RE: What can you knock up cheap? (Full Version)

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Iamsemisweet -> RE: What can you knock up cheap? (12/2/2011 12:08:15 PM)

Yes, LadyH, Cincy Chili is magical stuff.  Skyline was the best thing about my brief stint living in Cincinnati.  That, and Graeters Ice Cream.

I have taken to eating my Cincy Chili over Spaghetti Squash.  Saves a lot of calories, but probably doesn't cure hangovers



xxblushesxx -> RE: What can you knock up cheap? (12/2/2011 12:08:53 PM)

French Onion Soup
 
Ingredients
6 large red or yellow onions, quartered
1 stick of butter
3 cloves of garlic, minced
8 cups of beef stock or chicken stock
½  cup of dry white or red wine
2 bay leaves
¼ teaspoon of dry thyme
Salt & pepper, to taste
3 cups mozzarella cheese
Directions
1. Place the onions and olive oil or butter in the slow cooker, cover, and cook on LOW for 8-10 hours, until the onions are deep brown and very soft. It's almost impossible to overcook these; make sure to let the onions cook until they are mahogany colored.
2 – Transfer the caramelized onions to large saucepan; add garlic and sauté for 1-2 minutes. Add the Stock, wine, bay leaves, and thyme. Cover partially and simmer until the flavors are well blended, about 30-40 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper (if you use a low sodium broth - make sure you salt the soup). Discard the bay leaves.
3 - To serve you can either use individual oven-proof soup bowls or one large casserole dish. Ladle the soup into the bowls or casserole dish. Cover with the toast and sprinkle with cheese. Place under the broiler for 5-15 minutes, depending on the heat variations, or until the cheese bubbles and is slightly browned.
 
This recipe doesn't include how to make the crouton for the soup. Simply take day old (or older french bread and cut it to the size required. Put in oven on low until it's crunchy/chewy. (can take quite a while)



LadyHibiscus -> RE: What can you knock up cheap? (12/2/2011 12:12:54 PM)


quote:

ORIGINAL: Iamsemisweet

Yes, LadyH, Cincy Chili is magical stuff.  Skyline was the best thing about my brief stint living in Cincinnati.  That, and Graeters Ice Cream.

I have taken to eating my Cincy Chili over Spaghetti Squash.  Saves a lot of calories, but probably doesn't cure hangovers




That might make spaghetti squash actually good! (my grandmother and I were deeply disappointed by spag squash...)



xxblushesxx -> RE: What can you knock up cheap? (12/2/2011 12:18:22 PM)

Vegetable Beef Soup
Ingredients (Makes 12 servings)
1 ½ lbs sirloin steak, cubed (can use stew meat if desired) (add or subtract amount of meat to taste)
16 oz whole tomatoes
1 onion (small to medium)
2 tsp fresh minced garlic
3 tbsp italian seasoning
¼ cup dry red wine
16 oz tomato sauce
1 lb potatoes
12 oz corn
12 oz peas
1 lb potatoes (diced and peeled if desired)
3 bay leaves
6 peppercorns
1 ½  tbsp better than bouillon (beef flavored)
6 oz tomato paste
4 cups water
Directions
1. Heat one tbsp oil to hot, add in onion and cook until tender. Add in garlic and italian seasoning. Stir until garlic is tender. Set onion mixture aside.
2. Add second tbsp of to pan and heat to hot. Add in steak. Cook until browned.
3. Deglaze pan with wine. Add in onion mixture and the rest of the ingredients. Bring to boil. Boil for fifteen minutes. Lower heat and simmer for at least one hour. (longer is better!)




MissKittyDeVine -> RE: What can you knock up cheap? (12/2/2011 12:36:26 PM)

I make a chickpea (garbanzo) stew that lasts me for four meals. One jar of cooked chickpeas, a large onion, sweet potato, carrot, courgette (zucchini), a few tomatoes and a stock cube. Boil some water, add the stock cube, throw in the chopped veggied, leave to do their thing, add some couscous in the last few minutes.



