the SNAP of it all

and practical tips for mutual aid 🩷

A few quick announcements:

1. Are you in the U.S. Did you vote yet? Consider this your friendly reminder ☺️

2. I will be sending out just this newsletter this week, not my typical Tuesday + Thursday newsletters — back to normal next week!

3. I’m teaching a fun cooking class for kids this Sunday afternoon (2p EST on Nov. 9) — we’ll be making chicken nuggets with special sauce and chocolate mug cake! A portion of proceeds will be going to the Radical Monarchs (they’re so amazing — check out their IG here). » More info / sign up here! « Class FAQs live here.

   

4. If you’re in/around Kingston, NY tonight — come join me at QUEER SOUP NIGHT!! I’m making one of the soups! 6pm - 8pm at Eliza / suggested donation $10-20 supporting Kingston Emergency Food Collaborative (no one turned away for lack of funds) / 🍹 Eliza will have beer, wine, cocktails and zero proof beverages for sale at the bar / here’s the chef + soup line up:

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Okay, onto today’s newsletter…

Last week I got this note from a reader:

Forgive the lack of preamble, things are bad re: SNAP benefits (and well, everything) and I know people are looking to help. When I reached out to my local food pantry/soup kitchen they shared their volunteer spots are filled however at home meal prep is in high demand and frozen meals specifically. Given your extensive experience supporting these organizations, an aggregated list of recipes that 1) scale well 2) freeze well and 3) are nourishing for community members along with and tips and tricks to freeze well would be amazing!

I have provided a list of recipes that scale + freeze well are below, but first some thoughts:

• Food pantries, soup kitchens, and free fridges are not the solution for ending hunger and economic inequality. We live in a wealthy country with so much food insecurity not because of a lack of food, but because of a lack of financial security. There is hunger because there is systemic oppression. But until we have actual equality , food pantries, soup kitchens, and free fridges are, indeed, practical and impactful forms of mutual aid.

• With all that ^ said, please support your local hunger organizations in addition to being as politically active as you can, including voting in EVERY SINGLE ELECTION — local, state, national. Working towards eradicating hunger means eradicating economic injustice. And, or course, remember that economic justice = racial justice = reproductive freedom = trans/queer justice and so on. See more about food insecurity in America right here.

• If you are not already involved with your local food pantry, soup kitchen and/or free fridge, do not assume you know what they need. ASK THEM. Do not drop off things that weren’t asked for and create more work for someone else to do.

• Often the most helpful thing you can do is give these existing organizations money. Ideally a recurring monthly donation. This helps them do the work they’re already doing. No need to reinvent the wheel.

• If everything confusing going on with SNAP benefits during this government shutdown is the first time you’ve been motivated to support your local food pantry, soup kitchen and/or free fridge — that’s great. But please continue to be supportive and involved. Food insecurity is a constant need and pushing against it is one of the easiest and most tangible ways to get involved in your community.

• Some specific notes for free fridges (see here for more about what free fridges are/how they work):

  • Don’t put anything in a free fridge that you wouldn’t eat yourself.

  • Label everything you put in a free fridge. If you put something you cooked in a free fridge, be sure to clearly mark the date you cooked the item and all of the ingredients in it.

  • Consider things that can be enjoyed cold or room temperature (not everyone has access to a kitchen).

  • Package food in individual containers and ideally in containers that are microwave-safe (like these).

  • Offer reheating instructions if needed (this old post might be helpful).

  • Here’s more about free fridges and how to get involved with them.

  • See here for food safety information for free community fridges.

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The sign I made for Long Season Farm for last weekend’s farmers markets.

Cooking for free community fridges is one of my favorite ways to be involved in my community. When I helped Emmet start Full Fridge Club back in 2022 (!!), from the very beginning we wove mutual aid right into the business model. Every week, for each customer FFC serves, at least one meal goes into one of Kingston’s Community Fridges. This past August, FFC hit the 3,000 meal mark.

I don’t cook with Emmet and the team as part of FFC anymore, but I still use the kitchen at least once a month to turn the Long Season Farm produce that’s leftover from the markets into meals for the fridge. Rather than just donating the produce (which I also do!), it feels like an even more direct way to bring the best quality ingredients to our community while eliminating the laborious steps of cleaning and cooking the vegetables. It’s so rewarding to connect the dots between the farm, Common Table, and Kingston’s free fridges.

That 3,000 (and counting!!) number means a lot to me. It’s a reminder of what can result from regular, sustainable effort.

Step-by-step photos of the 7.25 gallons (58 pints!!!) of Garlicky Greens-and-Beans soup I made last week in Emmet’s kitchen, Common Table, using donated greens from Long Season Farm. I steamed the greens, cooled + chopped them, sautéed a ton of onion and garlic in olive oil, added in the greens/chickpeas/vegetable stock. Then I pureed a small portion of the soup just to thicken the broth a bit.

Have more ideas on helping feed your community? Resources you want to share? Let us know in the comments (open to everyone today — not just paid subscribers!)

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Here’s a list of notes + recipes:

• Anything with liquid freezes/defrosts well — soups, stews, braises, etc.

• Handheld things are great — sandwiches, burritos, etc.

• Cold things that can sit in the fridge for a few days without sacrificing flavor/texture are great — cut-up vegetables with a dip on the side (like hummus), grain salads, etc.

• You don’t have to cook! Individual yogurt cups are great, also granola bars, PB&J sandwiches…all the stuff we all depend on…!

• Lots of helpful tips in my ‘practical advice for cooking as caregiving’ newsletter

• And more practical tips in my ‘how to feed a crowd without losing your mind’ newsletter (the baked cheesy egg dish would be a great thing to make, cut into squares, wrap, label + put into your local free fridge)

• And more emotional support in one of my first newsletters (from May 2022!): “Fortitude as relentless care. Home cooking as a reminder.”

• ADDITIONAL RECIPES:

  • Green Chile Braised Chicken Thighs with Pinto Beans (affordable, easy, pack up with rice or turn into soup, etc.)

  • Creamy Mushroom + Barley Soup (so comforting)

  • Cabbage Salad with Feta + Herbs (cheap + lasts well in the fridge)

  • Tex-Mex Lasagna (could do in individual aluminum baking dishes like these)

  • Sheet Pan Stir Fry

  • One Pot Greek-ish Turkey + Orzo

  • Simple + Quick Hoisin Beef Stew

  • Easiest Broccoli Cheddar Soup

  • Easiest Spinach Lasagna

  • Two soup charts!

  • A formula for one pot rice meals (and lots of examples)