We did very well last week. We stuck to our meal plan and didn't have to dash off to the supermarket for anything extra, unless you count an extra half-gallon of organic milk to satisfy Baby B's milk addiction. (There are worse addictions, I think.) We even squeezed out another day before I had to go shopping, because one night we were invited to a barbecue, so that was a free dinner. It was a rather nasty one, but beggars can't be choosers. Baby B, to my middle-class horror, adored her rubbery cheeseburger and clamored for more. I'm sure nothing in it was grass-fed or organic. Again, beggars can't be choosers.
I ended up using up some things that I'd planned to keep for another week. For example, we ate all the tortillas, because it transpires that we don't actually want to eat steel-cut oats with yogurt and fruit every morning. Some days we made scrambled eggs and served it in a tortilla, like a breakfast wrap. For this reason, we also used up most of the 18 eggs I'd bought. Then there were a few things we didn't eat all of. Several romaine lettuce leaves were left over, so I gnawed on them for a rabbit-like late night snack. We also didn't use one of the zucchini, which went bad in the refrigerator. I was annoyed that I hadn't noticed it, since I could at least have put it in the freezer to use for making stock.
This week, I spent only $52.78 on groceries, or $7.54 per day per person. But this isn't the real cost, because I already had several ingredients that I didn't need to buy. Some were things left over from last week's shopping: I still had 2.5 lbs of carrots, half a head of celery, about a cup of rice, and several servings of steel cut oats. I also had some of the ingredients lurking in corners of my kitchen: I discovered a pound of ground grass-fed beef in my freezer, which probably cost at least $7; I also found a bag of frozen green beans which were on the verge of getting freezer burn; and I already had staples such as garlic, oil, pepper, and cumin. So the true cost of this week's meal plan is probably $15 more than I actually spent.
The Meal Plan:
Breakfasts: steel cut oats with yogurt and fruit, OR scrambled eggs/omelettes/boiled eggs/etc.
Lunches: bean and cheese burritos, carrot and celery sticks, apples or oranges or nectarines.
Snacks: raw fruits and vegetables
Dinners:
1) Almost-Foolproof Roast Chicken with basmati rice, slow cooker refried beans, and steamed broccoli.
-> reserve 2 cups of leftover cooked chicken for use in anothe recipe
-> make slow cooker chicken broth overnight for use in another recipe
2) Moussaka, using sliced boiled potatoes instead of eggplant because I couldn't find an eggplant today. Side of steamed green beans.
3) Sausage-tomato-spinach risotto.
4) Shrimp fajitas.
5) Chicken-broccoli calzone.
6) Leftover moussaka with a side of steamed broccoli.
7) Leftover sausage-tomato-spinach risotto.
THE GROCERIES
Vegetables and Fruits
5 lbs onions: $2.48
1.5 pounds potatoes: $1.17
10 oz fresh spinach: $1.38 (I could get frozen cheaper, but sometimes the quality of frozen is variable)
1 red bell pepper: $1.48
1 avocado: $0.88
2 heads of broccoli: $1.68
4 bananas: $0.62
2 lbs nectarines: $1.98
2 lbs Fuji apples: $3.16
2 lbs navel oranges: $1.96
Bulk
1.28 lbs arborio rice: $2.15
1 lb sugar: $0.52
1 lb pinto beans: $0.87
Dairy
1 gallon Organic Valley whole milk: $5.96
Nancy's low fat yogurt: $2.43
Sargento reduced-fat shredded Mexican cheese: $2.68
Meat
1 whole chicken (that claimed to be approved by the American Humanitarian Society..hmmm): $7.18
3/4 lb Italian turkey sausage: $2.68*
3/4 lb broken shrimp meat, pre-cooked: $3.18**
Misc.
Guerrero whole wheat tortillas, 11ct: $2.48***
1 14oz can store-brand diced tomatoes: $0.63
Red Rose tea bags, 100ct: $3.34
1 container store-brand table salt: $0.44
*This was less than half price because it was the day of its expiration date. I figure that they put these dates pretty early to be cautious, and that it'll be fine if I throw it in the freezer today and defrost it when I need it.
**Very pleased with this discovery. I used to get peeled, deveined, pre-cooked shrimp as a bit of an extravagance, because Baby B adores shrimp. But today I discovered, on a lower shelf in the seafood section, something called "broken shrimp meat" that appears to be smaller or less attractive specimens of shrimp that probably taste just the same as the expensive ones. They were less than half the price! Definitely loving this idea.
***I won't be getting these again. Once I was home I realized they contained palm oil. We are far from being perfectly conscientious shoppers, but we do try to avoid palm oil because of the danger to orangutans. Baby B is a friend to all the animals, and she is particularly fond of orangutans, so there it is.
Observations: while I was pleased with my spending, I could have done this for less. I bought a few things that weren't super-cheap, such as the red bell pepper. We could spend so much less on milk if we got non-organic, but I'm squeamish about that. Again, we really don't have to eat meat every night, but ever since my brush with gestational diabetes, my blood sugar has been a bit weird and I tend to do really well if I make sure I have enough protein and not too much starch.
Other observations: I want to figure out a way to eat this cheaply without having so many leftovers. We tend to be a bit repetitive in our eating habits because we don't really care that much if we eat the same thing several times in a week. But we want Baby B to be an adventurous eater, and to do this we'll need to expose her to more variety from week to week.
