Scrounge Dinner: Spain Was In My Pantry

Recently, after being away for 5 days, I came home to a horrifying site. My freezer door was open just a crack. A frenzied inspection revealed that everything needed to go. Everything had been defrosted and was VERY soft.

All of my prepared meals, sauces and emergency frozen pizzas (yes, even I indulge in the Trader Joe's frozen Pizza Olympiad) were destined for the trash heap.

I hadn't yet had time to go to the grocery store which means I didn't even have onions, garlic or any of my staples. It was suggested to me to order in some food but I saw this as a challenge to continue with my Scrounge meals since those appear to be my specialty.

After some digging through the pantry, I realized I could take a quick trip to Spain right in my own kitchen.

here's what I found:


* 1 link Spanish Chorizo, diced
* 1 container Trader Joe's Starter Sauce
* 1 can Great Northern Beans, rinsed and drained
* Italian Seasoned Panko breadcrumbs
* Dried Pasta (I skipped this ingredient - it wasn't needed)
* Dried oregano
* Fresh thyme (from my herb garden), leaves stripped from the stems
* Fresh Parsley (also from the herb garden), coarsely chopped
* Salt/pepper

What it became:

- Toasted the breadcrumbs in a little olive oil. Set aside.
- Wiped out the pan and sauteed the chorizo in olive oil for 2-3 minutes
- Added the Starter Sauce, dried oregano and fresh thyme
- Let cook for about 2 minutes over medium heat
- Added beans, salt and pepper and cooked for an additional 4-5 minutes, letting sauce cook down a bit.
- Spooned into dish and garnished with toasted bread crumbs and parsley.

Topped it off with a glass of a Malbec rose wine (ok, so that's not from Spain but trust me, it worked. I felt like I was at a little bar in Spain eating Tapas.

Delicious!