Tasty, Healthy & Cheap

Lazy Summer Supper

2008-08-12T21:06:00.004-04:00

Tonight I was feeling lazy. I didn't want to go to the store to shop for food and I didn't want to cook. So we had a "lazy summer supper"-- sandwiches and salad. I put together a quick tuna salad: tuna, my favorite lite mango poppy dressing (in place of mayo), chopped pickles, chopped onions, toasted sesame seeds, sea salt and black pepper. I put the tuna salad between slices of toasted wheat bread. The salad was tossed with homemade balsamic vinaigrette. The vinaigrette was a splash of olive oil, splash of balsamic, sea salt and pepper-quickly whisked together and tossed on the mixed greens.

Tasty: Surprisingly tasty!

Healthy: By replacing the mayo with lite mango poppy dressing, we were able to save calories and few grams of fat. I used a high fiber whole wheat toast. The salad gave us some greens!

Cheap: We buy cans of albacore tuna in packs of 8 at Costco. An easy item to keep stocked in the pantry for nights like these.

Budget Stretchers?

2008-08-11T11:53:00.005-04:00

Last night my husband and I stopped at the grocery store to pick up a couple items. On the way into the store, the weekly circular caught my eye because written across the top, in big bold letters, were the words "BUDGET STRETCHERS". My heart did a flip-flop and the voice in my head said oh, goody! I wanted to stretch my budget and save some moolah!

Unfortunately, I walked closer and I saw the foods that were considered "budget stretchers".

#1 on the list--Kraft Macaroni and Cheese for only 44 cents for a box. Let's look at the nutritional make-up of a box of Mac & Cheese.

Amounts listed below are per serving, prepared using 2% milk and margarine. There are 3 servings per box. Source Diet Facts.

Calories: 380
Total Fat: 15.5 g
Saturated Fat: 4 g
Trans Fat: 3 g
Sodium: 740 mg (a whopping 31% of your suggested daily intake)
Fiber: 1 g

Ugh, maybe good for our wallet but not good for our hearts and waistlines. Plus, it would be hard for me to get 3 servings out of one box--I remember making this back in college and I could take down a whole box pretty easily.

Seeing those specials really got me thinking about my three cooking criteria: Tasty, Healthy & Cheap. Which of the three is more important to me? I think finding the sweet spot will continue to be a struggle. Some days, I know I'll blow the budget buying fresh organic vegetables and meats. Other days, our health will suffer because we are craving ooey-gooey cake, made with real cream and pounds of chocolate. And sometimes, we'll be broke and I'll buy the 44 cent box of Kraft Mac and Cheese.

Summer Pasta Salad & Grilled Peaches

2008-08-07T18:25:00.007-04:00

Tonight's menu was designed to help me clean out some of the fresh food in my fridge. We ended up with a light summer pasta salad and grilled peaches with cherry sauce.

Summer Pasta Salad-Pasta, Basil, Goat Cheese, Orange Peppers, Cherry Tomatoes, Garlic, Lemon Juice, Olives, and Balsamic Vinegar

Dessert: Grilled Peaches with fresh cherry sauce

Tasty: The pasta salad was a combination of flavors I love. I'm looking forward to the leftovers at lunch tomorrow. This was my first time grilling peaches. Very easy and very delicious.

Healthy: To help make the pasta salad healthier, I used Barilla Plus Pasta. From the box: "A plate of Barilla Plus provides a good source of Protein, ALA Omega-3 and Fiber. Per 56 g serving: 210 calories, 2 g fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 4 g dietary fiber, 10 g protein.

The other ingredients in the salad included: fresh tomatoes, diced orange pepper, finely minced garlic (make sure you dice it VERY finely--you don't want to end up biting into a big hunk of raw garlic), finely diced olives, crumbles of goat cheese, fresh basil, balsamic vinegar, lemon juice, and black pepper.

Grilled peaches are a wonderful and healthy dessert. A sneaky way to help my hubby eat more fruits and vegetables.

Cheap: The pasta came out of my pantry (bought during a sale with a coupon--I stocked up and bought 5 boxes when the price was right), veggies were leftover from other meals I had prepared. The only thing I need to purchase for tonight's dinner was a peach.

Grilled Peaches

2008-08-07T17:24:00.003-04:00

I've seen recipes for grilled peaches featured in a number of summer cooking magazines. This afternoon, when I walked past a display of summer peaches at the grocery store, a little voice in my head immediately said "GRILL THEM". So for dessert tonight we'll be having grilled peaches. I found a simple recipe on Epicurious. I'm planning on using a cherry glaze instead of raspberries (since I've got some in the fridge and I'm trying my best to use all of what I buy).