Dinner recipes:
Homemade "refried" beans (which aren't refried at all)
I know canned refried beans can be bought for fifty cents and taste just fine, but this is even cheaper and it tastes so much better that I am loath to buy the canned ones ever again.
Exceedingly complex instructions! Throw the following into your slow cooker:
1 onion, chopped medium
2 cups dried pinto beans (no need to soak)
4 cloves of garlic, chopped fine
1 to 1.5 teaspoons salt (start with the smaller measure, then adjust at the end to taste)
Lots of freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
6 cups water
Cook on high all day. It's fine to go out to work for nine hours, it won't boil dry! Next, simply strain the beans, reserving the liquid. Mash the beans with a fork, adding the cooking liquid little by little until you get the consistency you like. Taste and season. This makes loads--enough for dinner plus lunches for two for a week.
The sausage-tomato-spinach risotto is an adaptation of this amazing Smitten Kitchen recipe. I can make it more cheaply, however. Here are my ingredients:
1 14-oz can diced tomatoes
A canful of my homemade chicken broth
3 cups water
1 tablespoon oil
3/4 lb turkey sausage
1/2 an onion
1/2 cup leftover wine (if you don't have this, I honestly can't tell the difference if you leave it out)
Salt and pepper
1 cup Arborio rice
5 oz washed, sliced spinach
1/2 cup shredded Mexican cheese
[...I leave out the butter]
...and you proceed as in the Smitten Kitchen recipe. It would probably be nicer with Parmesan, but I don't have any of that.
Shrimp fajitas
I adapted this from a Skinnytaste.com recipe. A couple of changes: I substitute cumin for chipotle chile powder because that's what I had; I left out the lime and cilantro because Baby B doesn't like those. Don't be put off by the name "Skinny Taste"--the author is an amazing cook and all her recipes work. I detest recipes that don't work.
I don't make homemade guacamole for this, but I top them with slices of fresh avocado.
Chicken-broccoli calzone
Making calzone is one of my favorite activities. It impresses guests and it's really quite easy. Here's how:
Prepare 1 recipe of my all-purpose bread dough. Follow all instructions up until the second kneading. (You could also use bought pizza dough, but that's more expensive.)
Preheat your oven to 430 F, or about 220 C.
Cut one head of broccoli into small pieces (they don't have to look attractive) and put into a pot with an inch or so of boiling water over high heat for about 5 minutes or until the broccoli is steamed, but still has a bit of bite to it.
Get your leftover chicken from the other night and cut it into small cubes.
Now get your bread dough, divide it into four pieces, and roll each into an 8-inch circle on a floured counter-top. Divide the chicken and broccoli equally between the pieces, and top with a generous pinch of shredded cheese. Fold the circles in half and pinch up the edges to seal them, then roll them over for extra protection. Place the calzone on a baking sheet covered with foil or parchment paper. Poke a couple of small air vents in the top with the tip of a knife. Bake for around 15 minutes, or until the tops and bottoms of the calzone are lightly golden brown.
Friday, August 30, 2013
Thursday, August 22, 2013
Week's meal plan, August 22 2013
I plan to post several of these in my quest to streamline my grocery shopping while continuing to provide my family with nutritious breakfasts, lunch and dinners.
This week I spent $68.03 on groceries, so around $10 a day to feed three people. The true cost of this week's meals would be somewhat more, because I already had a few staples in my pantry: oil ($5.68), balsamic vinegar ($3.48 on sale some time ago), and onions left over from a 5-pound bag ($2.68) that lasted me several weeks. Into all this I also have to add my privilege of owning a car and living relatively close to a very good budget supermarket.
The other issue here is the repetitiveness of what we tend to eat. Breakfasts are often the same thing over and over again. This is because I'm usually so bleary-eyed in the mornings, I don't much care what I eat as long as it keeps me full until lunchtime. (For this reason, I can't eat cold cereal or toast, because I'm ravenous and grouchy by about 10.) Steel-cut oats are a bit annoying to cook, but with a bit of night-before preparation they aren't too time-consuming, and they keep me going. (When I had gestational diabetes and had to take my blood sugar after meals, I found that steel cut oats barely raised it at all. Hooray for low-glycemic foods!)
I didn't factor in lunches for Baby B because she has hers at daycare. Mr. B and I are happy to eat the same thing every day for a week.
Dinners: I tend to make a lot of something that reheats well so we can have it twice. I also "recycled" the black beans to use for enchiladas. If you don't like leftovers, this meal plan isn't for you. If you don't like chicken, it isn't for you. But I think I've struck a pretty good balance: four non-vegetarian dinners, three vegetarian ones, plenty of fruits and vegetables and whole grains.
The Meal Plan:
Breakfasts: steel cut oats, yogurt, sliced bananas for all of us.
Lunches: chicken salad wraps, carrot and celery sticks for Mr. B and me.
Beverages: water for all of us, choice of water or whole milk for Baby B.
Snacks: carrot and celery sticks, raw almonds.
Dinners:
1) Non-Disgusting Black Bean Stew with basmati rice and steamed broccoli.
2) Chicken-zucchini curry with basmati rice and salad.
3) Chicken and black bean enchiladas (using leftover beans) with salad.
4) Whole wheat spaghetti with tomato sauce, with sauteed zucchini.
5) Leftover chicken-zucchini curry with basmati rice and steamed broccoli.
