Today @ the food bank: Scallion Garlic Smash Potato (recipe!)

"Something from nothing" using: scallion, garlic, and ginger. Click to see what I did with it.

Since October 2022, I have spent (almost) every Tuesday at the Fort York Food Bank as the volunteer chef. My job is to create a hot lunch for 100 clients using whatever ingredients are available that week. The only items I am sure I will have are milk and eggs — aside from those two simple ingredients, what I find weekly is like a mystery box on an episode of Chopped.

I love working at the food bank because 1) it supports a food system I believe in and 2) it keeps my creative brain flowing. I find that my creativity is pushed the furthest when I am backed into a corner: the weirder, stranger, more mix-matched the ingredients — the more of a challenge it is to create a dish that has balance and cohesion.

“Something from nothing” is how I cook at the food bank, it is the concept of making something delicious out of ingredients you already have. Instead of deciding that you want a specific dish and then going to the store to buy ingredients for it, I encourage people to try the opposite. Find something in your pantry that you wouldn’t normally use, then seek out a recipe/way to use it. Why? It’s fun and creative, it saves you money, it helps the environment — I could go on..

Scallion Garlic Smash Potatoes

Today’s exciting food bank finds were scallion, ginger, garlic, AND chicken legs. I made a Scallion Garlic Smash Potatoes with Ginger Carrot Chicken. Below is the recipe for the smash potatoes - which is essentially like a mashed potato but with the potato skins on, and the mash is chunky instead of smooth (has a really great texture!).

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Serving Size: 4-5 portions