(Will Levitt/Staff Writer)

I was facing a common scenario, the kind that every college student knows all too well.  You open your fridge—there are  some half-eaten fruits and veggies, maybe a few leftovers from three days ago, and an assortment of culinary odds and ends.  In this particular case, it happened to be an eggplant, half a zucchini, some greens, and half a container of Greek yogurt. I saw an avocado stacked on the side of the counter and some big yellow lemons–sufficient for a spur-of-the-moment dinner creation.

Sometimes the best and most creative meals are hidden in plain sight. For example, some wilting veggies, a can of chickpeas, and a little rice can go a long way to  create  an impromptu curry. Noodles, peanut butter, and some sesame oil can make easy and flavorful sesame-peanut noodles. Grab some eggs and that potato that has been sitting in your cupboard for the past month, and you’ve made yourself a Spanish tortilla.  Mixing and matching what you have on hand isn’t just a great way to use up the food that is sitting around your kitchen, but it also allows you to take on some serious artistic license. It will push you to try out new combinations of food and step outside of your comfort zone. You might be pleasantly surprised by how tasty it turns out to be.

If you’re intimidated by whipping up whatever there is in the refrigerator, don’t do it alone. There’s a whole wide web of recipes out there to help you along. A Google search for “egg and potato dish” will get you 25 million results. That is something of a start. Find a recipe that sounds good, and even if you don’t have all the ingredients, improvise your way through it. Think of it as adding your own touch to the dish. Recipes are meant to get recycled and recreated, so adapt recipes to your own liking using whatever ingredients you might have on hand.

For my improvised dish, I made sautéed eggplant with raw zucchini, red onion, sesame, and yogurt sauce. If you’ve never had eggplant with yogurt, now is the time. The combination is somewhat of a match made in heaven. To round out this meal, you might add to it a side of quartered avocados, hummus, fresh greens, a little feta or piece of toasted bread. It’ll make for a mix-and-match meal you simply can’t resist.

Eggplant with Sesame and Yogurt Dressing

Serves 2-4

1 LARGE EGGPLANT, sliced into half-inch rounds
2 tbs olive oil, plus more for sautéing
1/2 cup plain yogurt (preferably Greek style)
1 tsp. lemon zest
juice of half a lemon
1/2 tsp. chili flakes
1 tbs. sesame seeds
1 medium zucchini, thinly sliced
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
1 tbs. chopped italian parsley, optional
salt and pepper

1. Heat a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add a thick layer (1/8 inch) of olive oil and let heat. Add as many eggplant slices as will fit in a single layer and season with salt and pepper. Cook for about five minutes, until lightly browned, and then flip and cook another few minutes until cooked through. As the eggplant cooks, it will soak up a lot of the oil. Add more oil as necessary to ensure the eggplant does not brown. Remove the eggplant to a plate covered with a paper towel. Repeat with the remaining eggplant.

2. To make the yogurt dressing, in a medium bowl mix together the yogurt, lemon zest, lemon juice, chili flakes, two tablespoons of olive oil, and salt and pepper. Taste and adjust the seasonings to your liking.

3. Heat a small pan on medium heat. Add the sesame seeds to the dry pan and toast, tossing frequently, until lightly browned and fragrant, about two minutes.

4. Spread out the eggplant on a large plate or platter. Top with the slices of raw zucchini and onion. Drizzle on the dressing, and top with sesame seeds and parsley. Serve at once.