6) Frittata with red bell pepper and broccoli.
7) Leftover chicken and black bean enchiladas with salad.
THE GROCERIES
Vegetables
4 zucchini: $2.22
3 broccoli crowns: $2.65
2 lb bag of carrots (will last several weeks): $0.98
1 head celery (will last two weeks): $1.71
4 tomatoes: $1.96
4 bananas (we tend to split these between us at breakfast time): $0.50
1 enormous head of romaine lettuce: $1.68
1 red pepper: $1.68
Dairy
Organic Valley whole milk, 1 gallon: $6.68
Nancy's fat free yogurt: $2.43
Sargento reduced fat shredded Mexican cheese, 4oz: $2.68
18 eggs (this will last a couple of weeks): $2.09
Cans/Bottles/Misc.
Taste of Thai light coconut milk: $1.48
Taste of Thai red curry paste: $2.04
El Pato enchilada sauce (large can): $1.40
Tamari soy sauce: $3.14
La Tortilla Factory whole wheat tortillas (giant package that lasts us for two weeks): $6.98
Store-brand 28oz can crushed tomatoes: $0.98
Best Foods mayonnaise, large jar: $3.50
Bulk
Pecan pieces (0.54 lb @ $5.30/lb): $2.86
Dried black beans (1.31lb @ $0.99/lb): $1.30
Dried cranberries (0.59lb @ $3.49/lb)
Raw almonds (0.61lb@ $5.78/lb): $3.53
Steel cut oats (1.48lb@ $1.49/lb): $0.93
Basmati rice (1.6lb @ $1.49/lb): $2.38
Whole wheat spaghetti (1lb @ $1.00/lb): $1.00
Meat
Giant package of boneless, skinless chicken breast containing 4 huge pieces: $7.19
TOTAL: $68.03
Observations: I was pretty pleased, but I could have managed on less. The coconut milk and curry paste seem a bit extravagant, but it does make loads of curry sauce so you can make a huge curry that lasts two meals. Plus, there's something very satisfying about curry. Even Baby B will eat it (I know this is not typical of American toddlers). Likewise, I could have made my own enchilada sauce for less using spices etc that I already had in the pantry, but I'm a busy working mother and I have better things to do. Ditto the mayonnaise. My grandmother would be horrified at my using "bought mayonnaise," but I really do detest making my own. I know everyone says it's sooooo easy, but I always botch and curdle it in spite of all the handy hints everyone tells me. Besides, I do make my own spaghetti sauce, so I can polish my halo over that one.
The red bell pepper seems like a bit of an extravagance too, but we all have our faults. Next time I might save money by buying only the cheapest vegetables and then "splurging" (hah!) on brown instead of white basmati rice, since it's only 30 cents more expensive per pound. But I think I did pretty well on whole grains on the whole, and white basmati is at least pretty low-glycemic as rice goes.
Things I'm very pleased with: that romaine. I didn't weigh it, but it's positively gigantesque. It's enough for several dinner side salads, plus extra to put in our chicken wraps. I haven't the heart to look up its nutritional value, but it's green (green is good, right?) and I'm sure it's more nutritious than an iceberg lettuce. Also, steel-cut oats are...a steal (get it, get it?).
RECIPES
Breakfast for 3: measure 2/3 cup steel-cut oats into a pot. Cover with 2 2/3 cups boiling water and bring to a bubbling boil. Turn off heat and leave the pot overnight. In the morning, it will be miraculously cooked and all you need to do it heat it up. Serve with 1/3 sliced banana per person and 1 generous spoonful yogurt. (Variations: you can add any kind of fruit, or nuts, if you have them.)
Lunch: wraps with this amazing chicken salad from Smitten Kitchen. I use pecans instead of walnuts because they're cheaper, and leave out any ingredients I have, and substitute cheaper ingredients for the expensive ones. (I detest tarragon, so I will never have tarragon vinegar. I use whatever kind I have, usually the ultra-cheap old white kind that I also use for household cleaning, and it tastes just fine.) I add a handful of shredded romaine to each wrap, then roll them up tightly in plastic wrap. I cut up lots of carrots and celery in advance so I have a couple of days' supply, and put nuts into little plastic bags (which I wash and reuse, because I'm parsimonious like that.)
Dinners:
1) Black beans here. Half a cup of basmati rice typically fills us up; cook according to package directions. Steamed broccoli: cut 1 broccoli crown into small pieces, including the stems, which are perfectly edible. Place in a pot with about an inch of water; clap the lid on; bring to boil over high heat and leave it there 2-3 minutes. If you are feeling extra-thrifty, save the water in a container in the freezer to use later for stocks.
2) Chicken curry: cut one of the chicken breasts into small pieces and saute over medium heat in a large frying pan. Remove from pan. Now add 2 zucchini, sliced medium, and cook until slightly softened. Meanwhile, whisk curry paste together with coconut milk. Add chicken back to the pan and pour milk over the top. Serve with basmati rice and a salad made of shredded romaine and sliced tomatoes topped with a dressing of 1 tsp. (olive) oil and 1 tsp. (balsamic) vinegar, though any oil and any vinegar will do. This makes two meals.
