Recipe Dump!

So often, I find it difficult to keep up with updates because I cook many of the same 20 dishes in different combos so often.  Not this week!  After the jump find a slew of recipe sources and interesting things to make this Fall...

Once-a-Month Cooking

 One way to be frugal is to cook an awful lot of food at one time.  You buy in bulk, cook in bulk, freeze in bulk, and then eat it slowly over the next few weeks.  This is called "once-a-month cooking" or sometimes, "freezer cooking" and it is something that both intrigues and frightens me.  My freezer is constantly being used with best intentions and then stuff just sits.

After the jump find some resources for how to plan such an endeavor and a treasure trove of recipes to use when you decide to take the plunge.

 

Using Everything -- Orange Peel Edition

I always feel like I'm leaving such a waste just throwing out perfectly good orange peels.  But the thought of constantly candying them is exhausting.  Here are some other uses for the mighty orange peel.
  

Things to do with Orange Peels

Adventures in Whey II: Not Just for Little Miss Muffet Anymore

This is part two of what I'm desperately hoping doesn't become a series.  I did actually attempt (and mostly succeed) in going from a gallon of milk to three cheeses in about a day.  Warning: do not attempt this without a LOT of time on your hands.

Government Cheese

There's been a lot of kerfuffle on the Internet about this new redesign of the Food Pyramid.  A lot of people have their knickers in a twist over the dumbing down of the American People by switching from a triangle to a circle.  I have to disagree.  Follow me after the break for some fun and nifty government resources (read: free!) and a little free opinion thrown in on the side.

Amaranth: Everything Old is New Again

I keep running into people talking about Amaranth like it is some sort of alien grain sent from the heavens to confound the kitchen-bound.  It isn't.  It's awesome!  This grain was cultivated 8,000 years ago and just keeps coming back.  It's gluten-free and incredibly versatile.  Join me after the break for a selection of delightful recipes to get you started using this grain.  It's the next quinoa*, I'm convinced.

What to do with Whey?

Making a recent yogurt recipe left me with a few cups of whey and whey is one of those things that people talk about but never seem to get around to actually using.  I really didn't want to waste perfectly good (and nutritious!) whey...so off to Google it was.  There were a few REALLY GREAT ideas I've culled with some basic google-fu; follow me after the break for that adventure because I'm sold: whey is where it's at.

Apologies for my Absence

I am a terrible updater, there's no doubt about it.  But I will endeavor to update with a little more regularity (or at least mention when I'll be falling off the face of the planet). 

While I've been gone, I have downloaded 2 new apps that are phenomenal (for Apple, not PC, sorry).  I would like to share them with you after the jump...

Cooking with Children

The more I've thought about this, the more I am I convinced.  The world would be a better place if children were taught to cook from an early age.

I was a late-comer to cooking.  In some ways, that was a good thing -- I had the chance to learn to be fearless.  In some ways, not so good -- I felt pretty nervous and lacking in the kitchen until most of the way through college.

In my family, I was not the cook.  This comes as a great surprise to my friends now, I'm sure, but until this past year, my family barely let me into the kitchen.  My mother liked control in the kitchen and she and my father split the cooking duties.  In a small space, this meant children were more of a nuisance than helpers (too many cooks and all that).  Since you are not my therapist, dear reader, I won't go any further into the past...but just recently I had a phenomenal experience with kids I do want to share.  Join me after the break for that and the best pancake recipe EVER.

This is what it should look like: cooking with friends

This past weekend I had the chance to hang out and catch up with a friend.  We went out for a light lunch (ha!) of sushi at restaurant within walking distance of her house and then made our way back to her place to continue the conversation.  When we got there she turned to me almost apologetically and said,

Do you mind if we move to the kitchen? I need to do some cooking for my lunches for next week...

Obviously, I was thrilled.  She cooked and I prepped, we chatted and swapped tips as we continued our conversation from the restaurant.  She only had a little clean-up at the end and hand-washed what few dishes there were.  All in all, that part of the day took less than an hour.

It reminded me of an occasion when I visited some friends for a shapenote singing in their home.  I arrived a little early with chicken in hand and helped out in the kitchen.  There was a simple choreography to the rise and fall of the cooking with the conversation.  It felt peaceful and right.

Looking back, I guess what really took me aback was how easily and simply cooking can be incorporated into life.  It doesn't take long to make it a part of your routine.  Having friends who echo and mirror that same simple consideration only help to reinforce good habits.  Kitchens have historically been the center of the home, a place for easy conversation, a place to connect and reconnect with your dear ones.  And the simple intimacy of preparing a dish together is a powerful way to say "I love you."

Credits
Image: Kuchenmaistrey aWikimedia Commons  image in the Public Domain (Augsburg 1505)

Reckoning #5

So...how did the menu plan work out this week?  Let's take a look...

	Breakfast	Lunch (Snacks)	Dinner
Monday	coffee, leftover lasagna	caramel rice cakes, potato chips, apple, banana, peanut butter, carrots, snow peas, tea	Butternut Squash and Pasta w/Sage (Milk to drink)
Tuesday	coffee, leftover Squash/pasta	caramel rice cakes, potato chips, apple, banana, peanut butter, carrots, snow peas, tea	leftover butternut squash pasta, milk
Wednesday	coffee, perfect oatmeal, banana and PB	apple and PB, carrots, peas, leftover lasagna, tea	leftover butternut squash pasta, milk
Thursday	coffee, perfect oatmeal	Leftover Lasagna, apple and PB, carrots, tea	Bacon Chicken, Banana "ice cream" with caramel/PB sauce
Friday	coffee, perfect oatmeal	Leftover Bacon Chicken (+freebie meeting food, took the rest of lunch home)	Dinner out w/a friend!

