Category Archives: Less than 5

These recipes take less than 5 ingredients, less than $5, and/or less than 5 minutes

Breakfast, Dips and Sauces, Eggs, Less than 5

Easy Eggs Benny with Garlic Chive Toast

February 10, 2021 BudgetEpicurean 2 Comments

Many people are afraid to make eggs benedict at home because it is perceived as a highly technical dish. You must cook the eggs in a way to not break them, and the Hollandaise sauce is especially revered.

But I’m here to tell you, if I can make it in a 1-bedroom apartment kitchen, so can you!

I can share with you two tricks to make this breakfast a snap. It still does take more than a few minutes, but honestly is so simply you could make this on a typical weekday morning. This is a recipe for one, but can easily be scaled up.

You will need:

A sauce pot to boil water
A coffee cup or two
2 eggs
2 slices of bread
1/2 stick of butter
2 tbsp lemon juice
Garlic salt
Chives or green onion, about 1 tbsp
Paprika, optional garnish

Trick number one: to make a perfect egg, use a coffee cup. Just place the cup inside a pot, and fill with water. Obviously you should make sure you are using a ceramic cup, or one which otherwise can withstand boiling.

Then, once the water is at a rolling boil, crack the egg into the cup. Gravity pulls it down, but since it is safe inside the container it can’t get rolled about by the boiling bubbles, and stays together to cook into a perfect little package. Boil it for 5 minutes for a still-runny interior, or longer if you want it cooked through.

Trick number two: use a blender to make the easiest Hollandaise sauce ever!

Melt 1/2 stick of butter, not to boiling just enough to become liquid. Add to the blender, along with one whole egg, lemon juice, and a dash of salt or cayenne if you like. Blitz, and you’re done!

Schmear some toast with some butter, sprinkle on garlic salt and chives, top with your egg and drizzle liberally with sauce! Sprinkle with some paprika if you fancy like that. Enjoy!

Casseroles, Comfort food, Less than 5, Main Dishes, Pasta

Cincinnati Sweet Chili Pasta

February 3, 2021 BudgetEpicurean 1 Comment

For those of you who know what Cincinnati chili is, you don’t need me to tell you how great it can be! But it is also a pretty polarizing food, like cilantro, you either love it or hate it. Basically, you plop chili on top of cooked spaghetti, and then add a handful of cheese.

This all started back in the 1920s, when some Macedonian immigrants wanted to sell more food to people who were wary of ethnic cuisine. They developed a Mediterranean spiced tomato based mixture that they then put on hot dogs, which they called “coneys”.

This sauce then was added to alter Greek style pasta dishes, to make what he at first just called chili spaghetti. It was all cooked together, until customers began requesting it as just a topping. Then cheddar cheese got involved, beans were added, chopped onions, and now there are many “ways” to have a coney or Cinci chili.

Ingredients:

1 box spaghetti noodles (any shape will do)
1 can black beans
1 can pinto beans
1 can diced tomatoes
2 tbsp chili powder
2 tbsp brown sugar

Step 1: Ideally, make the chili first, and let it simmer for a while. Simple mix the beans, tomatoes, chili powder and sugar together. You can do this on the stove, crock pot, or pressure cooker.

Step 2: Boil and drain the pasta noodles. Serve the sauce on top! You can alternately cook the noodles right in the chili, by adding an extra cup of water or so while simmering.

The ingredients are super cheap, easy to find, and you probably have it in your pantry right now! If the thought of sweet pasta is weird to you, simply leave the brown sugar out of it, no problem.

This is a quick, tasty, very filling meal you can have on the table in 15 minutes flat! If you have the room in your budget, you can also top it with a mound of fresh grated cheddar.

Appetizers, Comfort food, Dips and Sauces, Less than 5

Faux-fil-a chicken tenders

January 20, 2021 BudgetEpicurean 1 Comment

This recipe happened right after I had just said “I don’t know what I want and I don’t feel like cooking tonight”. But then I looked in the refrigerator, and realized I had thawed some chicken tenders. I looked in the pantry and realized I had an open half bag of chips.

And I really wanted to get some fried chicken fast food, but knew it isn’t good for me. Eureka! I will make my own!

Whether it’s Sunday and you just want chick-fil-A, or anytime, these tenders are tasty. And while they bake, you can whip up a honey mustard dipping sauce that will impress the pants off whoever is lucky enough to be sharing with you. And if you’re eating it all yourself, more power to you.

