Worked a half day today at my primary job to make up the hours I lost to interview for Walmart earlier in the week.  The time went quickly as I got to sit next to a wonderful lady who I rarely get the chance to speak to.  I even made my target in terms of the number of leads I was able to generate.

From there I hit two supermarkets.  And then I came home and cooked for the week ahead.  I made two huge pans of macaroni and cheese with bits of steak, caramelized mushrooms, and sauteed mushrooms.  I baked some chicken thighs and legs.  I even roasted some eggplant with plans to make Bengan Bhartha later in the week and turned the meat from some chicken 1/4′s into chicken salad which Accolan can turn into something akin to tuna melts one night this week.

We are blessed with being able to have our niece AngelGirl over for the weekend, even if I’ve only seen her in passing.  All 3 girls have been holed up in one bedroom for most of the time giggling, though we did get them to go to the community pool for a bit.  Tomorrow while I’m at work (11-7) the plan is for them to watch a movie from the $1 a night Red Box, Beastly, and to bake cookies.  I can’t say how much it means to have them all getting along so well and seemingly enjoying each others company so much.

Hope you are all enjoying your weekend.

Blessings

Jia

It’s been a hard week in terms of keeping myself on track financially.  I’ve been exhausted, truly bone weary.  So much so that the extra 15 minutes of sleep seemed so much more important than the ability to make my daily sandwiches that I found myself at the WaWa on my way to work more than once.  Additionally, this week the young man that Reya has been “seeing” since last fall came back from spending July at the academic camps his parents had sent him to out of state. I splurged and ordered a couple of pizzas (spending about $28 incl tip).

What this means in that I had to make up that money by spending less at the grocery store this week.  Luckily,  still have food leftover from last week’s cooking, this worked out just fine.

I raided the pantry for a bunch of canned crushed tomatoes (purchased at $.88 to $.99 each), minced a bunch of garlic and onion, and picked some basil from the backyard and put up a pot of marinara sauce.  Some of it will be served over pasta, and some will (with the help of a block of mozzarella I defrosted and some rolls I have yet to purchase) turn some lentil balls I made last weekend into meatball parm subs.

I also took a bunch of zucchini I harvested last weekend and made zucchini fritters.  The main changes to the recipe involved frying them in the last of the olive oil (I will be using vegetable oil from here on out as it runs about 1/3 the price of the extra virgin oil I prefer) and adding more zucchini to the batter than was called for.  They are crisp and tender and savory and so good I want to eat all of them all by myself.

I still have to make a batch of saffron rice (to keep us in deconstructed tacos), but other than that my once a week cooking is done.  The only food shopping yet to do involves picking up some fresh tomatoes, a dozen eggs, and some rolls – probably no more than $15.

Next weekend?  I still have some chicken meat in the freezer to turn into pasta salad, and the ingredients for potato salad.  I have hot dogs in the freezer and a bunch of frozen vegetables.  Ah!  The joys of a full pantry.

Blessings

Jia

image thanks to Blueclayfarm

Right now I am working 6 days a week.  Color me exhausted!

Despite the necessity, I am worried about my ability to actually take on a second job, especially as doing so will cost me not only the ability to catch up on my sleep one day a week, but may also cost me my once-a-week cooking which is how I keep my kids eating home cooked meal and control my food costs.

Until that time though, today found me whipping up another week of frugal fare.  This week will find us at a total of 4, count them 4 stores, to get all the food and pantry items we need for the best prices.  Our grand total for the week will be just around $100.  And, like last week, this is not only to feed the 5 of us until I go food shopping again but, is also enough to add some food to the pantry for the weeks to come.

This week will find us eating:

3 half-size aluminum trays of Macaroni and Cheese with Tuna and Peas (very similar to our ham casserole).  The raw ingredients probably cost about $10 and with spoonfuls of jarred applesauce on the side (which will add another $2.50) each serving will run less than $1.

• 4 boxes pre-fab Mac-n-Cheese
• 1 lb elbow macaroni
• 1 stick butter
• 2.5 cups skim milk
• 4 cans tuna
• 4 oz cheddar cheese, diced
• about 1/2 onion, sauteed
• garlic powder
• topped with bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, parsley and thyme

Another batch of vegetarian deconstructed tacos is on the menu this week as well.  Our recipe for vegan taco filling is the most popular page on this site, and with good reason.  The taste and texture will fool your favorite meat eater, its cheap and easy to make, and its very very nutritious.  With a family of 5 spanning the ages of 71 to 11 it can be hard to find dishes that everyone likes, and this is one that everyone loves.