3) Chicken and black bean enchiladas: this is probably the most time-consuming dish of the week. First, poach a chicken breast. You can do this by covering it with water in your frying pan, and simmering it for ten minutes on each side. Remove it from the water (keep the water in a container in the fridge! You'll use it as chicken stock tomorrow night!) and shred it using two forks. Mix your shredded chicken with a cup of leftover black beans from the other night, half a cup of enchilada sauce, and half a cup of grated cheese. Spread 1/2 cup of the mixture over about 6 tortillas (or more if you have more mixture). Roll up the tortillas and nestle them snugly together in a 9x13 baking dish. Pour the rest of the enchilada sauce over the tortillas and sprinkle a further cup of grated cheese over the top. Bake at 350F covered in foil for 20 minutes, then take the foil off and bake for another 10 minutes until the cheese is bubbling in an attractive manner.This makes two meals for three hungry people. Serve with a salad the first time and steamed broccoli the second time, to mix things up.
4) Spaghetti and tomato sauce: first, prepare your sauce, several days in advance if you like (it takes a while to cook). I love this recipe, although I typically halve it and don't add garlic or fresh basil, as I don't feel it needs it. (By all means add them, or the dried versions of either, if you like.) I also add finely chopped celery at the same time as the carrot, because I love a good mirepoix. Even halved, this recipe makes enough for two meals, so freeze half of it in a container when it's finished. You can use last night's chicken-poaching water for the stock. Boil your spaghetti; stir-fry two sliced zucchini over medium-high heat in a frying pan, adding whatever seasonings you like. Serve the spaghetti with a ladleful of sauce and a pinch of grated cheese, and the zucchini on the side. This meal is more vegetable-rich than
5) Vegetable frittata: cut up a red bell pepper and a crown of broccoli, including the stems. Saute in oil in a medium-sized, non-stick, oven-proof pan until the vegetables are slightly softened. Preheat your broiler. While the vegetables are cooking, whisk six eggs together. Pour the eggs into the pan and cook over medium heat until the eggs are slightly set on the bottom. Sprinkle whatever grated cheese you have left over the top and place the pan under the broiler for five minutes until the eggs are set and the cheese is melted. Cut into wedges and serve.
This week I spent $68.03 on groceries, so around $10 a day to feed three people. The true cost of this week's meals would be somewhat more, because I already had a few staples in my pantry: oil ($5.68), balsamic vinegar ($3.48 on sale some time ago), and onions left over from a 5-pound bag ($2.68) that lasted me several weeks. Into all this I also have to add my privilege of owning a car and living relatively close to a very good budget supermarket.
The other issue here is the repetitiveness of what we tend to eat. Breakfasts are often the same thing over and over again. This is because I'm usually so bleary-eyed in the mornings, I don't much care what I eat as long as it keeps me full until lunchtime. (For this reason, I can't eat cold cereal or toast, because I'm ravenous and grouchy by about 10.) Steel-cut oats are a bit annoying to cook, but with a bit of night-before preparation they aren't too time-consuming, and they keep me going. (When I had gestational diabetes and had to take my blood sugar after meals, I found that steel cut oats barely raised it at all. Hooray for low-glycemic foods!)
I didn't factor in lunches for Baby B because she has hers at daycare. Mr. B and I are happy to eat the same thing every day for a week.
Dinners: I tend to make a lot of something that reheats well so we can have it twice. I also "recycled" the black beans to use for enchiladas. If you don't like leftovers, this meal plan isn't for you. If you don't like chicken, it isn't for you. But I think I've struck a pretty good balance: four non-vegetarian dinners, three vegetarian ones, plenty of fruits and vegetables and whole grains.
The Meal Plan:
Breakfasts: steel cut oats, yogurt, sliced bananas for all of us.
Lunches: chicken salad wraps, carrot and celery sticks for Mr. B and me.
Beverages: water for all of us, choice of water or whole milk for Baby B.
Snacks: carrot and celery sticks, raw almonds.
Dinners:
1) Non-Disgusting Black Bean Stew with basmati rice and steamed broccoli.
2) Chicken-zucchini curry with basmati rice and salad.
3) Chicken and black bean enchiladas (using leftover beans) with salad.
4) Whole wheat spaghetti with tomato sauce, with sauteed zucchini.
5) Leftover chicken-zucchini curry with basmati rice and steamed broccoli.
6) Frittata with red bell pepper and broccoli.
7) Leftover chicken and black bean enchiladas with salad.
THE GROCERIES
Vegetables
4 zucchini: $2.22
3 broccoli crowns: $2.65
2 lb bag of carrots (will last several weeks): $0.98
1 head celery (will last two weeks): $1.71
4 tomatoes: $1.96
4 bananas (we tend to split these between us at breakfast time): $0.50
1 enormous head of romaine lettuce: $1.68
1 red pepper: $1.68
Dairy
Organic Valley whole milk, 1 gallon: $6.68
Nancy's fat free yogurt: $2.43
Sargento reduced fat shredded Mexican cheese, 4oz: $2.68
18 eggs (this will last a couple of weeks): $2.09
Cans/Bottles/Misc.