For the chicken:

2 pounds chicken, either tenders or breasts cut into chunks/strips
1 cup flour
~1 tsp each: garlic powder, salt, pepper, paprika, cayenne (optional)
2 eggs + 1/4 cup pickle juice (optional)
1 cup breadcrumbs
1 cup crushed potato chips

Step 1: If you have breasts, cut them into strips or chunks. Put the flour and spices on one plate, scramble the eggs with the pickle juice in a bowl, and mix the breadcrumbs with the chips on a third plate. Preheat the oven to 350 F.

Step 2: One piece of chicken at a time, roll it in the flour and spices, then dip into the egg/pickle mixture, and then roll to coat with the breadcrumbs/chips mixture. Place them on a baking sheet.

Step 3: Bake at 350 for ~20 minutes, or until no longer pink in the center.

Meanwhile, for the honey mustard:

3 tbsp yellow mustard
2 tbsp whole grain or spicy mustard
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup mayo or plain Greek yogurt
Splash of lemon juice

Mix all the ingredients together for the honey mustard. You may need to heat the honey briefly to get it liquidy enough, I put it in the microwave for 22 seconds. Then dip and enjoy!

Beverage, Dessert, Eggs, Holidays, Less than 5

Crema Fina Egg Nog

December 28, 2020 BudgetEpicurean Leave a comment

Egg nog is a classic holiday beverage, with many possible origins for its name and recipe. Whether you love it or hate it, spike it or drink it virgin, pasteurize or leave out the eggs completely, it is irrevocably linked to the winter holidays and Christmas.

The thought of drinking raw egg throws off most people, unless you’re already a body builder or someone who drinks them daily already. But not all eggnog includes egg. Some are basically just a thinned down pudding or a boozy milkshake.

This recipe does call for actual eggs, and is for adults only. You can definitely make alcohol free eggnog, but since the base ingredient here is wine, clearly, this is not the recipe for you!

This is super simple to scale up as needed, you can make yourself just one glass or a whole pitcher for a party. And if you don’t happen to have Crema Fina (so sorry) you can easily create a similar flavor with milk, creamer, and rum or even brandy.

Ingredients (per serving):

1 cup crema fina hazelnut wine (or, 1/4 c hazelnut creamer, 1/2 c milk, and 1/4 cup dark rum)
1 raw egg, room temperature
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp powdered sugar

Simply combine all the ingredients in a blender, and whip it up for at least a minute or two. The longer you blend, the frothier it becomes. You can also use a hand mixer or a whisk.

Cheers!

Eggs, Healthy, Less than 5, Main Dishes, Meal Plans, Salads, Vegetarian

Salade Niçoise with Quail Eggs

April 3, 2019 BudgetEpicurean 4 Comments

This cold salad lends itself perfectly to meal prepping, or a quick weeknight dinner. Pulled together in under 20 minutes, you can have this light, fresh, tasty salad anytime.

With the hearty ingredients and a little babying of the fresh greens, these salads can also hold for 3-4 days in the refrigerator.

Naturally Whole30 compliant, paleo, low-carb, Mediterranean.

Prep once, enjoy twice.

And, the best part, you only need 1 pot! Boil all the ingredients, staggering the start time, to be ready all at once.

This recipe makes 2 giant salads. Feel free to double to be covered for lunches all week long!

Ingredients:

2-3 small redskin potatoes
1 large tomato
2 packs or tins of tuna
6 quail eggs, or 2 regular eggs
1 cup fresh green beans
Optional: 1/2 cup olives
4 cups salad greens (lettuce, romaine, spinach, mixed)
Dressings of choice

Step 1: Dice your potatoes into 1/2 – 1 inch chunks. Bring a large pot of water to a boil.

Step 2: Cut the ends off your green beans (you can also use canned, drained green beans).

Step 3: Boil potatoes for ~5 minutes. Then add the fresh green beans and boil another 3 minutes.

Step 4: Add the quail eggs, and boil a final 3 minutes. IF using chicken eggs, add at the same time as the green beans. Drain all.

Step 5: Fill 2 large salad containers with 2 cups of whatever greens you like. Cut the tomato into eights, put half into each salad container. Add half the potato and green beans and olives and eggs.

Step 6: Keep the tuna and the dressing separate until the day you serve the salads.

To keep the greens from getting slimy, add a paper towel or cotton towel to the bottom of the container to absorb excess moisture.

Enjoy within 4-5 days!

