Granola

1/2 cup margarine
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/8 cup water
1/4 tsp salt
4 cups oats
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup ground flax seed

1-2 scoops vanilla whey protein powder



On stove, melt margarine with brown sugar, water, and protein powder. Add salt. In large bowl, combine oats, flaxseed, and cinnamon.

When margarine mixture is melted and well combined, pour over oats and stir well until combined.



Place uncooked granola on greased cookie sheet, and bake at 375 degrees for 10 minutes. Let cool completely, then break apart into small chunks and place in container for storage.

Lack of updates....

So this has been the busiest week i have had since the week before reloacting to the opposite side of the country, so like 5 months. Granted, i have not been so busy as that week or so busy that i could not take time to update my blog....but i chose peace and quiet, aka, sleep. So, i shall trudge forward. But i will give you a summary, this week i barely followed my menu. Most nights turned into leftover night. I went over budget on groceries, and i was very dissapointed. But i have a menu-ish, and i will post it.

BUT on another note, i got over $400 worth of clothes for about $25.00. And they are all great, good quality pieces. I am so tempted to add another section on my blog just for my wardrobe! I do love clothes *daydreaming*. Ok, so that is what (some of) my week consisted of. Set aside one love, for the other :-)

Pappardelle with Butternut Squash and Bleu cheese

Sorry no pictures!!! I got this recipe out of a recent BH&G, so if you must see the finished product, look it up!

1 large butternut squash, cubed 6 cups (i used 2 medium, and it was exactly 6 cups)
1 large onion, finely chopped
2 tbsp olive oil
3/4 tsp paprika
1 tbls unsalted butter
3 tbls Marsala
1/2 cup water
2/3 pine nuts
1 lb pappardelle or other robust pasta
6 fresh sage leaves
5 oz. soft bleu cheese

Peel, halve, and seed squash; cut into 1-inch cubes.

Cook onion in olive oil in a largeheavy saucepan that can accomadate the pasta later. When the onion starts to become golden, add the paprika.

Stir butter and squash into onion mixture in pan. Add marsala and water. Bring to a simmer. Cover and reduce heat. SImmer about 10 minutus, or until the squash is tender but still holds its shape.

Meanwhile bring a large saucepan of water to boiling; add hefty pinch of salt. Cook pasta.

Toast pine nuts in a hot deep frying pan until dark.

Lightly season squash w/ salt. Remove from heat. Finely chop sage; sprinkle over squash, reserving some for serving.

Remove about 1/2 cup of the pasta cooking water with a laddle or mug; drain pasta. Add drained pasta to squash mixture, gently stir to combine. If sauce is too dry or mixture won't come together, add some of the reserved cooking water.Stir in most of the pine nuts and cheese. Transfer to a large serving bowl. Sprinkle with remaining sage, pine nuts, and cheese.

Groceries

Market: $2.28
Aldi: $1.29
Grocery Outlet: $16.23
Weis: $5.02
Milk: $3.00 (not shown)
TOTAL: $27.82


It looks like i got less food than last week, and that is true. BUT, i was making a couple dishes for my dinner party that required ingredients i rarely, if ever, have (like bleu cheese). Check out the menu and you will see we are not suffering without good meals. I did throw in an extra leftover day, knowing that we would have food leftover from the dinner party. Which we will gladly eat tomorrow. No sarcasm, i promise. What i love most about this week.....i had a great dinner party and stayed under budget. Yes, UNDER budget. Woo!

Btw, did anyone notice the GIANT bag of tortilla chips??? That should last at least 2 weeks....i sure hope so.

Food Waste Friday

This is why i don't like making enough of a dish to have leftovers. Because i don't eat them! So out with the mold. This week hasn't all been wasteful, in my defense. I cut up old t-shirts to use as cleaning rags (bleaching, washing windows, and such) instead of paper towels.

Win some, lose some.

Cheapest chair of all time

Goodwill: $1.97

Menu plan for October 22-28

Friday:

Appetizer: Mustard-ginger smokies

Side dish: Herbed green beans with cranberries

Main Dish: Pappardelle with butternut squash & bleu cheese sauce.

Saturday:

Lentil burgers

Tortilla chips and Guacamole

Sunday:

Leftovers

Monday:

BBQ chicken sliders (bumped from last week)

Mashed potato skins (leftover from batch last week)

Tuesday:

Curried Carrot Soup

Toasted wheat baguette

Wednesday:

Ravioli w/ pasta sauce (bumped from last week)

Iceberg Salad

Thursday:

Leftovers

Mashed Potato Skins

Favorite mashed potato recipe of all time! Complete with pictures! Sorry about the lack of pictures lately, it is hard to take pictures of a recipe you aren't actually making at the time ;-)

So, here is what you need.

Cook bacon on a slotted pan, according to package directions.

Chop potatoes. If they are big, quarter them. Smaller potatoes can be halved.

Then take your chopped potatoes....

 And drop them in a large saucepan.

 Fill your pan with cold water. And cook potatoes until tender.

 To make pretend buttermilk, I take 1 tbls vinegar to 1 cup milk. And you have your 'buttermilk'

 Chop your fresh chives.

 Till they are all chopped.

You should have some crispy bacon by now....you can see it sizzling! Yum! Let cool...

 Keep checking your potatoes, when they break apart when you stick a fork in them they are done.
Like this:

 Drain your potatoes.

 From here on out, most of the work is taken over by my best friend. Not only is she pretty, she is a hard worker too!