Recipes and notes for this week after the jump...

This is what it should look like: Pantry

Everyone and their mom has something to say about pantries.  Pantries can be as simple or complex as you want them to be and when you are first starting to get involved with cooking, the idea of a pantry can seem very overwhelming.  This is not good because when you first start cooking, your pantry is likely very small and so cooking seems very overwhelming.  It is exhausting realizing that each recipe calls for an ingredient you don't yet own and trying to figure out what you can do away with and still cook is enough to make you want to give up entirely.  Don't!  A healthy well-stocked pantry will be a joy to behold!  Treat your pantry well and it will love you in return:

Basic Pantry Planning after the jump...

Gordon Ramsay explains it all

Gordon Ramsay is one of my favorite chefs to watch. Part of that is because of market saturation, I'm sure; but, it is also because he has such respect for basic food.  It doesn't matter if he's cooking the most intricate and delicate gourmet meal, or something like the video above.  He makes all dishes seem like the most natural things in the world.  I've made this for friends and family, and all have thoroughly enjoyed it.  If you find a deal on fish with skin still on, I suggest some variation of the above.

Reckoning #4

So...how did the menu plan work out this week?  Let's take a look...

	Breakfast	Lunch (Snacks)	Dinner
Monday	coffee, leftover rice	rich tea biscuits, carrots, peas, apple, cheese stick	Treated by a friend!
Tuesday	coffee/lemon pound cake *	Ratatouille and leftover kimchee fried rice	chicken breast with mirepoix and wine gravy
Wednesday	coffee/tea/pumpkin scone *	leftover chicken with peas and carrots	split chicken finger app. w/a friend post-concert*
Thursday	Focaccia and Coffee	rich tea biscuits & cheese, sliced zucchini & squash	Fried Rice w/peppers and carrots
Friday	Hot rice cereal, coffee	Rice and Mango, Cheese Sticks and biscuits, apple, tea	Rice and Mango and then a Party!

*Another fail this week -- I had a singing gig 1-hour north of where I live.  Sadness, I stopped at Starbucks a few times this week...

Recipes and notes for this week after the jump...

Grocery Shopping 2

Because of the Great Chicken Bonanza of Twenty-Ten, the budget for this go-around was reduced to $52.44 for 2 weeks worth of food...let's see how it went:

Ideas for cooking Frugal Food

I recently read a nice resource post on the Moneyning blog: 12 Super Cheap, Super Nutritious Foods You Should Be Eating

And yes, for people who like eating cheaply but also well, these are great foods.  But too often, we read lists like these and wonder how we should incorporate these dishes.  Wonder no more!  I am posting the 12 super cheap healthy foods and recipes you can use with each in a lovely recipe dump after the fold...


Also -- a challenge to myself.  The next time I go grocery shopping, I will endeavor to find these ingredients and meal plan around them. Updates forthcoming.

Get to know a Farmer's Market...

This post is for those of you that live in Atlanta and only think of "farmers markets" as being those high-end open air stalls in the parks.  This is not that kind of market.  This is where I go to get low-cost fresh produce, spices, and nicely prepared meats, dairy, and bakery items.


If you live within a 20 mile radius of this market, you've probably heard about it but maybe never visited.  Please go.  Just check it out.  It will change the way you grocery shop from here on out.

http://www.dekalbfarmersmarket.com/

Reckoning Week 3

So...how did the menu plan work out this week?  Let's take a look...

	Breakfast	Lunch (Snacks)	Dinner
Monday	6 Leibniz biscuits, an apple, a string cheese, and coffee	Grandma's 15-Minute Soup (peas/carrots/grapes, tea)	Baked Brie, (serve w/chocolate, an apple, crackers, & some wine)*
Tuesday	Slice of Poppyseed Cake, Coffee**	Avocado w/S&P, peas, carrots, grapes (6 biscuits w/tea)	Edamame and Pad Thai**
Wednesday	Scone and Coffee	Treated by a friend!	Sweet/Savory Squash (dessert: a slice of fudge)
Thursday	Hot Rice Cereal and Coffee	15-min. soup, crackers (6 biscuits + tea)	carrots, peas, grapes (not eaten at lunch) + the last of the Leibniz
Friday	I'm stuck in New York this weekend, so today was kind of off...Hot Rice Cereal and Coffee	Plane food + half a turkey/avocado sandwich split w/a friend.	Dinner out in Midtown: Sushiya, not bad.

*This was pretty awesome.  My neighbor, who reads the blog, made the baked brie recipe posted earlier last week.  This became (a rather unhealthy if frugal...read: free!) dinner.  I'm kind of touched...and one step closer to an early death via heart disease.  Yum.

**Drove through a Caribou Coffee while taking care of DMV stuff with my car. :(  Should have woken up earlier...and then went out to dinner w/a friend before going to a (free!) author reading/signing. :(( this was not the most food-budget conscious of days.

Recipes and notes for this week after the jump...

This is what it should look like

My neighbor is super awesome.  She went shopping with me last week and when I bought those chicken breasts on sale, she jumped right in and bought some of her own...without realizing they were bone-in and included skin.  This is not something that she has ever dealt with before but rather than panic, she did what I suggested earlier we should all do more of...she used the Internet as her menu-planning friend.  I've included my own summary and a copy of the recipe below the fold...

How to Boil Water

This is one of those topics that started out as a joke, and then became kind of helpful in a weird way, and then turned into a delightful romp through Internetland.

"Boiling Water" seems like a task you can't screw up...I mean, really, look at the video from howcast:

Sorry if it started automatically; I think it depends on your browser? 

Back to boiling water...when you think about it, it should be easy, but there are a few things you should know depending on your recipe.  Tips after the jump...