Becoming a Domestic God(dess), Part One

It occurred to me today that I've been cooking all week and only spent $5 at the grocery store on Monday. I haven't made the big grocery run in going on three weeks, which is really unusual. I will have to go in the next few days to replenish the pantry, but I've been very pleased with saving money, utilizing what I have, and not having to leave the house.

A friend of mine is embarking on cooking to save both money and calories. My biggest struggle when I started cooking for myself was doing it cheaply and healthfully. I could pull off one but not the other. At one point, I was spending over $75 a week on food, not finishing it, and not having room in my freezer for leftovers. Then I got smart about it. And now, I'm smart about it, have access to a real kitchen, and have someone to help me eat these dinners and contribute to the budget for these dinners. Now, this happy occurrence doesn't... uh... occur for everyone so nicely and conveniently. Yet, the cooking can be done, cheaply, healthfully, and in a hurry after work when you are worn out. The key is smart stocking. This friend mentioned what he was trying to do and I thought I would post this to help him.

First, you need the basics. Now, basics are different for everyone. My basics are as follow:

Cabinet/pantry
Canned tomatoes
Canned crushed tomatoes (I use in lieu of tomato sauce)
Canned beans (black, white, kidney -- mostly black)
Canned vegetables you will eat (for me, this is green beans and corn, because Mr. B will eat both with no prodding)
Orzo
Rice
Some variety of macaroni
Some variety of long pasta
Broth or base (I now swear by Better than Boullion -- you get 38 cups' worth of base in a tiny jar... imagine how much room 16 cans of broth take up, and how much you will waste because no one ever calls for 2 cups of broth -- always 1 or 3 -- and the stupid cans only come in 2 c. sizes. Uh... I digress...)
Tomato soup
Dried beans (black, white, red)
Fresh garlic
Onions
Potatoes
Canned fruit

Fridge
Buttah!(can also be bought in bulk and frozen)
Carrots
Natural vanilla low-fat yogurt
Cottage cheese
Fresh fruit (apples, pears etc. can hang on the counter)
Eggs
Milk or soymilk (or canned evaporated milk -- some of us can't use up milk quickly enough)
8 oz. cheese bricks (Buy on sale -- they keep for ages and can be frozen. They melt better than pre-shredded so you get more flavor, better texture and can use less. The anti-caking agent on pre-shredded makes it all dry. Just trust me on this; you won't be sorry.)
Corn tortillas (yes, you can make your own, but if you're just starting out, don't bother. The pack of eight zillion keep for ages in the fridge.)

Freezer
Frozen veggies (spinach is completely necessary)

Powdery things
Flour
Sugar
Dark brown sugar (I never ever use light. I just love dark and don't see why they bother with the light.)
Cornmeal
Corn starch
Cocoa
Baking powder
Baking soda

Near the stove/spice rack
Olive oil
Vegetable oil
Red wine vinegar
Balsamic vinegar
Red wine
White wine
Basil
Oregano
Cumin
Nutmeg
Tabasco sauce
Worcestershire sauce
Vanilla
Salt and pepper

Now, this is not comprehensive, and I'm sure there are many things on here you might not need. And, you can build on this. Clearly, the first month you cook, you won't need all the spices I listed. Pick them up on an on-sale or as needed basis. (And, buy them in the international section or at another store -- spices are a racket as described at Casual Kitchen. Much of the items can be picked up on sale, in bulk, at warehouse stores (they have killer deals on giant cans of tomato puree), and even at the dollar store.

You'll note something missing -- meat. I buy that weekly, and I stretch it. If I buy a package of sausage, it will likely go in a lasagne, a bean soup, and maybe a quiche. Same for bacon, beef, chicken, etc. I'll go ahead and cook the whole pack, then divide and freeze some for the next recipe. It saves money, and it keeps me and Mr. B from eating so much meat. (Well, he has been known to go forage after dinner, but baby steps, people, baby steps.) Also, if you're like me and lack self-control, go ahead and put some of the dinner in storage containers to cool and go into the freezer. Leave some out for lunch or the next night in the fridge, put some away for the next week or two when you're busy, and leave out a max of two servings in case you're starving. Instantly, your meal has staying power. Also, keep a list on the fridge/freezer of what meals/perishables you have so you can eat what is already there. I'm a notorious food forgetter.