Vegetarian: Omit the tuna; add chickpeas or white beans if desired
Vegan: Omit tuna and eggs. Add chickpeas, and/or tofu
No red potatoes: Use whatever kind you have; or use roasted or boiled pumpkin, squash, or sweet potato
No olives: For salty flavor add capers, anchovies, or feta. For fat add avocado, olive oil heavy dressing, or cheese

Price Breakdown: $4.73 – $2.95

For the cost per salad, there is of course a range based on the ingredients you choose. For the “Highest Quality” I checked out the prices of individual ingredients from the Produce Box, which is all local NC produce, and similar to what you would find at a farmer’s market. For the “Lowest Price” I checked current ads for Harris Teeter and ALDI to see what the lowest price on items is. You choose the range that makes sense for you.

	Highest Quality	Lowest Price
1 lb green beans: need 1/5	$0.50	$0.20
1 lb red potatoes: need 1/2	$0.98	$0.67
tomato 3: need 1	$0.75	$0.50
lettuce: about 2/3	$3.00	$1.99
tuna pouches: need 2	$3.00	$2.00
olives: 1/6 the jar	$0.39	$0.39
eggs: (free) 2 from store	$0.83	$0.15
Cost for 2 salads	$9.45	$5.89

This is a powerful example of how cooking for yourself at home saves you money over time. A similar salad out at a cafe or restaurant would cost you $12 – $20. By making it at home, even with the highest quality ingredients, you save $7 each time.

Administrative, Breads, Breakfast, Healthy, Holidays, Informative, Less than 5, Main Dishes, Snacks

Weekly Eating – 3/11/19 thru 3/22/19

March 24, 2019 BudgetEpicurean 2 Comments

Hey y’all! Welcome to the series Weekly Eating.

Here is where I’ll talk about the week’s meal plan versus reality, what we ate for the week, and how we did budget-wise. I hope it gives readers a behind-the-scenes look into our life through the lens of food, and it’s also a way to keep us on track with meal planning and grocery budgeting.

Feel free to share your wins and lessons in the comments below!

Whoops, missed a week there! Sorry guys. We’ve got a lot and not a lot going on at the same time.

The coop is making steady progress. We got 4 pallets for free, plus some dumpster-diving got me a half sheet of plywood. For about $40 I bought a roll of hardware wire and chicken wire, and all we need is nails, staples, and time.

The frame is built and the floor is braced and wired, we just need a run for some hinges and a way to keep the door shut. Then the final pieces are putting on the door and roof, and the babies have somewhere to move to when they are no longer babies (which is like, in 2 weeks!)

They have grown so much bigger, and have upgraded to a larger feeder. They are also on a mix of chick and regular flock food, and I use a bigger mason jar for their waterer. They’ve begun to start jumping and bouncing, and trying out their wings. And we had our first escapee when I opened the screen to feed them the other day!

And we (i.e. just the boy) have started adding back in food groups to see if any spark reactions. We had cut out everything but meat, fruit, vegetables, and nuts & seeds. He added back in grains first, and had oatmeal, my homemade bread, and pasta all in one day. No problem.

Then dairy, so I stocked up on kefir, milk, butter, and plain Greek yogurt. Made a huge pan of the tastiest mac n cheese you ever saw. Again, no problems. He did say that he missed dairy way less than he thought he would, so that’s nice. Corn is back, without issue. I think soy is the only thing left, and we don’t use much added sugar products anyhow so I don’t mind permanently dropping those. He will go back to adding honey to tea, for instance.

Gardening

The seedlings I started have not come up yet. I am concerned that this week of 30-s overnight will kill them… it gets quite hot inside during the day, but not if there is no sunshine. Come on, actual spring! I need warmth so my fig can finally go in the ground.

On the bright side, I found some surprises in the garden. I had planted some brassicas and root veggies last fall, but they are super slow growing due to next to no sunlight… and they overwintered quite nicely, such that I may actually get to harvest some kale, cabbage, carrots, and/or radishes soon!

And, this is the first year I have annual flowers coming up. I bought three packs of bulbs on clearance last fall, and planted them even thought it was a bit late in the season. I figured, why not. And now, all these lovely irises and hyacinths and tulips are coming up! It makes me very very happy.

Food Swap

March’s Food Swap was awesome, it was at Hi Wire Brewery in Durham. I had never been, so I was pleasantly surprised with how huge it was, all the indoor lawn games, crazy wall art, and delicious beers on tap. It was Spring Break for UNC and Duke, so it was blessedly empty of students. AND on Mondays they sell a LITER of their own beer for $7!

