I spent the afternoon in the kitchen with Mel, turning a surprise bag of vegetables that she had purchased yesterday into several delicious dishes. A bagged salad became a crunchy lunch, aided by some homemade Caesar salad dressing in lieu of the sweet dressing that had come with the kit. A veggie platter of carrots, broccoli and cauliflower became the basis for a vegetable Cheddar soup. Sliced cucumbers (from the same veggie platter) were gobbled up with some homemade lemon-garlic hummus. And a package of mushrooms was repurposed into a creamy mushroom soup.

As delicious as all of this food was, what I enjoyed the most was spending time with Mel figuring out how to turn bits of food that might have gone to the bin into a hearty meal.

Mel purchased her surprise bag of vegetables from a local grocery store through Too Good To Go. Founded in Copenhagen in 2015 and now active in 18 countries, Too Good to Go helps local stores, cafes and restaurants to save good food from going to waste by making it accessible to consumers at a discount. Mel's $8 haul of vegetables would have cost about $45 at full price. Too Good To Go helps us to save money while also helping to save food from going to waste.

The surprise bags obtained through Too Good To Go don't always turn out as well as the one Mel landed yesterday. We're learning which businesses to patronize and which products to order.

Most importantly, Mel and I are having fun collaborating on creating something appetizing out of random ingredients. This creativity applies not just to ingredients Mel picks up; it's part of a broader habit to take a few odds and sods from the fridge or cupboard and turn them into something new. For instance, as part of our cooking adventures this afternoon, we transformed a hunk of Cheddar-garlic-rosemary bread purchased a few days ago into chunky croutons for our soups, with the addition of a little olive oil and a five-minute roast in the air fryer.

Tomorrow, we will convert the last of her vegetable haul—a package of spiralized zucchini and a bag of Brussels sprouts—into delectable side dishes.

Some of my fondest memories are of moments spent in the kitchen with my daughter—feeding mind, body and soul with love and food.