ChatteParfaitt -> RE: What can you knock up cheap? (12/2/2011 12:46:00 PM)

Wow that sounds so great. Actually a lot of these recipes sound totally yummy.

I think we should take Fornica up on her offer to make a CM cookbook.

I predict it will be a best seller !! LOL




LaTigresse -> RE: What can you knock up cheap? (12/2/2011 12:52:02 PM)

quote:

ORIGINAL: ChatteParfaitt

The cheapest way to eat is to learn how to cook well and make everything that you can from scratch. The local library here is free and will have tons of info, I confess to being completely ignorant about the library system in the UK.

Stop buying premade and processed food and snacks, and make it yourself. Not only is it cheaper, it's better for you.

I make my own dressings, sauces, salsa, bread, soups and stews, etc.

I like the chicken breast recipe, it is probably very good, but to me it would be expensive to make. The things you have to put in, a jar of dressing, a can of (something, sorry don't remember) then the onion soups mix, all that adds up.Plus chicken breast themselves are fairly expensive.




That is what I thought when I read a lot of what's been posted. And I saw a lot of fat and sodium. Both things I try to avoid.

Honestly I cannot really post recipes easily, or the cost to make them. I keep a lot of basic ingredients on hand. When I shop, most of the time it is to pick up fresh stuff, things like milk, yogurt, etc that I can't keep for long periods of time. The last time I shopped for groceries I spent $ 38.00 and some odd change. That was last Friday and the only reason I stopped was to pick up another can of pumpkin, a box of graham crackers and 3 pkg of cream cheese to make a cheese cake. The rest of the $$ was for a few items that restocked like fresh produce.

Yet, given that, I've been cooking and eating all week. Last night was a stir fry that was created by chopping up some bok choy that needed used up, grating some ginger, mincing some garlic, defrosting and draining some veggies I had in the freezer......the other seasonings I just stand there and "hmmmmm what flavour am I going for tonight...yeah some crushed red pepper......fish sauce.....etc etc etc". Serve it over rice noodles and voila'!

Rice noodles and frozen veggies with some leftover turkey broth has been my lunch several times this week. Spritz it with some of that wicked good red rooster hot sauce and.....lunch. Filling and damned cheap. I just boiled up the noodles in the morning while I was getting ready for work, ran them under cold water, tossed in the frozen veggies and put them in a container. When it was lunch time I poured the broth over them, nuked it, then put in the rooster sauce.

Last week end I made a black bean and pork soup. I did cheat and use canned beans and canned chopped tomatoes that has jalapenos chopped into them. The pork was the remains of a whole loin of pork I had purchased several months ago and cut up in various packages. I don't even remember how many meals I've used it for. But damn did that last little bit make some yummy soup. We've gotten several dinners and I had the very last of it yesterday for lunch.

I also made a big batch of lasagna at the same time. We had a family dinner for 5 and G.D. has had it for lunch or dinner a few times and I've had it for dinner once or twice. There is still some left.

For us, it's about watching for sales. Buying in bulk when possible. (I admit my big chest freezer really helps with this) Keeping the basics on hand. Exploring ways to preserve.....canning and freezing. And using those things to your advantage. Try new things. Look at cultures that are poor and how they eat, go online and search recipes. Doing that has taught me how to use new ingredients so that I can do like I did last night and just start pulling stuff out and tossing it together without a plan or a recipe.



xxblushesxx -> RE: What can you knock up cheap? (12/2/2011 12:56:01 PM)

The recipes I posted here I also posted on a calorie count site. I didn't actually have them written down,  but wanted to so someday I can print them out and give them to my family, and also because the calorie count site evaluates your recipe and tells you all the nutrition info (calories, fat, etc.) Leaving the wine out of the above recipes clearly gives them a better "score" at the calorie count place, but they're much better with the wine!