I made pickled quail eggs the week prior in expectation, one batch turmeric and one batch beet pickled. It was like Easter come early with the fun egg colors. I also took a few jars of my candied orange peels.

I ended up going home with a half dozen chicken and a half dozen goose eggs, some jam, garlic pickles, homemade yogurt, Irish Car Bomb cupcakes, enzymatic orange cleaner, beef jerky, and preserved lemons! Quite a bounty.

Breakfasts:

Egg sandwiches – since I got oodles of eggs and also my quail keep giving me at least 2 a day, we eat more eggs now than ever before. And what better way than on homemade bread?

Cinnamon sugar toast – speaking of homemade bread, if you’ve never had cinnamon sugar toast on hot out the oven bread, you need to get you some right away! It’s magical.

Breakfast burritos – you can see why grains were the first thing the boy wanted to add back. It brings things like toast, pasta, and wraps

Snacks:

Apple with almond butter & raisins –this has definitely become my top favorite snack. It is great for the morning, when it’s ten and I will die if I have to wait one more hour for food, or afternoon when it’s 2 or 3 pm and I need a lil something to tide me over until dinner. Peanut butter works too, but I prefer almond.

Nut bars – I’m glad a friend with a Costco membership let us go with them once and buy a ginormous box of these bars. I have one in every bag, car, coat, and purse, and it has saved me more than once.

Gummy bears – another Costco purchase. I know these are in no way healthy for me. And we also didn’t realize until we got home and opened it that they are not a huge bag of gummies, but a billion individually wrapped packages of like 5. I was crushed. Wasteful and full of HFCS… no use crying over spilt milk, they’re already bought and opened so now we gotta eat them all.

Lunches:

Greek salad – Been trying to get more salads into my daily diet, and to make it more interesting I opened a jar of kalamata olives, and combined with grape tomatoes and cucumber from my Produce Boxes, made a couple delicious Greek salads.

Stuffed potatoes – I had some cheese sauce left from the mac n cheese, so we did a baked potato and sweet potato bar. Mmmmm.

Lentil soup – lentil soup is super quick, easy, and good for you. It’s a perfect “kitchen sink” meal, because you can toss in whatever veggies or herbs need to be used up soon. This one had celery, carrots, leftover mashed potato, onion, and kale.

Dinners:

Pesto pasta – pesto is one of my all time favorite ways to get anyone to eat greens, and use up any leafies or herbs that are wilty. Things I’ve successfully mixed into pesto: basil, parsley, cilantro, kale, spinach, collard greens.

Colcannon – we went all-in on the Irish for St. Patty’s Day. We are not Irish by heritage but you know I love me a good food holiday. I made a corned beef brisket and some colcannon, which is basically mashed potatoes with cabbage in it. I’ve heard you can also use kale. It’s a great way to sneak in veggies.

Taco bowl – since it’s starting to warm up and finally feel like spring some days, we’ve been eating outside on the weekends. Once rice was allowed back, and tortillas, you better believe burritos are back in full force too. And I keep adding in salads.

Lentil sloppy joes/janes – one of my alltime favorite vegan meals, these are so easy to prepare and crazy healthy for you. I told my grandma I ate mine with pickles and sauerkraut and evidently that is insane? What do you put on a sloppy joe?

AYCE Sushi – got a bunch of friends who love sushi as much as I go together and went out to RocknRolls sushi! It’s a conveyor belt style all you can eat place, for $12. I love it so much. We put down 73 plates worth of sushi and sashimi.

Food Total: $206.68

Weekly Produce Box = the Harvest Box 2 weeks in a row. Winter strawberries grown in high tunnels, green beans, blueberries, lettuce, cucumber, zucchini, grape tomatoes, corn, onion, sweet potatoes, and purple cauliflower!

I’ve started baking bread again, and we’ve gone through about three loaves in a week 1/2! So when flour was on sale for under a buck, I was not about to let that pass me by. I stocked up on some sugar free sausages and a few roasts, plus some organic cheeses and dairy for adding those back. Most of the produce we got from the boxes.

