ve already earmarked her Ginger & Greens Noodle Soup; Dilly [as in, it has a lot of dill in it!] Bean Stew with Cabbage & Frizzled Onions; Spiced Squash & Lentil Soup with Fried Shallots; Deeply Roasted Fennel & Capers; Long-Cooked Potatoes, Garlic & Lemon; Tiny White Beans in Green Bagna Cauda; Toasted Rice Pilaf with Crushed Walnuts & Dates; her famous Caramelised Shallot Pasta; Overnight Lamb & Potatoes in White Wine; Crispy Schnitzel with Browned Butter Radishes; and A Skillet of Prawns in Anchovy Butter. The recipe I am joyfully sharing with you today is her Golden Mushroom Soup with Orzo & a Pat of Butter, which promises much comfort in the cold months ahead.
Extracted from Something From Nothing by Alison Roman (Quadrille, £27). All photography by Chris Bernabeo