Taste of Thai light coconut milk: $1.48
Taste of Thai red curry paste: $2.04
El Pato enchilada sauce (large can): $1.40
Tamari soy sauce: $3.14
La Tortilla Factory whole wheat tortillas (giant package that lasts us for two weeks): $6.98
Store-brand 28oz can crushed tomatoes: $0.98
Best Foods mayonnaise, large jar: $3.50
Bulk
Pecan pieces (0.54 lb @ $5.30/lb): $2.86
Dried black beans (1.31lb @ $0.99/lb): $1.30
Dried cranberries (0.59lb @ $3.49/lb)
Raw almonds (0.61lb@ $5.78/lb): $3.53
Steel cut oats (1.48lb@ $1.49/lb): $0.93
Basmati rice (1.6lb @ $1.49/lb): $2.38
Whole wheat spaghetti (1lb @ $1.00/lb): $1.00
Meat
Giant package of boneless, skinless chicken breast containing 4 huge pieces: $7.19
TOTAL: $68.03
Observations: I was pretty pleased, but I could have managed on less. The coconut milk and curry paste seem a bit extravagant, but it does make loads of curry sauce so you can make a huge curry that lasts two meals. Plus, there's something very satisfying about curry. Even Baby B will eat it (I know this is not typical of American toddlers). Likewise, I could have made my own enchilada sauce for less using spices etc that I already had in the pantry, but I'm a busy working mother and I have better things to do. Ditto the mayonnaise. My grandmother would be horrified at my using "bought mayonnaise," but I really do detest making my own. I know everyone says it's sooooo easy, but I always botch and curdle it in spite of all the handy hints everyone tells me. Besides, I do make my own spaghetti sauce, so I can polish my halo over that one.
The red bell pepper seems like a bit of an extravagance too, but we all have our faults. Next time I might save money by buying only the cheapest vegetables and then "splurging" (hah!) on brown instead of white basmati rice, since it's only 30 cents more expensive per pound. But I think I did pretty well on whole grains on the whole, and white basmati is at least pretty low-glycemic as rice goes.
Things I'm very pleased with: that romaine. I didn't weigh it, but it's positively gigantesque. It's enough for several dinner side salads, plus extra to put in our chicken wraps. I haven't the heart to look up its nutritional value, but it's green (green is good, right?) and I'm sure it's more nutritious than an iceberg lettuce. Also, steel-cut oats are...a steal (get it, get it?).
RECIPES
Breakfast for 3: measure 2/3 cup steel-cut oats into a pot. Cover with 2 2/3 cups boiling water and bring to a bubbling boil. Turn off heat and leave the pot overnight. In the morning, it will be miraculously cooked and all you need to do it heat it up. Serve with 1/3 sliced banana per person and 1 generous spoonful yogurt. (Variations: you can add any kind of fruit, or nuts, if you have them.)
Lunch: wraps with this amazing chicken salad from Smitten Kitchen. I use pecans instead of walnuts because they're cheaper, and leave out any ingredients I have, and substitute cheaper ingredients for the expensive ones. (I detest tarragon, so I will never have tarragon vinegar. I use whatever kind I have, usually the ultra-cheap old white kind that I also use for household cleaning, and it tastes just fine.) I add a handful of shredded romaine to each wrap, then roll them up tightly in plastic wrap. I cut up lots of carrots and celery in advance so I have a couple of days' supply, and put nuts into little plastic bags (which I wash and reuse, because I'm parsimonious like that.)
Dinners:
1) Black beans here. Half a cup of basmati rice typically fills us up; cook according to package directions. Steamed broccoli: cut 1 broccoli crown into small pieces, including the stems, which are perfectly edible. Place in a pot with about an inch of water; clap the lid on; bring to boil over high heat and leave it there 2-3 minutes. If you are feeling extra-thrifty, save the water in a container in the freezer to use later for stocks.
2) Chicken curry: cut one of the chicken breasts into small pieces and saute over medium heat in a large frying pan. Remove from pan. Now add 2 zucchini, sliced medium, and cook until slightly softened. Meanwhile, whisk curry paste together with coconut milk. Add chicken back to the pan and pour milk over the top. Serve with basmati rice and a salad made of shredded romaine and sliced tomatoes topped with a dressing of 1 tsp. (olive) oil and 1 tsp. (balsamic) vinegar, though any oil and any vinegar will do. This makes two meals.
3) Chicken and black bean enchiladas: this is probably the most time-consuming dish of the week. First, poach a chicken breast. You can do this by covering it with water in your frying pan, and simmering it for ten minutes on each side. Remove it from the water (keep the water in a container in the fridge! You'll use it as chicken stock tomorrow night!) and shred it using two forks. Mix your shredded chicken with a cup of leftover black beans from the other night, half a cup of enchilada sauce, and half a cup of grated cheese. Spread 1/2 cup of the mixture over about 6 tortillas (or more if you have more mixture). Roll up the tortillas and nestle them snugly together in a 9x13 baking dish. Pour the rest of the enchilada sauce over the tortillas and sprinkle a further cup of grated cheese over the top. Bake at 350F covered in foil for 20 minutes, then take the foil off and bake for another 10 minutes until the cheese is bubbling in an attractive manner.This makes two meals for three hungry people. Serve with a salad the first time and steamed broccoli the second time, to mix things up.