LaTigresse -> RE: What can you knock up cheap? (12/2/2011 12:57:49 PM)

quote:

ORIGINAL: xxblushesxx

The recipes I posted here I also posted on a calorie count site. I didn't actually have them written down,  but wanted to so someday I can print them out and give them to my family, and also because the calorie count site evaluates your recipe and tells you all the nutrition info (calories, fat, etc.) Leaving the wine out of the above recipes clearly gives them a better "score" at the calorie count place, but they're much better with the wine!


But of course!!! Leaving out the wine would be like leaving out garlic! Sacrilege!



ChatteParfaitt -> RE: What can you knock up cheap? (12/2/2011 1:07:12 PM)

Yeah I do that too, pull things out of the fridge or the freezer that need cooking (due to freshness dates) and make a meal.

Of course, I always have a huge supply of spices and staples on hand so I can make whatever I want. I don't need recipes, I'm far too versatile for that. Since it's Friday we are having pizza, and the toppings will be what I have on hand.

I will make my own pizza dough in the bread maker. Sauce is spaghetti sauce (made from scratch) that I always have on hand. I buy bulk pepperoni (the man demands it) and mozzarella. So I never buy frozen pizza as a quick meal, I can easily make my own for far less money.

Tonight's toppings: HIS side: sweet peppers I found on sale, bought in bulk, and chopped most up for the freezer, pepperoni, mozzarella, Italian cheeses: Parmesan, Asiago, Romano (bought these in bulk at Sam's club, always in the freezer), onion (I always have fresh onion), my side: less cheese, no peperoni, but I add spinach & mushrooms (fresh of course, spinach 40% off), and artichokes left over from last weeks appetizer at Oldhens. I will add onion and peppers too, but in less quantity.

What I am saying is that this same thing would cost $6-7 frozen, more if fresh. And b/c I shop well and know how to use my time to cook and bake, I can make it so much cheaper. AND it's exactly what the two of us want on our pizza.

And I agree, to really do this well, you need at least a small chest freezer.







kalikshama -> RE: What can you knock up cheap? (12/2/2011 1:33:26 PM)

The cheapest recipe is one that uses ingredients you already have on hand. So, put some ingredients into http://allrecipes.com/Search/Ingredients.aspx and see what comes out. That's how I found http://allrecipes.com/recipe/sweetly-spiced-pork/detail.aspx when I wanted a recipe for pork, apples, and butternut squash.



ChatteParfaitt -> RE: What can you knock up cheap? (12/2/2011 2:07:06 PM)

OMG I so agree. I subscribe to their newsletter and get a recipe a day, just because. You never know what might pique your interest or be just the thing for the ingredients you have or need (b/c of sell by dates) to use.

I don't subscribe to a lot, too much email. But Allrecipes is my exception.



LadyConstanze -> RE: What can you knock up cheap? (12/2/2011 2:16:13 PM)

I buy a lot of products that are on offer and just make things up as I go along, I have a certain staple at home and a bunch of things in the freezer. For example if we have chicken, I just throw the left overs and the bones in a bag and freeze them, once I have enough of it I wait for a bit, when I make something in the oven, be it cake, lasagne, pizza, roast, etc. I just put a jar of the left overs in, covered in water, with onion, veg, garlic, spices, strain and blend it, leave enough for a meal and freeze the rest in. I bought a bunch of ice cube forms and pour it in, so if I need a bit of stock for sauce, it's easy to grab and use. I have big glass jars of dried beans, lentils and chick peas and all sorts of pulses, the yellow split peas are great for thickening sauces or soups and add a nutty flavour.



ShaharThorne -> RE: What can you knock up cheap? (12/2/2011 2:22:36 PM)

When pork loin goes on sale, we grab them up, getting a couple at a time.  One loin is several meals for us.  My brother gets the other loin.

When breasts go on sale, we grab them as well.

Sams carries those cans of chicken breasts pieces that we use for chicken and dumplings.

Today, we picked up some sirloin steaks for under $5 each.  That should last us a bit.  We also got some other groceries that should last us a month unless we have to go get bread and milk.  I am about to go on a liquid protein diet (2 shakes a day) so the milk usage will go up.  We do 2% milk because of the protein shakes (requires skim but that makes me sick).