I can make about 85% of my regular recipes from what's listed up there plus meat. (Casual kitchen also has an article about that -- CK calls it the 80/20 rule. Seriously, you need to read the whole site anyway. Just go look. It's lovely. CK and CHG are very much my favorite sites about cooking. They are well-written, informative, and it sounds creepy, but they seem like people I'd like to have over for cake and coffee and to tell about any hysterical kitchen tragedy/triumph.

So, that's my first musing on the topic. Read up, buddy. Next post -- how to feed yourself in 30 minutes or less or the soup's free. Oh, wait.

Pasta PrimaSquasha for Two One

I came in ravenous on Friday afternoon. I don't know what it is about cooking lunch on Fridays (see Trash(y) Pasta Salad), but it's been happening of late. It is probably just the knowledge that after next week, I work real jobs and can't do it anymore. Anyhow, I wanted something filling and tasty, and did not want to go out in public. I scanned the kitchen... 2 tomatoes on the verge of squish, a squash on the verge of squish, an onion, and some whole wheat fettucine. Perfect!

Twelve Minute Pasta PrimaSquasha



-A little olive oil
-One large summer squash (or zucchini)
-About a cup of sliced onion (I used half of a gigantic vidalia)
-Two fresh tomatoes, or canned diced tomatoes
-Two cloves garlic (I sliced... I still can't remember to bring the mincer back to Mr. B.'s)
-Herbs and spices
-A little white wine for deglazing
-A little sugar
-Freshly ground salt and pepper
-Whole wheat pasta

Put pasta water on to boil. Wash and cut squash lengthwise and scrape out some of the seeds with a spoon. Slice squash and saute in a little olive oil while you cut onion. Add onion to pan and cook with squash until both veggies are getting soft while you cut the tomatoes. (I bet you can put your pasta on now). Add tomatoes to pan, stir, add garlic. Let that cook and get happy. Add herbs and spices. After things have been cooking a bit and are starting to smell and look delightful, remove pan from heat and add a little white wine to deglaze the pan. Stir and scrape and put the pan back on the heat. Things a little dry? Not too saucy? Add a dash of sugar (less than a tablespoon) to the veggies. This will bring out the flavor of the tomatoes and draw out a little juice. Turn heat to low and stir while you wait for pasta to cook. Season to taste, and serve a giant helping of veggies over some pasta, perhaps with a little fresh parm.

Now, I made that giant pan up there with the intent of feeding Mr. B. too. He foolishly decided to go fishing, and I ate the entire pan of veggies all by my ownself. I didn't even have pasta with the second serving, and I did not feel bad about cleaning out that pan one bit. It was freaking wonderful. You know what else? One tomato was a delicious farmers market tomato. The other was a pinkish grocery store tomato Mr. B. put in the fridge -- but cooking it made it better. So, don't give up on the eehhhh-about-to-squish produce all the time. I mean, don't eat moldy carrots, but some stuff you can salvage.

The cost? The tomatoes were about .50, the squash was about .50, the onion, .50, and the pasta, mmm... about .50. Let's call it a 2.50 lunch that should have served two. Alas, je suis un piggy.

Magical 17 Cent Low Fat Low Cal Brownies of Wonder

Hi again! It's been awhile. I've been busy not posting, but I have been busy cooking and taking pictures, and reading cookbooks, and doing lots of things that I'll get around to here. :) So... today's project... magic brownies!

Awhile back (like, say, ten years ago), mom and I found a great lowfat brownie recipe that we made ad nauseum. Well, not really, cause I don't so much tire of brownies. Anyhow, it had interesting ingredients, but nothing really strange. It called for cocoa and lowfat sour cream, and I can't remember the rest. I've been looking all over for it, and can't find it. But, the search led me to something really neat. As I googled, all-reciped and cooks.commed around, I discovered a completely odd recipe for healthier brownies. People have been talking about it all over the internet. It's just brownie mix and one secret ingredient. You just have to keep the secret ingredient a secret until you get someone to eat it.

So, I went to the grocery store the other night and Ghiradelli double chocolate brownie mix was on sale for 1.89 and the secret ingredient was .79. I figured this would be a fair investment for something that could be a culinary disaster.

And here we go. Try it before you judge.


Magic brownies
Makes 16 2-inch brownies. I call this 4-8 servings.