4) Spaghetti and tomato sauce: first, prepare your sauce, several days in advance if you like (it takes a while to cook). I love this recipe, although I typically halve it and don't add garlic or fresh basil, as I don't feel it needs it. (By all means add them, or the dried versions of either, if you like.) I also add finely chopped celery at the same time as the carrot, because I love a good mirepoix. Even halved, this recipe makes enough for two meals, so freeze half of it in a container when it's finished. You can use last night's chicken-poaching water for the stock. Boil your spaghetti; stir-fry two sliced zucchini over medium-high heat in a frying pan, adding whatever seasonings you like. Serve the spaghetti with a ladleful of sauce and a pinch of grated cheese, and the zucchini on the side. This meal is more vegetable-rich than
5) Vegetable frittata: cut up a red bell pepper and a crown of broccoli, including the stems. Saute in oil in a medium-sized, non-stick, oven-proof pan until the vegetables are slightly softened. Preheat your broiler. While the vegetables are cooking, whisk six eggs together. Pour the eggs into the pan and cook over medium heat until the eggs are slightly set on the bottom. Sprinkle whatever grated cheese you have left over the top and place the pan under the broiler for five minutes until the eggs are set and the cheese is melted. Cut into wedges and serve.
Sunday, August 4, 2013
Avocado and Orange Salad
Having said I don't like salads, there are actually one or two that I find perfectly heavenly. This one is great during the elusive part of summer when avocados are in season and ultra-cheap. Oranges cost mere pennies at my local supermarket, and I can get a huge head of romaine lettuce for a dollar that lasts us all week. The only dressing is freshly squeezed orange juice. It sounds a little odd, but it's perfectly delicious on a hot day. I sometimes eat this as a main course, because it's pretty filling all by itself.
Ingredients
3 cups washed and dried romaine lettuce, sliced
1 orange, peeled and cut into bite-sized pieces
The juice of another orange
1 avocado, peeled, de-stoned, and sliced or diced as you like
1/3 cup walnuts, coarsely chopped**
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese***
Mix the ingredients gently in a large bowl. Pour the orange juice over the top. Serve.
Serves 2 as a main course, 4 as a side dish
*I heard years ago that you were supposed to tear lettuce apart with your hands, but I have heard more recently that this bruises the lettuce and that it's much better for both the taste and the nutritional content to slice it. To be honest, I can't tell the difference. I find it quicker to slice the lettuce with a sharp knife, so that's what I do.
**Or pecans. I used whatever's cheapest because I like them both.
***If you don't care for feta, use any kind of crumbly cheese.
Ingredients
3 cups washed and dried romaine lettuce, sliced
1 orange, peeled and cut into bite-sized pieces
The juice of another orange
1 avocado, peeled, de-stoned, and sliced or diced as you like
1/3 cup walnuts, coarsely chopped**
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese***
Mix the ingredients gently in a large bowl. Pour the orange juice over the top. Serve.
Serves 2 as a main course, 4 as a side dish
*I heard years ago that you were supposed to tear lettuce apart with your hands, but I have heard more recently that this bruises the lettuce and that it's much better for both the taste and the nutritional content to slice it. To be honest, I can't tell the difference. I find it quicker to slice the lettuce with a sharp knife, so that's what I do.
**Or pecans. I used whatever's cheapest because I like them both.
***If you don't care for feta, use any kind of crumbly cheese.
Saturday, August 3, 2013
Quinoa tabbouleh
A very long time ago, when I was a student, I dated a boy from Iraq who took me to all sorts of Middle Eastern restaurants. It was there that I developed my lifelong love of tabbouleh. Recently, I had the urge for some, but didn't have any bulghur wheat, which is supposed to be the star ingredient. Happily, I had quinoa, and the results tasted so much better than the bulghur version that I've made it with quinoa ever since. (There are those who say--rightly--that we shouldn't eat so much quinoa, because an unintended consequence of its popularity in the West is that it's now too pricey for many Bolivians to eat. One thing we can do is to seek out American-grown quinoa. Another is to consume the Bolivian-grown stuff in moderation.)
Ingredients
1/2 cup quinoa (this doesn't look like a lot, but cooking it makes it expand to four times its size)
1/8 cup lemon juice (you can get this out of lemons, or use one of those lemon-shaped plastic squeezy bottles, I won't tell)
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/2 a teaspoon salt
pepper to taste
1 green onion, sliced very thinly (substitute a handful of chives if you don't like green onions)
1/2 cup parsley, chopped very finely (using a pair of scissors can speed this up)
1 English cucumber, peeled and cut in half lengthwise with the seed scooped out, cut into small cubes
1 cup chopped fresh tomatoes
Boil the quinoa in a large pot of boiling water over high heat for 15 minutes, or until the grains have gone translucent around the edges. Drain and allow to cool.
Mix the lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper in a small bowl.
Mix the cooled quinoa with the green onions, parsley, cucumber and tomatoes in a large bowl. Pour the dressing over the salad and mix thoroughly. Cover the bowl and refrigerate for two hours, then serve.
Serves 2-3 as a main course, 4 as a side dish.
Optional extras: you can put pretty much any raw vegetable you like into this. Finely chopped carrots, radishes, or peppers would all be good.
Butter Chicken
Mr. B and I were, in times past, great fans of the South Beach Diet and the low-carbohydrate lifestyle. I love carbs, and have never met a carb I didn't love, but there's a reason farmers feed cattle grains. Before our wedding, Mr. B and I both lost copious amounts of weight by cutting out virtually all carbs, and amassed a gigantic folder full of low-carb recipes that we printed out from various websites and blogs. One of these was a brilliant recipe for butter chicken that we loved and ate again and again.
The main problem with this recipe was that you can only really eat it if you aren't having carbs. It had an entire stick of butter in it, as well as peanut oil and a cup of cream. As part of a South Beach/Atkins/whatever lifestyle, it was perfectly fine; with sides of rice and naan, it was belt-splitting.