As long as Mom does not buy pizza, we are okay.  I am burnt out on pizza myself.



HeatherMcLeather -> RE: What can you knock up cheap? (12/2/2011 4:18:27 PM)

Oh a food thread. That's not at all what I thought this would be about. I really should get my mind out of the gutter.



Hillwilliam -> RE: What can you knock up cheap? (12/2/2011 5:07:03 PM)

For those who aren't great cooks, here's something I used to do in college.

Take a typical boxed Mac n Cheese. When you're boiling the noodles, toss a coupla hot dogs in.

Strain the pasta, put the dogs on a cutting board and make the mac n cheese like normal except in addition to the milk and margarine, toss in a slice of velveeta or just regular sliced cheese. Then, cut up the dogs and toss them in too. Heartier macaroni and hot dogs.



Toppingfrmbottom -> RE: What can you knock up cheap? (12/2/2011 5:51:38 PM)

No denying that it is healthier to cook for yourself, depending on if you cook healthy choices, but I don't see how it's cheaper when pre packaged shit costs less than the ingredients for cooked from scratch. Many people say it is not cheaper, but it is. Specially when the junk food or canned pre prepared items regularly come with sales like buy one get one free or stuff like that. You can get two bags of potato chips or two cans of pre made soup, or the list goes on and on, for the cost of one healthy item. Even with out the buy one get one free deal, junk is just simply cheaper at least up front than healthy foods.


Especially if the healthy stuff is items that go bad in 3-4 days of buying an you have to go buy regularly like once a week. Like fruits and veggies and other perishable items, if you want it on hand regularly.


Edited to add, also not all of us can have chest freezers lying around to fill to the brim with stuff to freeze for later.

I also always find the fresh stuff that my dad grows and then freezes is mushy and gross after he freezes it, I am sure he's doing something wrong, but I sure wouldn't buy fresh tasty yummy crunchy veggies and ruin them by freezing them and having them come out mushy and gross. I'd eat those fuckers fresh lol.


quote:

ORIGINAL: ChatteParfaitt

The cheapest way to eat is to learn how to cook well and make everything that you can from scratch.

Stop buying premade and processed food and snacks, and make it yourself. Not only is it cheaper, it's better for you.






ChatteParfaitt -> RE: What can you knock up cheap? (12/2/2011 6:27:45 PM)

Although I respect your right to disagree with me, I think you need to learn a lot more about cooking and freezing healthy foods.

Yes, you can find junk on sale. You can also find high quality healthy food on sale. You know those pesky perishable meats and produce? You can buy them half price off once they reach their sell by date.

I admit you need to shop often to pick up good bargins. You need to know not just how to shop but how to cook what is about to go bad so you don't waste money on perishables.

And no, freezers are not just laying around. You would be hard pressed to find one used, b/c they are so cost-effective. A small chest freezer costs about $150 bucks and will pay for itself in less than a year.

If you don't have a freezer, you have to shop more often. Not a bad thing for someone who needs to learn about good food, IMO.





LafayetteLady -> RE: What can you knock up cheap? (12/2/2011 6:35:14 PM)


quote:

ORIGINAL: ChatteParfaitt

Wow that sounds so great. Actually a lot of these recipes sound totally yummy.

I think we should take Fornica up on her offer to make a CM cookbook.

I predict it will be a best seller !! LOL




I'm hoping she is working on it right now, lol.

Although if she is going to sell it, I think everyone who gives a recipe should get a free copy! These are recipes for when money is tight, we can't afford to buy the book.



ShaharThorne -> RE: What can you knock up cheap? (12/2/2011 6:39:30 PM)

We had 3 freezers when my dad died (he fished for a hobby) and we sold 2 of them.  We kept the small chest freezer for ourselves.  Keep our meats, fries, tots and popsicles in there.

I want to get a couple of roasts so I can make stroganoff.  Get the right merlot and it is to die for.

Which reminds me...egg noodles....*checks the list*



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