Hummus!

A new family favorite in the house is homemade hummus.  We used to buy the ready-made stuff at the store, but it is a bit pricey.  When you figure that it is made up of mostly garbanzo beans (chickpeas) it is a fairly inexpensive thing to make.  We like it with tortilla or pita chips, fresh veggies, and I have caught my oldest just eating it with a spoon.  Hey, it is gluten-dairy-egg free and yummy.  Who can blame her?  This is the recipe out of the Vita-Mix Whole Food cookbook with a couple of tweaks. (Yes, we were blessed with a Vita-Mix for Christmas.  I am sure I will be sharing more about that later.)  Although this calls for canned beans, you can save even more money by buying a big bag of dried beans and cooking them.  It is super easy and then we bag them in individual portions and put them in the freezer for later use.

HUMMUS

• 2 (15 oz) cans chick peas, one drained, one with liquid
• 1/4 cup raw sesame seeds (or tahini)
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/4 cup lemon juice (about the juice of one lemon)
• 1 garlic clove, peeled
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• salt to taste
• handful of fresh parsley or cilantro, chopped (optional)

Process all ingredients except the fresh herbs (if using) in a blender or food processor.  Once smooth add herbs a process just enough to mix them through (If you blend too much, your hummus will turn green.  Trust me; I know this from experience.)

You can get creative and flavor your hummus with roasted red peppers, spinach, or other herbs.  Use your imagination.

Pizza!

A couple of weeks ago, I talked about my favorite bread dough that I love to keep on hand in my fridge, the Olive Oil dough.  Not only does it make great bread, but it works fantastic for pizza crusts.  Now, I love making homemade pizza.  If you already have the dough on hand, it is a very quick meal to make.  The trickiest part, though, is making a decent crust.  There is definitely a trick to getting a nice crust.  You don't want it too thick or too thin.  Round is preferable and holes kind of ruin it.  I have to admit that I have struggled a bit with this.  I have made my share of no-so-pretty pizzas.  Fortunately, it is pizza and my kids don't really care what it looks like.

My usual method to make my crust is to whack off a hunk of dough, put it down on a floured counter, flour the top liberally and roll it out.  This usually results in a misshapen crust.  Then I saw somewhere how you can stretch the dough with your fists.  That definitely helps.  I also decide that I would try tossing it.  This is very entertaining for the kids, but you must make sure you don't accidentally drop it on the floor when you have witnesses [wink].  I found a great video that demonstrates how to make a pizza crust that I found very helpful.  Unfortunately, I can't find it now, but when in the process of searching online for it, I found quite a few other good ones.

Stretching the dough:


Here is a great instructional video on how to actually TOSS a pizza crust:


And here is what it looks like when you get fast:


Hopefully this has inspired your to make your own pizza. It is a fast, fun, and it can definitely be a cheap eat.

It's Fair Time! (Kettle Corn Recipe!)

I know that it has been fair time all summer, but Fall is when the really good fairs happen.  In my neck of the woods, Fall is the time for the country fairs.  They are full of real artisans and craftsmen selling their wares.  My all-time favorite is the Johnny Appleseed Festival.  They have strict requirements that don't allow anything modern in appearance.  There are wood carvers, blacksmiths, civil war era reenactors, along with every kind of traditional craft you can imagine.  Then there is the FOOD:  fresh apple cider, caramel apples, corn on the cob, ham & beans, apple dumplings, funnel cakes, sausage burgers, and one of my favorites, caramel/kettle corn.  Around here, there is a church that does caramel corn in a big copper kettle over an open fire at all the fairs.  It is not the heavily coated traditional caramel corn, but it more closely resembles the lighter coated kettle corn.  It is so yummy to get fresh while it is still hot!  If you have never tried kettle corn, you need to.  Put that on your bucket list.

Did you know that making your own kettle corn is a piece of cake and you can do it right on your stove-top at home?  Once you try this, you will wonder why you never did it before.  The other bonus, is that it is a Cheap Eat.  I mentioned it before when I was talking about Cheap Eats: Popcorn a while back.  Since then I have made it quite a few more times and tweaked the recipe a bit.  I make mine in a Whirley Popper.It has a stirrer inside that keeps the popcorn from burning or sticking.  I just throw 3 simple ingredients in the pot, turn the heat on high, and turn the crank.  Now, I have never tried it, but I don't see any reason why you could not just do this in a big pot.  I would probably keep a wooden spoon or spatula handy to stir it at least until the kernels start popping.  At the fairs, all they have is a big copper pot and a big wooden paddle to do just that.