Grilling the peaches looks pretty easy: Prepare barbecue (medium heat). Melt butter with brown sugar in heavy small skillet over medium heat. Remove skillet from heat. Brush peach halves all over with melted butter mixture. Grill until tender, about 8 minutes, turning occasionally. Serve with sauce. I'll be making a simple cherry sauce (in a small sauce pan combining sugar, lemon juice and halved fresh cherries).

I'll let you know how it turns out.

Grow Faster Little Plant

2008-08-07T10:39:00.002-04:00

At the beginning of June, I bought a basil plant. Over the last two months, I have lovingly replanted my basil plant in a bigger plant pot, given it water and positioned it for optimum sunlight. Fresh homegrown herbs, definitely help my Tasty, Healthy & Cheap mantra!

But I've got a problem, my basil plant won't grow fast enough! Many of the summer recipes I've been making call for fresh basil, so I've been taking leaves on a daily basis.

I don't have lawn, so I can't have a garden. But sure do love our little plant that saves us from buying at the grocery store. Just need it to grow faster! Might be time for me to invest in a friend for my lone plant.

My Little Basil Plant

Homemade Apple Pie

2008-08-06T23:22:00.000-04:00

@ Home: Homemade Apple Pie

Apple Pie--A SUCCESS

2008-08-06T22:25:00.000-04:00

I made the apple pie this evening and it was a smashing success. My husband ate TWO pieces and asked me to package a piece so he can take it to work for BREAKFAST. He plans to heat it in the microwave and enjoy it with his morning coffee. I love making stuff that he likes. A big thank you to my friend for finding this recipe.

Here it is--The pie that required a second helping.

The apple pie was actually very easy (I used a store bought crust so I cheated a little). Peeling the apples and slicing them was the hardest part. I can see us eating this a lot during the Autumn months. I would serve it proudly to company.

Tasty--Very tasty.

Healthy--Compared to other desserts, I don't think it was that bad. I substituted bumble & brown yogurt spread for the butter. Bumble & Brown Yogurt spread has 40% less calories and no cholesterol. Neither of us have a sugar problem (yet, knock on wood) so that wasn't an issue.

Cheap--I only had to buy apples. I buy most of my pantry staples (sugar, flour, etc) during triple coupon day at my local grocery store so I'm sure the prices were good. The pie crust came from my freezer--more bounty from triple coupon day.

My Mini Mayo Clinic

2008-08-06T18:18:00.002-04:00

Tonight I cooked a meal from The New Mayo Clinic Cookbook--one of my favorite cookbooks. This cookbook taught me that healthy can still be tasty. The book says that eating well is not about restrictive meal plans. It's about enjoying foods that have health benefits. I like the sound of that. Good for my body AND good for my taste buds.

We started with a salad. Mixed baby greens, with local dill infused goat cheese, mandarin oranges, and pine nuts.

Shrimp and Mango Curry on a bed of Kashi Whole Grain Pilaf

Salad: The salad was baby greens topped with local dill infused goat cheese, mandarin oranges and pine nuts. At a wedding a couple months ago, the salad was topped with goat cheese and since then I've been obsessed with goat cheese. It has a strong flavor so a little goes a long way. I buy cans of mandarin oranges and keep them in the refriderator, this way I always have some chilled and ready when I decide to throw them on a salad. The pine nuts added some crunch and texture. All the different flavors blended together nicely and I didn't even need to use dressing.

Curry: This was my first time making a curry! I loved all the ingredients: fresh ginger, garlic, shallots, curry powder, mango, basil....I even chopped up some water chestnuts to add more crunch. I made a package of Kashi Whole Grain Pilaf to complement the curry--sneaky fiber.

Kashi Whole Grain Pilaf: I like this so much that I bought a case of it last year on Amazon. Amazon was running a grocery promotion--buy $50 get $15 off and free super saver shipping. So I stocked up on a few things that I use often, including the Kashi.

Why do I like Kashi Pilaf so much? It is a great way for us to get whole grains--because if you are going to eat carbs, at least make them superfood carbs! Kashi Pilaf ingredients: Buckwheat, Triticale (a cross between durum wheat and rye that is high in protein), Rye, Hard Red Winter Wheat, Oats, Long Grain Brown Rice and Sesame Seeds. Per serving Nutrition Facts: Calories 170, Total Fat 3 g, Cholesterol 0 mg, Carbs 30 g, Fiber 6 g, Protein 6 g

Tasty: Both dishes tasted great!