 I paddle mash my potatoes to get the big lumps out.

 Start adding your buttermilk, little by little...

 When my potatoes look somewhat like this....

 I switch to whisk mashing....this is where the real magic begins.

 So add some more buttermilk, and whisk for about a million years.

 While your potatoes whisk away forever, chop the bacon.

 This is how i like to see my potatoes, like fluffy whipped cream. Heavenly.

 Woo, she is focused!

 Add some more yummy-ness, cheese, bacon, and chives.

 And back on with the paddle.

 Take a little taste test, add some salt and pepper to taste. And you are done!

Printable recipe

Mashed Potato Skins

6 slices bacon
2 pounds Yukon gold potatoes
1 cup buttermilk
1/4 cup fresh chives, chopped
1/2 cup extra sharp cheddar cheese
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Cook bacon on slotted pan according to package directions.

Put potatoes in a large saucepan and cover with cold water. Bring the water to a boil and season with salt. Cook until tender, about 15 mins. Drain and mash potatoes with buttermilk and season with salt and pepper. Stir in the chives, cheddar, and bacon.

Friday Dinner Party Menu

I got the finishing touches on my menu for my small, casual, Autumn dinner party tomorrow (4 people total, including me).

Ginger-mustard smokies
Herbed green beans with cranberries
Pappardelle with Butternut squash & Bleu cheese

Very excited about each of these dishes! Recipes will be following this weekend, hopefully :-)

Look for the menu for rest of the week and groceries tomorrow! Just to be clear, the food for the dinner party is part of my normal weekly budget. Eatin' good for cheap, it's what i do!

Best Baked Oatmeal

 My favorite way to eat oatmeal! So simple, you can even prepare it and stick it in the fridge overnight to bake in the morning :-)

3 cups rolled oats
1/2 brown sugar ( or less)
2 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 cup milk
2 eggs
1/2 cup melted butter
2 tsp vanilla extract

 Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix dry ingredients, and beat in wet ingredients.

Bake in greased 9x13 pan for 40 minutes.

Stick project...

I got my sticks! If you want to know what they are for, keep checking back!

Bulgur Porridge

Needing an alternative to oatmeal and eggs for breakfast, i tried this recipe for bulgur porridge. It is delicious! And for those who have a hard time with the mushy texture of oatmeal, they may find bulgur a more appealing texture.

Bulgur Porridge

(courtesy of marthastewert.com)

Serves 2

1 cup milk

1/2 medium grind bulgur

1/4 raisins, if desired

1/4 tsp salt

1-2 tlbs brown sugar

sliced fresh strawberries, for serving (optional)

In medium saucepan, combine milk, raisins, salt, and 1 cup water; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium, and simmer, stirring occasionally, until bulgur is tender and mixture is the consistency of oatmeal, 10 to 15 minutes.

Serve into bowls; sprinkle with sugar and serve warm with strawberries.

Potato Lentil Curry

This is a remake of one of our (husband & i) favorite summer recipes. I consider this the cheaper, fall version.It can be served hot or chilled.

Potato Lentil Curry
(serves 6)

4-5 cups cubed potatoes (yukon gold is my favorite choice for this recipe)
1/2 cup uncooked brown lentils
3 tbls light mayo
1/2 cup plain, nonfat yogurt
2 tsp yellow curry powder
1/2-1 cup chopped celery (omitted)
pinch of salt, sugar, and pepper

Bring large saucepan of water to boil.

Add cubed potatoes to water, cook until tender.

Strain potatoes, and rinse under cold water(if serving chilled).

In same saucepan, add 1 cup cold water and bring to boil. Add lentils, cook until tender. Strain, and run under cold water (if serving chilled).

In large bowl, combine mayo, yogurt, curry powder, sugar, salt, and pepper.

Add potatoes and lentils to curry mixture, and stir. If serving chilled, cover and refrigerate.

Serve chilled with pita pockets. Or Serve hot over rice (or grain of choice).

Menu Plan & Groceries

One of the greatest ways I ensure the food we eat is good and to keep to a tight budget, is to plan! I plan my menus a week at a time, and i make my grocery list at the same time. And I typically do my planning and shopping on Friday. My weekly budget for food, toiletries, and household items is $30. That may seem low, and i agree, but it is not impossible and it's amazing what you can do if you take some time to plan. I will post how much i spend at each store, so as to help prove i am not cheating ;-)
 

Here are my totals:

Grocery Outlet: $20.05
Aldi's: $9.64
Giant: $4.61

Total: $34.30 ($4.30 over budget)
The reason for this overage is a side dish i am making for my husband's work party. I am making a HUGE batch of Mashed Potato Skins, requiring extra groceries this week, but in my opinion completely justified :-)


Here is my menu for October 15-21:

Friday
Linguine with Alfredo sauce
Bruschetta

Saturday
Potato Lentil Curry
Rice

Sunday

Margherita style Pizza (Tomato, spinach, and feta)
Breadsticks

Monday

Leftover pizza or BLT's

Tuesday
Home-made ravioli
Green salad

Wednesday

Yellow Split Pea soup
Dinner rolls

Thursday

BBQ Chicken sliders
Mashed Potato skins

Food Waste Friday

Following in the step of many who have gone before me, i will be posting my food waste at the end of each week. The past few months i have wasted little to no food, yay! But i have an ugly wasteful past....

Only one item to throw out....some not so 'guiltless' hummus after all.