Mom's Soup Pot

I have been in a dinner rut. I have had no ideas for dinner and have not been to the store, because I did not know what to buy. Everything that I could think of to cook made me think of winter food. I like lighter food in the summer.

I had finally decided on two meals to cook and had plans to go to the store yesterday. Then my oldest came down with a stomach bug. I did not make it to the store. My husband stopped on his way home and bought some essentials and stuff to make quesadillas. That did not sound good to me either, but everyone else like them and they were happy.

Finally today I went to the store. I have been craving an all vegetable dinner. I also saw a recipe on the Crock Pot lady's website for Cowboy beans. And then Pioneer Woman had the best looking potatoes and steak and stuffed tomato on her site today.

Last night when I could not figure out what to cook, I put as my status on facebook that I did not know what was for dinner. I am friends on facebook with a couple of my friends that I grew up withs parents. One of them sent me an email telling me how she used to freeze all of her leftover vegetables and then make a soup out of them.

That reminded me of how my mom talked about her grandmother's soup pot. She said that she kept a big bowl in the refrigerator and put all of the leftovers in it. Then once a week she made soup out of it. I think that was a pretty common practice. Those women of the Great Depression knew how to not let anything go to waste. They made sure everything they bought for food got eaten. How different is that now? We through food away and do not think a thing about it. It bothers me that I am throwing away food that we paid for, but not enough to do anything about it. I try to make my family eat leftovers, but it does not happen very often. Right now there is a almost whole chicken spaghetti sitting in my refrigerator. It was a new recipe and no one liked it. It tried to eat it, but who wants a whole chicken spaghetti? I think if it is still good, I am going to freeze it and then try and use it this winter for a soup.

Tonight for dinner we are going to have butter beans, sauteed squash, corn pudding, fried okra, and fresh tomatoes. We will probably have leftovers tomorrow night and then whatever is left I am going to put in a gallon Ziploc bag and use for soup this winter. My family may get tired of soup!