Now that we're too broke to restrict carbs (all those bacon-and-eggs breakfasts and hunks of meat for lunch and dinner really do add up), we wanted to have butter chicken again, in perhaps a more healthful manner. So I devised a lightened-up recipe which still tastes great, if less creamy, and makes wonderful leftovers.
It's true that there are lots of ingredients, and I promised you that I wouldn't give you any recipes that had a million ingredients that you didn't necessarily have. I tend to have a lot of spices in my kitchen, because I can get them cheaply at a local Asian market. However, not everyone has a useful shop like this, and spices can be terribly expensive if you buy them in those little jars from the supermarket. So if you don't have all the things I've listed, it's fine to skip them all but the cinnamon, and replace the others with 2-3 teaspoons of curry powder and a modest shake of cayenne pepper.
Ingredients
1 onion, chopped medium
2 tablespoons peanut oil
2 tablespoons butter
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon ground cardamom
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger*
2 cloves of garlic, crushed and chopped finely
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper**
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon garam masala
2 large skinless, boneless chicken breasts (or 4-6 skinless, boneless thighs if you prefer dark meat)
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can coconut milk (I used reduced fat)
Salt and pepper
1/2 to 1 cup plain unsweetened yogurt, to taste (I used fat free)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro (coriander leaves)
Slice the chicken into small bite-sized pieces, and cook them in a little oil in a large pan over medium-high heat for 5-7 minutes, or until it is cooked through. Remove with a slotted spoon.
Place 2 tablespoons of peanut oil and the butter in the pan over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook it, stirring often, until it's soft and golden brown, about 20-25 minutes.
Add all spices, the garlic and the ginger and cook for another 2-3 minutes, stirring constantly. Add the tomatoes and coconut milk, and cook, stirring occasionally, for around 20 minutes, or until the sauce thickens. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Add the chicken to the sauce and cook, stirring, until the chicken is heated through. At the last minute, stir the yogurt, season again if necessary, then stir in the cilantro.
Serve over brown basmati rice with a side salad.
Serves 6 (or 2, with leftovers for a couple more meals)
*I keep a piece of fresh ginger in the freezer and grate bits off when I need it. You don't even need to peel the ginger when it's frozen, because the skin sort of sloughs itself off when you grate it.
**I tend to like curries hotter than this, but I tone things down these days because my toddler can't handle the sort of spices that make your scalp break into a sweat.
The main problem with this recipe was that you can only really eat it if you aren't having carbs. It had an entire stick of butter in it, as well as peanut oil and a cup of cream. As part of a South Beach/Atkins/whatever lifestyle, it was perfectly fine; with sides of rice and naan, it was belt-splitting.
Now that we're too broke to restrict carbs (all those bacon-and-eggs breakfasts and hunks of meat for lunch and dinner really do add up), we wanted to have butter chicken again, in perhaps a more healthful manner. So I devised a lightened-up recipe which still tastes great, if less creamy, and makes wonderful leftovers.
It's true that there are lots of ingredients, and I promised you that I wouldn't give you any recipes that had a million ingredients that you didn't necessarily have. I tend to have a lot of spices in my kitchen, because I can get them cheaply at a local Asian market. However, not everyone has a useful shop like this, and spices can be terribly expensive if you buy them in those little jars from the supermarket. So if you don't have all the things I've listed, it's fine to skip them all but the cinnamon, and replace the others with 2-3 teaspoons of curry powder and a modest shake of cayenne pepper.
Ingredients
1 onion, chopped medium
2 tablespoons peanut oil
2 tablespoons butter
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon ground cardamom
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger*
2 cloves of garlic, crushed and chopped finely
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper**
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon garam masala
2 large skinless, boneless chicken breasts (or 4-6 skinless, boneless thighs if you prefer dark meat)
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can coconut milk (I used reduced fat)
Salt and pepper
1/2 to 1 cup plain unsweetened yogurt, to taste (I used fat free)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro (coriander leaves)
Slice the chicken into small bite-sized pieces, and cook them in a little oil in a large pan over medium-high heat for 5-7 minutes, or until it is cooked through. Remove with a slotted spoon.
Place 2 tablespoons of peanut oil and the butter in the pan over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook it, stirring often, until it's soft and golden brown, about 20-25 minutes.
Add all spices, the garlic and the ginger and cook for another 2-3 minutes, stirring constantly. Add the tomatoes and coconut milk, and cook, stirring occasionally, for around 20 minutes, or until the sauce thickens. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Add the chicken to the sauce and cook, stirring, until the chicken is heated through. At the last minute, stir the yogurt, season again if necessary, then stir in the cilantro.
Serve over brown basmati rice with a side salad.
Serves 6 (or 2, with leftovers for a couple more meals)
*I keep a piece of fresh ginger in the freezer and grate bits off when I need it. You don't even need to peel the ginger when it's frozen, because the skin sort of sloughs itself off when you grate it.
**I tend to like curries hotter than this, but I tone things down these days because my toddler can't handle the sort of spices that make your scalp break into a sweat.
Spicy Salad Dressing that makes salad bearable
For a person who claims to like healthy eating, I have to admit that I don't terribly like salads. I adore steamed vegetables and vegetable dishes like ratatouille, but salads often make me think of something I'd give my pet cow for lunch, if I had a pet cow. That was before I discovered salad dressing.
