For this new installment of our Draw Me A Fridge series, Alexia spoke with Luisa Weiss.
Luisa Weiss writes the blog The Wednesday Chef and is the author of the bestselling food memoir My Berlin Kitchen, published last September by Viking. Born in Berlin to an American mother and an Italian father, she spent a decade in New York before moving back to her birth city three years ago. She lives in Berlin with her husband Max and their son Hugo, who is ten months old.
What are your fridge/freezer/pantry staples?
Fridge: Dijon mustard, a wedge of Parmesan, ketchup, at least two jars of jam at any time, maple syrup, yogurt (whole milk for my son, lowfat for me), brown sugar to keep it moist, unsalted butter, a tube of tomato paste, eggs (you can always make dinner with eggs), Sicilian colatura (a salted anchovy sauce) left over from testing recipes for my book, a jar of Better Than Bouillon stock base and a box of baking soda to control odors.
Freezer: I once read that spices should be kept in the freezer, and since then mine is crowded with little pots and jars of spices. There’s usually a box of frozen whole-leaf spinach, a bag of frozen peas and several Parmesan rinds wrapped in tinfoil.
Pantry: Pasta, a variety of rices (I’m obsessed with my rice cooker), grains, flours and baking ingredients, canned fish, dry beans, dried fruit and nuts, many bottles of vinegar, coconut milk, soy sauce and canned tomatoes.
Do you do the grocery shopping for your house yourself? How often? Do you usually buy from the farmers’ market, shops?
I shop almost every day. I visit the farmer’s market once or twice a week for fruit, vegetables and farm eggs; the rest of the time I use the local shops. Shopping is a reason to get out with Hugo, and because we live on the fourth floor without an elevator, bulk shopping isn’t practical. I buy what I need for the day and then lug it up the stairs with the baby. I go to Aldi for dried nuts and fruit, to the organic bakery for bread, and to the Turkish grocer for fresh herbs and olives.
What is the most surprising thing that you keep in your fridge at home – or the most surprising thing about your fridge?
The size. It’s a small fridge, which works since I shop so often, but its shoebox dimensions are a constant limitation. No big-batch cooking and no room for frozen pie crusts.
Any cooking disaster you would like to share?
Just last week I had a disaster: a lemon tart for my mother’s birthday fell apart. The dough turned oily and cracked in the oven, the lemon filling curdled and then leaked through the cracks, and the tart buckled under the heat. It was happening while I was managing several other dishes on the stove, and it was a Sunday—when stores are closed in Germany—so I had no quick fixes. In the end I dusted confectioners’ sugar on top and served it anyway.
What’s the most helpful gadget that you use in your kitchen? And the one you use the least?
If a can opener counts as a gadget, it’s the most useful. Lately my immersion blender gets heavy use for making Hugo’s meals. The least useful gadget is my cherry pitter—mostly wasted space.
Any recipe you could suggest to our readers for when there’s hardly anything left in the fridge?
If you have garlic, olive oil and chiles, you can make spaghetti aglio e olio: gently fry sliced garlic and chilies in olive oil while the pasta cooks. Toss the drained pasta with some of the starchy cooking water in the pan with the garlic and serve.
If you have eggs, canned tomatoes and a bit of hard cheese, make a rustic tomato sauce with onion and garlic (toss in any limp carrot you find), spread it in a baking dish, make little wells, crack eggs into them, sprinkle with grated cheese and bake until the eggs are set, about 15 minutes.