-1 box brownie mix
-1 can black beans (I swear to Paula Deen, it's true)

Preheat oven according to package directions. (I did 325, using a glass 8x8 pan -- I like thick fudginess.) Make sure your significant other will not come into the kitchen for the next two minutes. Dump beans into a colander, saving the can. Rinse them well. Rinse out the can. Return the beans to the can and put enough water in the can to just cover the beans. Dump beans and water into blender and blend the bejaysus out of them. If you don't blend them well, you'll get bits of bean skin in the brownies. While blender is on forever, go make small talk with significant other and tell him you're doing a science experiment in the blender. Run back and make sure you hid the bean can. Dump brownie mix into a bowl. Add the blended beans. Stir well. Pour in greased brownie pan/dish. Bake according to package directions. Cool. Cut. Serve. Make s.o. or small children eat one and then tell them what's in it. Smile as they gawk.

The nutritional stats are pretty awesome. Per brownie using Ghiradelli:
Calories:164
Fat: Less than 4 grams
Saturated fat: 1.5 grams
Fiber: 2.5 grams
Sodium: 200 mg.
9% RDA for iron
No cholesterol!

Go ahead and double that, cause I already ate 2. Oh, and by the way? The cost is 17 cents per brownie. Seriously, you can't not try this. And if you like frosted brownies, what better way to feel good about indulging?

I served one up to Mr. B. He ate it and said, "That was good."

I said, "Come on! I need more than that. I know the texture was weird, but tell me what you think of them."

"Ok. Yeah, the texture's different. The taste is good, just not as rich as regular brownies." Fair enough. They don't get the crusty top, but criminy they're fudgy. Then he looked at me again.
"What did you put in there?"

"Black beans."

"Damn good use of black beans."

So there! Give it a shot and let me know what you think!

Trash(y) salad

Yesterday, I got into my housekeeping groove and didn't want to quit. I was doing laundry, washing dishes, throwing stuff away, and I didn't want to stop to go to the grocery store, but I was crazy hungry. It came to me that we hadn't been to the grocery store all week, and we used to go almost every day for something. Granted, we had dinner out with Mr. B.'s parentpeople one night, but other than that, we had leftovers and madeovers. I saw no reason to break the cycle for lunch on a Friday. After cleaning the kitchen, I looked around and saw a lot of odds and ends. Odds and ends are the perfect opportunity for...

Trash(y) Pasta Salad!


Serves as many people as you want. Just add more stuff. (I am SO technical!)

8 oz. dry rotini (or fusili, or for true trashy salad, the cheapest elbow mac you can find. I had wacky mac, so mine was a trace more garbage blanche than white trash--just like me!)
red wine vinegar
olive oil
herbs and spices
low-fat mayo (if you're doing better than I am, you've got yogurt in your fridge, and can mix it 50/50 with the mayo... I wasn't there on Friday)
sugar
delicious veggies you need to use

Boil water. While you wait for water to boil, mix about a tablespoon olive oil with about 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar. Add spices. I used Italian seasoning, garlic powder, salt, pepper, basil and oregano. Whisk in small bowl (I used a measuring cup). Add about 2 tablespoons mayo, or your mayo-yogurt mix. (Some people like to use reduced fat sour cream. I'd go easy on the vinegar if you're gonna do that.) Add a little sugar. Whisk some more (I say whisk... I did in fact whisk it with a fork... a whisk was entirely unneccesary for this operation) and let all that get comfy and intimate together while you dump pasta in the pot and chop veggies. I had an orange bell pepper we've had since... I don't know, but I'm surprised it's still good. I also have a ton of baby carrots, so I sliced them thinly and tossed them in the pot for the last 4 minutes or so of the pasta cooking so they could slightly soften. I also chopped a tomato.

When pasta is done, drain and rinse with cool water. Dump in bowl, add veggies. Pour some dressing over, stir, and add more dressing if necessary. Salt, pepper, and put in fridge. If you're starving like I was, you can stick it in the freezer for a cold minute and then put your face in it after you've grated some fresh parm on top.

This would also be fantastic with peas, ham, chicken, or any odds and ends things you have in the fridge. I mean, I wouldn't put fruit in it, but you get the idea.

Not the healthiest, but I made it entirely from staples (not the metal kind, ew) and leftovers.