4.92 lb brisket	colby & cheddar brick cheese	3lb flour x3	3lb mandarins
pork sausage patties	Greek yogurt	dipper chips	Bananas 2 bunch
85/15 ground turkey	Fairlife milk & choc milk	flax wraps	Simply orange juice
2lb peeled shrimp	Plain kefir	canned tomatoes	Canned diced pineapple 2
lunch meat	Kerrygold org slice cheese	grapeseed oil for mayo
Angus sirloin 3lb		Org raisins
		2lb brown rice
		Dry chickpeas x4 lb
		Flour 5lb x2
		Sugar 4lb

Lessons Learned

Cooking from scratch is always the best. The boy could have bread back because I made it, and without added sugar. I tried to find bread at the store that didn’t have honey, or sugar, or high fructose corn syrup, and it was impossible. But also, convenience foods have a place in life. Sometimes when you’re super busy or just not in the mood to cook, it’s really nice to have something you can just pull out and microwave or otherwise not think too hard.

That’s why I try to make my own “fast food”. I batch cook a huge portion of black beans, or pinto beans, or rice, and have it in the fridge or freezer ready to go. Then you just pull out a tortilla or bowl and pile things in and you have ready to go food! And especially with the boy, he will eat whatever is the absolute fastest and easiest. So the easier I make healthy eating (cutting up fruits and veggies ahead of time, portioning out healthy meals into individual containers) the more likely we will eat healthy.

How about you guys? Did you have a learning week or an awesome week of wins?

Casseroles, Comfort food, Healthy, Less than 5, Main Dishes, Sneaky Healthy, Vegetarian

Creamy Butternut Squash Risotto: Stovetop or Instant Pot

October 24, 2018 BudgetEpicurean 2 Comments

Man, this fall I am hitting some serious home runs with new recipes!

The other rave review so far was my crispy spinach gnocchi with sage brown butter. You’ll notice this recipe also uses sage brown butter. Coincidentally, my sage bush is quite prolific this time of year, but is about ready to be fully harvested and cut back for winter. It is also squash season, so the butternut was from a local farm, fresh picked just days before I cooked it.

This tells me a few things.

Keep trying new recipes
If you or someone you love doesn’t like a particular ingredient, try it in a new way, or try it again a year later
Eating seasonally and locally makes it far easier to cook delicious meals with simple ingredients!

The inspiration came from this recipe on Serious Eats, but of course I tweaked it to what I had on hand.

This can easily be made vegetarian by using vegetable stock rather than chicken, and can be vegan as well by omitting the cottage cheese and sprinkling with nutritional yeast rather than Parmesan. If you do eat cheese, I highly recommend the best, large curd cottage cheese you can find. It makes a great difference in flavor and texture.

You can also make this insanely cheap by using water rather than the stock. But you will lose a lot of flavor by doing so.

Ingredients:

1 small or 1/2 large butternut squash (about 2 cups cubed)
1 cup medium or short grain rice
2 cups chicken or vegetable stock (or water)
Black pepper, sea salt
Handful of sage leaves
2 tbsp butter
Optional: 1/2 cup cottage cheese, sprinkle of Parmesan

I already had cooked the squash earlier in the week, but if you haven’t, do that first. I’ll wait.

There are 2 ways to do this: on the stove, or in an instant pot. I used the instant pot, because I have one now and it’s magical!

BUT

This is just as easy on the stove, it just takes a little longer.

Below are the steps for the instant pot, and then I’ll do stove top too.

Step 1: Add the rice and stock to the instant pot, close pressure valve, and cook for 8 minutes. Quick release the steam.

Step 2: Add the butternut squash, and cottage cheese if using. Close, and cook another 8 minutes. Quick release. Mash up the squash a little with a spoon, stir well to combine.

Step 3: While the second cooking session is going, melt the butter on the stove. Toss in the sage leaves, and let it sizzle until they look brown and crunchy. Watch carefully, you don’t want it to burn, it honestly only takes a minute or two.

Step 4: Serve the risotto topped with a sprinkle of Parmesan, some sage, and a grind or two of black pepper and sea salt.

As for the stove top:

Step 1: Put the rice and 1 cup water/stock in a pot, and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to a simmer, and simmer 10-15 minutes, until water is absorbed.

Step 2: Add more water 1/2 cup at a time, simmering for a few minutes in between. Stir every few minutes or so, until all liquid is absorbed. Should take about 30-40 minutes total.

Step 3: Add the butternut squash, and smash it up a little with a spoon. Stir to thoroughly combine.

Step 4: Same as above if you want to serve with crispy sage!

