Too Much Month Left At the End of the Money

Ten weeks of house guests can eat into the food budget.  Worse yet, when the quarterly months roll around, there are property taxes, health insurance, life insurance and newspaper (we read a lot of papers) bills to pay.  All this can lead to, well, diminished cash.  There are, of course, option:  credit cards and dipping into savings are two.  This only aggravates the problem.  We decided to make do on the ridiculously small amount of available cash.  It worked pretty well.  Coupons!  Remember coupons!  I had a $5 cat food coupon.  The kitties have to eat, too. 
The piggy bank, alas, had been raided the prior month.  There was, however, a treasure trove in the freezer.  Meat for a week, and then . . . mystery meat.  What might it be? 

We found out.  Create recipes and meals from what's on hand.  This is when a well-stocked pantry is your best friend.  There were turkey cutlets, which we gussied up with capers, white wine and lemon juice.  There was chicken which was made into a delicious salad.  A couple frozen pizzas, small ones.  Dr. Oetker's.  Have you tried Dr. Oetker's pizza?  Kind of pricey, but we buy it with coupons when it's on sale.  Very good and just right for two people for lunch or a light dinner.  

The garden  gave us fresh herbs, tomatoes and cukes.  Lots of salads and the wonderful appetizer, Insalata Caprese, with fresh mozzarella, basil, tomatoes, olive oil and salt and pepper.  This can be lunch if you have some bread.  Oh yes, the mozzarella was dirt cheap, made fresh in one of our local supermarkets and totally delicious. 
Yeast and flour?  Bake a loaf or two of bread.  So tasty. 
 We found a can of corned beef hash left from the winter stores.   We ate it with some found-at-the-back-of-the-fridge English muffins.  Even stale bread tastes o.k. toasted.

Walmart had wonderful big fresh heads of iceberg lettuce for $1.14.  They (and Trader Joe's) have cheap bananas, too.  Just because every meal is a scrounge doesn't mean you can skip fruit and veggies.  Of course you read the weekly fliers for bargains.  We even had some blueberries. 

We discovered the "mystery meat" was half a small round beef roast and two (count 'em, two) short ribs.  They made two wonderful meals when cooked up with onions, some oldish celery, two big freshly purchased carrots, and red wine and garlic. (Home grown).  I cooked them for hours.  Served with some barley that has been in the cupboard for ages.   Cucumber salad, natch! 

At the end of the week, the freezer was bare, really bare.
 I also made lemon-lime ice milk, because we had bags of lemons and limes.  Bought a small container of heavy cream and we had delicious desserts.  Again, a well-stocked pantry.              

Some money finally arrived, and we went shopping, because by now, there was really no food in the house, the canned soup having been consumed for lunch.  I could have eeked another meal with pasta, bacon and tomatoes, but that wasn't necessary.  Before winter comes, I'll stock up on some Spam and corned beef and canned soup.  You never know when a power failure will hit for a few days.  We have a gas stove, and can cook on the stove top, and a Weber kettle for grilling (and baking).  Our parents and grandparents knew how to "make do."  Do you?  

This was a busy summer and I haven't posted.   How do YOU "make do?" 

Take Five Ripe Tomatoes . . .

In mid August, if you are growing your own or have access to a farm stand or farmer's market, the best recipes always begin with the phrase, "take five ripe tomatoes."


Here are some of the things we do with those tomatoes:
1)  Tomato Bread Salad - I'm serving tonight with fresh basil, fresh spinach, and fresh mozzarella.
2)  Homemade tortilla soup.
3)  Insalata Caprese  (tomatoes with basil, olive oil and fresh mozzarella)
4)  Tomato/vegetable soup
5)  A simple plate of sliced tomatoes with fresh herbs
6)  Gazpacho

Tortilla Soup

3 T. corn oil

4 corn tortillas, cut in strips

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 medium onions, chopped

4 tomatoes, skinned and chopped

1 T. ground cumin

1 jalapeno pepper

8 cups chicken broth

½ cup fresh cilantro 

Garnishes:  fried strips of tortilla, grated Cheddar, cooked chicken breast (in thin strips)

Diced avocado, chopped cilantro

Heat oil in 4 quart stockpot and fry strips of  tortilla until crisp.  Remove and drain on paper towels.

Saute  garlic and onions and cook until onions are soft.  Add remaining ingredients, including tortilla strips,  bring to boil and simmer 20-25 minutes.  Add salt and paper.  Serve  in bowls with garnishes. 

What are some of YOUR faves?

Here is a tomato bread salad recipe from Epicurious

Road Warriors

No doubt about it, travel isn't cheap, but there are always economies, large and small that will pare some dollars off your trip.

We're driving from Boston to NYC on Tuesday. For two, with the price of gas down and an economical car, driving is still the cheapest. We park on the street and observe the NYC rules.
We also stay with a friend, which will shave at least $600 off the trip for hotels. If we had to pay for a hotel, we probably wouldn't go. Our friend also serves breakfast and one dinner. We take her to dinner one night and split the meal on the third night. She has a museum membership, so we get into MOMA for $5.00 each intead of the regular rate.

We'll also save $20+ dollars taking our lunch. I'll broil/bake a chicken breast on Monday. We make sandwiches, take potato chips, cookies, fruit and something to drink. A commuter cup brimming with coffee. The chicken, chips, cookies and fruit were all on sale. We have soft drinks in the fridge left from a house guest.

You get the idea. A trip that would cost over $1000.00 is accomplished for a couple hundred. I take busses or the subway whenever possible in Manhattan. More savings. If the distances aren't too great, walk.

When you're looking at the weekly specials, consider what you may already have in the freezer/pantry and plan your meals. This cuts way down on the weekly groceries. You do shop the specials?

I found a cheap pizza stone at the Williams Sonoma outlet which will make doing our own pizzas even easier. Homemade pizza rocks. It's not dirt cheap, but if you shop for sales in the grated cheese section, you'll do all right. Italian sausage is on sale frequently. Pepperoni can be purchased in SMALL quantities at the deli. No need to buy huge amounts. Tomatoes and broccoli were on sale today. Hey, that's a good topping. You keep pepper flakes on hand, don't you? Spices, while costly, add so much interest and flavor to food.

I buy ALL my spices on line at http://www.penzeys.com/. Once you're a good customer, they send freebies with each order. You can also order very small or very large amounts, depending on your level of use. I grow sage, chives, oregano,mint,dill, cilantro,parsley, and basil. Nothing beats tomatoes with thin slices of fresh mozzarella and chopped basil with a little EVOO. Once tomato season is here, all you buy is the EVOO (from Ocean State Job lot) and the fresh mozzarella. Yum!

Can hardly wait for summer. It's 72 degrees south of Boston today, and I'm going to plant spinach and beets today. Get that garden going. Create your own compost. Coffee grounds encourage earthworms, something my mother taught me.

Pare that cheese!