and before I start... yes, completely agree... those impromptu meals made from 'whatever' can be wonderful. And not.
My Mom was incredibly gifted at piecing together meals from 'whatever'. Unfortunately her best recipes were made from 'memory', never written down... thus: when she passed those meals were lost with her. Some of them were so good they became popular over the years... what I mean by that is OTHER people knew about them. To this day some cousins, friends, will contact me asking if I could send them the recipe for my Mom's "Spam Tacos"... or her version of "Tamale pie". Her green beans + hot dogs and mushroom gravy was always a huge hit at social gatherings. She had many unique dishes. I think the lesson here is "Write it down".