Comfort food, Less than 5, Main Dishes, Pasta, Sneaky Healthy

Crispy Spinach Gnocchi with Sage Butter

October 10, 2018 BudgetEpicurean 7 Comments

Do you ever do “clean out the fridge” nights? If not you should think about doing it! Food waste is a very serious issue, and one way to prevent it is obviously to throw less food in the trash.

But if you don’t know what food you have, it can be very easy to forget about it until your produce liquefies or grows a weird-colored fuzzy coating of something you do not want to eat.

Clean out the fridge meals help prevent that!

Basically, just take a look in the fridge. Not just the shelves but also the doors and drawers. And then try to think of a way to use up those food items! Soups are always a good bet, as are casseroles, burritos, omelets, and more.

This one was inspired by 2 baked potatoes, and a half bag of getting-soft spinach. I went to Google for inspiration, as I usually do, and found this recipe for Potato Spinach Gnocchi. I’ve made my own gnocchi before, using both butternut squash and acorn squash, so I knew that veggies are easy to hide in the wonderful pillowy dumplings.

So I decided to add the spinach to create green gnocchi! Because why not. But I also decided to pan-fry rather than boil them, because I was craving a cripsy coating. You can stop at Step 1 and boil, but I’d recommend the frying route.

I also pared down the prep time by microwaving my spinach rather than steaming and draining, and had already cooked potatoes. If I didn’t I would have microwaved them too. All together, this can be on the table in less than 30 minutes!

Not only do these taste a bit like french fries, but they also count as a vegetable and are healthy for you! Win win. Top with whatever sauce you prefer and enjoy.

Ingredients:

2-3 baked potatoes
1 egg
~1 cup flour
~1 cup cooked spinach (fresh or frozen, fresh is about 3-4 cups packed that cooks down)
1 tbsp garlic or 2-3 cloves
Optional: 1/4 cup shaved Parmesan cheese

Sage Brown Butter

3-4 tbsp butter
Handful of sage leaves
Sea salt
Optional: black pepper, salsa, etc.

Step 1: I started with potatoes I baked the day prior, otherwise bake your potatoes in the oven or microwave. Similarly, if using frozen spinach, thaw it and squeeze out the water. I microwaved my fresh spinach for about 2 1/2 minutes with a cup of water next to it in the microwave.

You can do the mixing and mashing by hand, but I prefer my hand dandy food processor. Mix up the potato well, then add the spinach. Process until well combined. Add the garlic, Parmesan, and flour, and process until a thick dough forms.

Step 2: Using 2 teaspoons, scoop little balls of dough into a frying pan set to medium with olive or coconut oil. Fry for 2-3 minutes, flip, and fry on the other side. My pan held about half the dough, so I moved them to a paper towel covered plate while I cooked the other half.

Step 3: Optional – at this point you can enjoy your fried gnocchi with marinara, pesto, alfredo, or whatever sauce tickles your fancy. Since I have an abundance of sage right now, I made a sage brown butter sauce (like I used on my butternut squash ravioli).

Melt the butter in the pan. When barely bubbling, add the sage leaves, and fry for about 2 minutes, until crispy. Do not over cook or the butter will burn. I also tossed in a teaspoon of my Reaper salsa, for a little bite, and it was just enough.

Appetizers, Beverage, Breakfast, Casseroles, Crock pot, Finances, Healthy, Less than 5, Main Dishes, Meal Plans, Side dishes, Snacks

Weekly Eating – 8/27/18

September 2, 2018 BudgetEpicurean Leave a comment

Hey y’all! Welcome to the series Weekly Eating.

Feel free to share your wins and lessons in the comments below!

Well, Saturday ended up being MUCH more productive than I expected! I took that 20 pounds of peaches and turned it into 10 jars of peach jam (4 of which are destined for the food swap) and 6 jars of quartered canned peaches in the pantry! The pantry is slowly coming along as I edge out plastics with glass jars and canned items.

At the thrift store I also found some nice baskets for pantry items and a ton of excellent glassware. I also spent some time hanging up pants I bought at the thrift store for $4 each to dry, and ironing a batch of freshly laundered handkerchiefs. Oh, and had my first taste of a fresh fig! They are seriously amazing.

Also, that ridiculously expensive spirulina? Yeah, turns out it turns all smoothies a really unappetizing brown/black color… The boy and I are both not impressed. Chalk that up to a costly lesson. No photos here… you’re welcome.

