Something from Nothing

Roman's fourth cookbook narrows its premise deliberately: instead of another aspirational entertaining book, this is about turning down-to-the-dregs pantry contents, wilting vegetables, and half-used cans into meals that don't taste like compromise. Reviewers keep landing on the same point, that the recipes are stripped to short ingredient lists and simple technique but still carry her signature seasoning instincts, particularly in the pasta and soup chapters. What distinguishes it from the wave of "using up leftovers" content elsewhere is that Roman treats improvisation as a skill to be taught, not a mood board, with headnotes that explain why a substitution works rather than just permitting it. It reads as her most useful, least performative book.