The salad tasted fresh and wasn't heavy.

The curry was bursting with different flavors. The only thing I will do differently is figure out how to kick it up a notch or two on the heat scale. We wanted a little more spice.

Healthy: The Mayo Clinic Cookbook puts nutritional information next to each recipe. Sometimes, when you are cooking from scratch it is hard to keep track of everything--I love having the information right there for reference and to keep us on a healthy track.

Here are the stats for the Curry per serving:

Calories: 395
Protein: 39 g
Carbs: 26g
Total Fat: 15 g
Cholesterol: 132 mg
Sodium: 353 mg
Fiber: 5 g

Cheap: Well, the shrimp sorta blew the budget. I bought a pound of large shrimp--on "sale" for $9 per pound. I felt like treating my husband tonight since this was his first home cooked meal in a week. Although we still have enough leftover for tomorrow's lunches. 4 meals for a grand total of $20--I don't think that is too bad.

Homemade Apple Pie

2008-08-05T22:40:00.000-04:00

Yesterday, my dad and I stopped at a friends house for a quick visit. We walked in and a wonderful aroma was wafting through their house--freshly baked pie. While we were visiting and playing with their handsome 9 month old baby boy, the husband walked into the kitchen. He spied the apple pie his wife had just finished baking (the source of the wonderful aroma). Earlier in the day, the wife had baked the pie for their neighbors to thank them for watching their dogs. The husband started begging his wife to let him try the pie and asked her if she could cook another one to give to the neighbors. Finally after a lot of whining, she relented! Woo Hoo! If they were serving pie, we were going to have some too! Man oh man, I am glad we were there. So good!

Well I asked her for the recipe and here it is. I can't wait to get home and make this for my husband. He will surely call me his domestic goddess!! Apple Pie Recipe

Sorry I don't have any pictures. It disappeared into our bellies pretty fast.

I'm planning on baking this tomorrow, so I'll post pictures and let you know how it turns out in my kitchen.

INGREDIENTS

1 (9 inch) pie shell
6 cups thinly sliced apples
1 tablespoon lemon juice (optional)
3/4 cup white sugar
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 cup raisins (optional)
1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
3 tablespoons butter

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
Place sliced apples in a large bowl. Sprinkle with lemon juice if desired. In a small bowl, mix together white sugar, 2 tablespoons flour, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Sprinkle mixture over apples. Toss until apples are evenly coated. Stir in raisins and walnuts if desired. Spoon mixture into pastry shell.
In a small bowl mix together 1/2 cup flour and brown sugar. Cut in butter or margarine until mixture is crumbly. Sprinkle mixture over apple filling. Cover top loosely with aluminum foil.
Bake in preheated oven for 25 minutes. Remove foil and bake an additional 25 to 30 minutes, until top is golden brown. Cool on a wire rack.

Nutritional Information

Apple Crumb Pie

Servings Per Recipe: 8

Amount Per Serving

Calories: 415

Total Fat: 14.9g
Cholesterol: 12mg
Sodium: 153mg
Total Carbs: 71.2g
Dietary Fiber: 4g
Protein: 3.4g

Salad & Spaghetti

2008-08-05T22:00:00.002-04:00

Salad & Spaghetti

Starter

Baby lettuce, grape tomatoes, and celery

Entree

Homemade tomato sauce with turkey meatballs on a bed of whole wheat pasta

Ok, how did I do meeting the criteria--Tasty, Healthy & Cheap?

1) Tasty--Oh, yea. No doubt about it. We ate every last bite on our plates and hubby is looking forward to the leftovers tomorrow. I've started pulling out the pretty plates we received as wedding gifts. There's no reason those plates should sit in the china cabinet gathering dust. I think food tastes better when the presentation is pretty.

2) Healthy--I was able to sneak finely chopped pieces of celery into the salad. The sauce was made with fresh tomatoes, garlic, onions, olive oil, basil, pepper and mushrooms--nothing else. Whole wheat pasta--sneaky fiber.

3) Cheap--Per plate pretty cheap considering I'll freeze some sauce and I have two plates in the fridge for meals tomorrow. All in it will probably cost about $2.50 per meal--beat that McDonald's.

Mission Accomplished