And I almost forgot, Sunday I hosted another tea party! I had a few girlfriends over for a few hours, to snack and chat and drink tea (of course). It’s always nice to have time to relax and catch up on each others’ lives. And also the food. I love making it, and I love sharing it, and I love eating it!

budget epicurean appetizers — Local tomato bruschetta and goat cheese stuffed dates and figs with sage and balsamic drizzle

Monday:

Breakfast – smoothie with banana, frozen mixed berries, and spirulina

Lunch – I had a later than usual breakfast, and an earlier than usual dinner, so no lunch today

Dinner – Tonight was Food Swap night! I inhaled some leftover quinoa with veggies before running out the door.

Hosted at Bull City Ciderworks, we had a good turnout, and lots of new faces. I made some new connections, and came home with a pretty great variety of stuff. My first time making biscotti turned out great, thank goodness, and the pistachio cardamom was a hit.

Tuesday:

Breakfast – smoothie with frozen cherries and blueberries and fresh peaches. Yes that is a plastic straw but it is the heavier reusable kind.

Lunch – I prepped two big kale and chickpea salads over the weekend to have for grab and go lunches. It couldn’t be simpler: 3-4 handfuls of kale, rub with olive oil and lemon juice. Split a drained can of chickpeas between 2 salads, sprinkle on garlic salt, pepper, and grated parmesan cheese if desired.

Dinner – leftover chicken and rice soup

Wednesday:

Breakfast – smoothie with frozen tropical mix, fresh peaches, cherry juice, and amla powder. I love this mix of fruit, but I hate that they put coconut chunks in it. Just why?

Lunch – thawed homemade ravioli from a previous food swap with thawed pesto made from my own basil 🙂

Snack – fresh heirloom tomato pico de gallo and blue corn chips

Dinner – I had a bunch of random odds and ends to use up: some pinto beans, a tiny bit of pico de gallo, a couple wet bruschetta. So I figured, why not make a Mexican strata? I layered the bruschetta in a pan, topped with pinto beans and pico, and poured on a few eggs. Baked at 350 for 40 minutes, and top with cheese and avocado.

YUM! And now the fridge has more space! #nomorefoodwaste

Thursday:

Breakfast – Leftover pancakes with coffee. Whenever I make more pancakes than we can eat, I pop the rest in a bag in the fridge. Then all it takes is a quick reheat in the toaster, and good as new.

Lunch – the other kale and chickpea salad, with grape tomatoes and an apple

Snack – I had myself a lovely tea time in the afternoon with green tea, my own biscotti, and a johnnycake from a previous food swap

Dinner – Thursday $3 Co-op dinner! Tonight was biscuits and gravy. None of us were brave enough to try the vegan biscuit, but the vegan gravy was okay. Not my favorite meal ever, but 8 of us all got together, there was much laughter, and live music. I’d eat cardboard and be happy in that situation. There’s nothing I love more than chill and cheap hangout with friends time!

Friday:

Breakfast – a sad bowl of cocoa puffs. It was so tasty though!

Lunch – the rest of the leftover Turkish red lentil stew & some more grape tomatoes

Dinner – I started a crock pot full of chili this morning, and cannot wait to come home to that delicious smell! It also used up tons of odds and ends: field peas from the last produce box, rest of baked pinto beans, several heirloom tomatoes that needed used up.

The Weekend

Well, this weekend kids off Brofest at our house. Hub’s closest friends from childhood through college are all turning 30 this year, so they decided to do one big reunion /get together / celebration. At our house. For a full week. I have several friends with spare bedrooms on standby and a bag packed if I need a quick escape.

I kid. I’ve met all these dudes, and love them to pieces.

Anyone who is vetted by the boy and remained that closely in touch for two decades or so is clearly a good person. This week of relaxation, bonding, video games, and beer could not be more needed at a stressful point in his career, and I could not be more excited to have a houseful of hungry boys to cook for!

Though that does lead to the next point…

Food Total: $366.76

Ouch. Feeding a half dozen grown men for a full week is not a cheap ambition, let me tell you. But I am up for the task. We are now stocked for sandwiches, cereal,oatmeal, grilled cheeses, pizza, and more burritos than I would know what to do with.

There isn’t a spare inch of unused freezer space at this point. And I bet it will be nearly cleaned out by next Sunday. (HOW do parents with multiple boys in their teens at the same time stay solvent??)

But you know what?

Worth it.

Lessons Learned

As Mrs. FAF just pointed out, leftovers are a beautiful thing! I am so thankful both of us not only tolerate but actually enjoy eating leftovers. And I quote often even cook twice or three times as much food on purpose, to save us time later in the week. This is definitely one of my top tips for eating well on a budget.