I'm Tired, Turkey

So last night when I came in from work, I was so tired I immediately went to bed for an hour and a half, and so did Mr. B. This led us both to wake up around nine p.m., each hungry enough to contemplate pouring mustard on the other, chomping, and facing consequences later. I asked Mr. B., "Do you want healthy?" He's kinda got to do the healthy thing, but at nine p.m. allowances can be made.

"Yes and no."

"Ok," I said. "That I can do."

Mr. B likes meat, cheese, and carbs. I like veggies, cheese, and carbs, and I like meat sometimes. I knew that his belly needed filling, and it had to be tasty, but I didn't want a nutritional travesty. I excel at pasta; I excel at casserole. These powers combined...

A Variation on Ziti.

-One pound of whole wheat penne (Barila was on sale for $1.39)
-One pound of ground turkey (3.99 -- this can usually be gotten cheaper on sale)
-One can of diced tomatoes (I use Hunt's Fire Roasted with Garlic -- thick, chunky, very little juice, and on sale for .97!)
-8 oz tomato sauce (I bought a 16 oz can of the store brand for .65 and used half--
The rest will certainly be used within days)
-One onion (had on hand, about $1 at the grocery store)
-One green bell pepper (had on hand, about .79 at the grocery store)
-Garlic clove (again, had on hand)
-1 c. lowfat cheddar cheese (Used Kraft -- it was the only lowfat, non-fake cheese I
could find. Unfortunately, the package cost $4.39. I can usually get two of the
store brand for that, but I was willing to compromise for lower fat)
-1 c. lowfat cottage cheese (I used a little more than a cup. I purchased a two-cup
container for 1.97, and will annihilate the rest on salads this week
Optional, but awesome: assorted herbs and spices, fresh parm for topping

The directions that follow are intended for someone with a dirty kitchen who might hurt someone if she doesn't eat soon.

Come in from grocery store, exhausted. Find only clean pot, add water, lid it and put it on heat to boil while you chop and fry. Preheat oven to 350. Start sauteing turkey while you wash the cutting board and knife so you can chop bell pepper. (I kinda halfass large-diced it. I was not concerned with looks.) Throw bell pepper in with cooking turkey (pepper needs longer than onion to cook). (Your water's probably boiling now. Add penne and stir.) Dice onion (we had a vidalia. Was tasty.) and add to pan. When turkey is about done, mince or slice a large garlic clove and add it to pan. Stir a bit and wait for some of the water to cook out of the pan. (By the way, there's enough water in the turkey that you generally don't even have to use olive oil. For real!) When everything's done and looking happily delicious, lower the heat and add the tomatoes (if you use regular diced tomatoes, drain off some of the liquid). Stir. Add some tomato sauce (you can use more than I did -- Mr. B just isn't a huge fan of lots of tomato sauce in a dish) and herbs to taste. I threw in some Italian seasoning, basil, oregano, a little sea salt and a few turns of the pepper mill. Then, I added the cottage cheese (lower fat than even the part-skim ricotta, and still tasty!) and a half cup of cheddar. Stir. Sniff. Get excited.

Put some cooked, drained pasta in your baking dish. (I think I used a 2 quart and still had some left over for a smaller casserole. You'll have to eyeball this.)Add some of the sauce mixture. Stir. Add more pasta and more sauce and stir. Do this till the ratio makes you happy and the pan is full. Sprinkle with about a half cup of cheddar, and bake for about 15 minutes. Everything's fully cooked and hot, so it doesn't have to cook long. Plate some and grate some fresh parmesan on top if you like. It went well with green beans, and today at lunch it went well with salad. Mr. B pronounced it good with a glass of merlot, and I did the same with a glass of vinho verde. (What versatility!)

Mr. B noted after dinner that it would have been good with half the amount of cottage cheese combined with an equal amount of the lowfat ricotta, and also suggested adding zucchini next time. (I will.)

As far as servings, he and I are fairly big eaters, so I don't want to say a cup is a serving. However, the fiberlicious whole grain pasta and turkey make it a fairly filling dish. We're getting about 7-8 meal-sized servings (again -- us-sized servings) out of it.

My total cost at the grocery store: $13.36 (and I have sauce and cheese left over for later culinary endeavors this week). Add in the onion and bell pepper, and it could cost around $15. Not the cheapest in the world, but feeding 2 people four times, and serving it with canned green beans ($1) or a bag of salad (Manager's Special -- $1.99), it's a pretty sweet deal.

Check out the blurry deliciousness (I really need to work on my photography...)