We didn't have salad dressings in my house when I was a child, because my father couldn't abide them. I thought for my first two or even three decades that I hated salad dressing too, so if I ever had a salad, it had nothing on it. I still don't much like commercial salad dressings, which tend to be full of weird ingredients and have sugar, which mystifies me because the last thing I want on my salad is sugar. A French friend taught me to make a decent olive oil and balsamic vinegar dressing with marjoram that I liked well enough, but it wasn't until this year that I discovered this wonderful spicy dressing that goes well with any salad. Now I think salads are tops and eat two enormous ones a day.
Ingredients
1/2 teaspoon rice vinegar*
1/4 teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon soy sauce
1/4 teaspoon Sriracha
Mix together in a measuring cup, pour over salad. Easy!
My idea of a good green salad is having something leafy (romaine lettuce, baby kales, baby spinach leaves), something crunchy (julienned carrots, sliced celery, sliced radishes) and something soft (tomato segments, sliced avocados). But any raw vegetable would do.
*Red or white wine vinegar would be fine too; whatever you have.
We didn't have salad dressings in my house when I was a child, because my father couldn't abide them. I thought for my first two or even three decades that I hated salad dressing too, so if I ever had a salad, it had nothing on it. I still don't much like commercial salad dressings, which tend to be full of weird ingredients and have sugar, which mystifies me because the last thing I want on my salad is sugar. A French friend taught me to make a decent olive oil and balsamic vinegar dressing with marjoram that I liked well enough, but it wasn't until this year that I discovered this wonderful spicy dressing that goes well with any salad. Now I think salads are tops and eat two enormous ones a day.
Ingredients
1/2 teaspoon rice vinegar*
1/4 teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon soy sauce
1/4 teaspoon Sriracha
Mix together in a measuring cup, pour over salad. Easy!
My idea of a good green salad is having something leafy (romaine lettuce, baby kales, baby spinach leaves), something crunchy (julienned carrots, sliced celery, sliced radishes) and something soft (tomato segments, sliced avocados). But any raw vegetable would do.
*Red or white wine vinegar would be fine too; whatever you have.
Moussaka
When I was a student, I had two Greek housemates who introduced me to foods I hadn't tried before, such as patstitsio and moussaka. I'm afraid I can't remember exactly how they made moussaka, so I've invented my own version of possibly dubious authenticity. I remember nostalgically the giant vats of heavenly Greek olive oil they used to bring back after Christmas, the like of which I cannot get here. I also remember the incredibly loud conversations in Greek that they had in the kitchen. At first, their raised voices and wild hand gestures made me think they were having a very bitter argument. Eventually, I intervened and asked them what was the matter. They blinked a bit and told me they were having a perfectly calm discussion about the books they liked. I think they thought I was very Anglo and uptight.
Another doubtless inauthentic touch is how I pre-cook the eggplant. I thought for many years that I didn't like eggplant, because it seemed slimy in texture, and took absolutely gallons of oil to cook in a frying pan. Then I figured out that you could actually bake it in a fraction of the amount of oil, where it would cook beautifully and not at all slimily. If you don't like it like this, by all means cook it in a frying pan.
Ingredients
extra virgin olive oil
1 large eggplant
1 pound ground lamb (if this is ferociously expensive, I'd substitute lean ground beef; other cheaper ground meats such as pork and turkey would not, I think, be right here)
1 onion, finely chopped
3 cloves of garlic, crushed and chopped finely
1 can crushed tomatoes (passata, that is)
2 tablespoons flour
2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 teaspoon cinnamon
Sauce ingredients
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons flour
1/2 a teaspoon nutmeg
1 cup milk, warmed*
1 cup grated cheddar
1 egg
salt and pepper
Preheat your oven to 360 Fahrenheit (180 Celsius).
Slice your eggplant into 1/2 inch rounds. Brush them on both sides with olive oil (or spray them with cooking spray) and lay them in one layer on a large baking sheet lined with foil. Bake for up to 30 minutes, or until soft.
While the eggplant slices are baking, heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a large frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the onions and garlic and cook until the onion has softened slightly, about 5 minutes. Add the ground meat and brown it, breaking up lumps with a wooden spoon, until most of the pink has disappeared.
Stir in the oregano, cinnamon, and the first measure of flour, and cook for about a minute. Add the crushed tomatoes and heat until the mixture boils and thickens, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer into an 8x8 baking dish (you'll want one with reasonably tall sides. If you don't have one like this, use a larger dish).
While the meat mixture is cooking, make your sauce. In a medium pot, melt the butter, add the flour and nutmeg, and cook, stirring, for about 30 seconds. Add the warmed milk, 1/4 cup at a time, stirring constantly until the sauce starts to thicken. If the sauce is lumpy, whisk thoroughly to break them up. Remove from the heat and add the grated cheddar, stirring until it's melted. Add the egg and beat with a whisk.
By now, the eggplant should be ready. Remove it from the oven and layer slices of it artfully over the meat mixture in the baking dish. Pour the cheese sauce over the of this and bake for 30 minutes or until the top is lightly golden brown.
Serves 6. Keeps well in the refrigerator, reheats well.
*The reason you warm the milk is that it makes the sauce less lumpy. By all means use cold milk if you can't be bothered warming it, but you may have to whisk more vigorously to compensate.
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