How about you guys? Did you have a learning week or an awesome week of wins?

Beverage, Informative, Less than 5

Tamarind Margarita

August 8, 2018 BudgetEpicurean 2 Comments

Tamarind is one of the up and coming ingredients right now, being “discovered” by chefs and home cooks alike. And for good reason! Tamarind is sour, tart, slightly sweet, sticky, and a great “secret ingredient” in sauces, stews, drinks, and chutneys. Along with the culinary uses, it also has a whole host of health benefits.

But, what is it? A fruit, a nut, a spice?

Tamarind is the fruit of a tree, but is actually technically a legume. It grows as a long pod, sort of similar looking to a peanut. Inside the pod are the seeds, surrounded by the sticky sour pulp. This pulp can be used fresh, but most often it is dried and turned into a paste, which makes it even more potent. The trees grow best in tropical areas, meaning it can be found as widely dispersed as Thailand, India, Mexico, Africa, and the Mediterranean.

When I found a bag of tamarind paste at my favorite Indian spice store, I just had to have it. I don’t yet know what other tasty creations I will make, but I knew as soon as I saw a Tamarind Margarita recipe that would be my first experiment!

Y’all know I love me a margarita, whether mixed with fruit, hot and spicy, or as a two-for-one lower calorie fizzy drink.

Given that all the hype about tamarind is that it is sweet yet sour, a margarita seems like a natural pairing. I could use tamarind paste rather than the usual “sour mix”, which to be honest I have less than no idea what the ingredients are! I love swaps where I can use real food items that I can see and pronounce over a bottled chemical alternative. Even when the end purpose is not super healthy… but I digress.

We all have our vices, no? 😉

I did learn one important lesson about tamarind paste: this stuff is thick! It is very viscous, and not easy to dissolve in ice cold water. So after I made the first one, where I put ice in the shaker, and had to shake for what felt like half an hour, I learned my lesson.

On the second one I did not add ice, until after it had already been shaken and poured. So take note, ice cold water = paste staying paste and not dissolving!

This makes one pretty strong 4-ounce margarita, and is easy to double or triple. I used bacon rim salt because the internet said smoky flavors pair well with tamarind, and I truly agree! The boy, however, hated it and said he preferred just the drink alone. He wiped off all the salt. So, you do you, you’ve been warned.

Ingredients:

1.5 ounces silver or gold tequila
1 ounce lime juice (or lemon if you don’t have lime)
1 generous teaspoon tamarind paste
1 tablespoon agave nectar
Optional: rim salt or sugar, ice to fill your glass

Step 1: Mix all ingredients in a shaker, and shake well. You can also pour it right into a glass and mix it with a spoon, but using the shaker makes me feel like a bartender. Plus mine has cute recipes on the side.

Step 2: If using rim salt (or sugar!), put some lemon or lime juice on a shallow dish. Rub the glass in the liquid, then dip into your salt or sugar, and gently shake off the excess. Fill with ice, and pour the margarita over.

Step 3: Enjoy (responsibly, please!)

If you don’t have agave, or are trying to cut out sugar, feel free to leave it out, or substitute brown sugar or stevia. But it will be quite sour and tart if you use no sweetener. You could also omit the lime juice, if the tamarind is strong enough of a flavor. It does make the drink an odd brown color but I promise it is worth the taste!

Budget Epicurean

Category Archives: Less than 5

Easy Eggs Benny with Garlic Chive Toast

Cincinnati Sweet Chili Pasta

Faux-fil-a chicken tenders

Crema Fina Egg Nog

Salade Niçoise with Quail Eggs

Price Breakdown: $4.73 – $2.95

Weekly Eating – 3/11/19 thru 3/22/19

Gardening

Food Swap

Breakfasts:

Snacks:

Lunches:

Dinners:

Food Total: $206.68

How about you guys? Did you have a learning week or an awesome week of wins?

Creamy Butternut Squash Risotto: Stovetop or Instant Pot

Crispy Spinach Gnocchi with Sage Butter

Weekly Eating – 8/27/18

Monday:

Tuesday:

Wednesday:

Thursday:

Friday:

The Weekend

Food Total: $366.76

Lessons Learned

How about you guys? Did you have a learning week or an awesome week of wins?

Tamarind Margarita

The fusion of food, fun, frugality, and curiosity.