Based on the success of my vegetarian tacos, this week we are also trying vegetarian meatballs.  Sauteed onions and garlic, cooked lentils, eggs, milk, Parmesean cheese, and seasoned breadcrumbs mixed up, formed into balls, and fried.  The plan it to put up a pot of sauce later in the week and have spaghetti and “meatballs” for a fraction of the price of the ground beef alone, with a stronger nutritional punch, and none of the cholesterol.  The meatballs themselves are pretty good.  Nice and crisp on the outside, soft and tender on the inside.  Accolan even enjoys them cold and is hinting that they would make great meatball parm subs.  I’m sure that they’ll get better as I tweak the recipe, but for a first go at it – damn if they don’t do the job well.

But, we also decided to have a bit of fun.  We broke in the deep-fryer that Accolan bought me for Yule last year.  We took one of the huge zucchini from my garden: sliced, breaded, and fried them.  We deep-fried a package of mushrooms as well.  We also took some sweet potatoes and turned them into fries.  Everything turned out really yummy, and I learned (after months of avoiding it) that using a deep fryer really wasn’t all that intimidating after all.

There is more to do.  We didn’t get started cooking until late, and so we had to stop so that there was still enough time to allow me to enjoy my evening before yet another long day at work.

What did you cook this  weekend?

Blessings

Mama Kelly

image thanks to swtleah

This is one of my favorite go-to meals when I need something easy, cheap, and nutritious to put out on the table.

A nice vegetarian alternative for a traditional meat sauce. Rich and flavorful, just enough spice. Basic, inexpensive ingredients. Served on a bed of whole wheat pasta (or even brown rice) makes a complete protein.

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons olive oil
3 medium onions
5 cloves garlic
2 1/2 cups dry lentils
6 cups water
2 28 oz cans crushed tomatoes (with basil)*
1 small can tomato paste
1 tsp crushed red pepper
1/2 tsp dried parsley

salt to taste (optional)

Directions:

Slice onions into very thin rounds (or chop finely) and saute in oil until tender. Dice garlic and add to onions, cooking for another minute or two.

Add the lentils, mixing to coat with the seasoned oil, and then the water. Allow to come to a boil. Then reduce heat and simmer for approximately 30 minutes.

Add crushed tomatoes and all seasonings. Add salt if desired. Mix well. Add tomato paste a spoonful at a time, mixing well after each addition.

Lower heat and allow to cook for at least an hour to allow the the tomatoes to lose their raw taste and for all the flavors to meld sufficiently.

* If using unseasoned canned tomatoes simply add 1/4 tsp dried basil, or a few fresh chopped basil leaves.

Serving:

Enough sauce for up to 2 pounds of pasta. This is enough to feed my family of 5 (3 adults, a teen and a tween) twice.

If your diet allows, serve with grated Parmesan or Romano cheese to sprinkle on top of each serving.

Adapted from:

American Wholefoods Cuisine

You might also like:

Enemy Of The Steak: Vegetarian Recipes To Win Friends And Influence Meat-Eaters

The Complete Italian Vegetarian Cookbook: 350 Essential Recipes for Inspired Everyday Eating

Image: Suat Eman / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

I could sit here in stressed silence and say nothing, like I’ve been doing for the past few months.  But, it occurs to me, that I am not the only person to go through something like this – especially now, in the current economy here in the US.

It occurs to me that as I figure out ways to slash our expenses, tighten our pursestrings, and pinch every penny until it squeals that there may be something of value learned to share with others.

One of my family’s (probably most families) biggest monthly expenses is food, and unfortunately this is an expense that has only increased in the last couple of months as I switched Accolan and I over to morning smoothies, and made grilled & roasted vegetables the star of our dinners.  So the first things to attack is the food budget.

I was on my way out to the supermarket when my husband pulled me aside to break the news to me about the sudden decrease in our income.  I immediately put my keys down and hit the pantry to see what I could make for the week to come without having to go out to the store at all.

I made a batch of pasta sauce.  Granted the last thing that I, or anyone in the house, wants to sit down and eat on a sultry summer night is a plate of pasta.  But, food is food and goodness knows I still have a lot of pasta stored up.

I defrosted some pork chops (purchased in a B1G1Free) and tossed them in teriyaki sauce to marinate before grilling them for dinner today.

I cooked up a batch of vegetarian taco filling.  This is one of our family favorite dishes and, best of all, is seriously cheap to make.

I made a batch of potato and egg salad, using the rest of the 10 lb bag of taters I’d purchased in advance of the Fourth of July.

I whipped up a mess of baked beans in my crockpot.

I served breakfast for dinner, using up some frozen waffles and breakfast sausage that had been taking up freezer space.

I still need to go buy a few small things: produce, white bread, and milk.  But, I should be able to get out of the store for very little.

Wish us luck!

Blessings

Jia

image thanks to Txfish