Kettle Corn
1/4 cup oil (vegetable, corn, canola)
1/4 cup sugar
Scant 1/2 cup unpopped popcorn


Throw all of this in a stovetop popcorn popper or big pot.  Place over high heat and stir until popcorn pops.  As soon as the popping slows, remove from the heat.  Otherwise, the sugar will burn.  Dump it in a big bowl and lightly salt with regular table salt.  Don't forget this step; this is what makes it magical!  Salt it while it is still hot and sticky.  The combination of the sweet and salty together is pure bliss.  I will warn you, though, don't sit with a big bowl of this in your lap - you will regret it because before you know it, you will have consumed way more than you intended and will feel helpless to put the bowl down.  (Please, don't ask me how I know this.)
Go forth and enjoy this fun time of year at the fairs.  Then let the fair food live on in your kitchen making many, many bowls of yummy kettle corn. 

CHEAP EATS: Popcorn

We are still working really hard to keep our food budget down around here because, well, we have too. I can't go into debt to feed my family. One thing we utilize is popcorn – not that packaged microwave stuff, but the real kind. I have found that I can by a 50 pound bag of popcorn at my local warehouse club for about $16. Let me tell you, 50 pounds is A LOT of popcorn. Our last bag lasted us years. So what all do we do with it? We mostly just pop it up for snacks. The beauty about popcorn is that you can make it into both a sweet or salty snack. We pop ours up in a stovetop popper like this that we got as a wedding gift nearly 22 years ago, but you can just use something as simple as a big pot.

How to pop popcorn in a big pot on the stovetop:

1.Place 3 T. oil and 3 kernels of popcorn in pot, cover and place on medium-high heat.
2.When those kernels pop, add 1/3 cup of popcorn to the pot and make sure they are in an even layer on the bottom.
3.Remove the pot from the heat for 30 seconds. (Doing this brings all the kernels up to the oil temperature so they will pop at the same time.)
4.Place back on the heat covered.
5.As soon as you hear popping, shake the pot. Keep the lid ajar so that your popcorn stays crispy.
6.Once the popping has slowed to a couple of seconds between pops, remove from heat. And dump into a bowl.
7.Season as desired. If using butter, it can be melted quickly in the hot pot.

Seasoning ideas:
Salt (Obvious, I know!) Any salt will work, but popcorn salt is nice because it is so fine, it sticks well to the popcorn.
Cayenne pepper for a little kick.
Salt, Pepper and olive oil. This is a yummy combo that I learned from a friend. Drizzle on the olive oil, add salt and fresh cracked pepper. Toss the popcorn in the bowl and repeat. Yummy!
Parmesan cheese
Cumin
Spanish smoked paprika
Curry powder
Nutritional yeast
Garlic salt
Pizza seasoning
Seasoned salt
Cinnamon or cinnamon-sugar

I have also heard that you can add salt right to the oil as you are popping and it will be distributed all through the corn. I will be trying that.

Do you like things sweet? There are bunches of caramel corn recipes to choose from. I don't have a tried and true favorite that I can share with you, but here are some you can check out.

My favorite way to do sweet popcorn is kettle corn. I think it is way easier than caramel corn and just lightly sweet which I like. With caramel corn there are several steps. You pop the corn, make the caramel sauce, pour it over the popcorn and bake it. Kettle corn just takes one pot and just one step because you just mix sugar right into the pot with the oil and corn.

Simple Kettle Corn

¼ cup oil
¼ cup sugar
¼ cup popcorn

Place all ingredients into the pot and place over medium-high heat. Make sure you shake this constantly so it doesn't burn. Remove from heat when there are a couple of seconds between pops. Immediately dump into bowl. Done. Easy-peasy!

A really yummy variation on this is Cinnamon Kettle Corn. To make this, substitute red hots for the sugar. It makes reddish pink cinnamon flavored popcorn. I have often thought that you could probably substitute any crushed hard candy, but haven't tried that yet. I'm thinking butterscotch candies or maybe even leftover candy canes. Sounds yummy, huh?

Another great idea for popcorn is to use it in place of breakfast cereal. I have not tried this on my family yet. Breakfast cereal is something that I have cut from our grocery list unless I get a really sweet deal. Since they have been living with homemade granola or whatever I can pick up at the local food auction, this might seem like a fun treat. I think I will do some kettle corn style, but with ½ the sugar for a slightly sweetened cereal.

I'm sure if you think about it, you can come up with lots of great popcorn ideas. Here's a site with lots of unique recipes.

So, when searching for cheap eats, don't forget the popcorn. At just over 30 cents per pound, it is a great deal – especially if you realize that just 1 tablespoon of unpopped corn yields 2 CUPS popped. Try a new recipe and be sure to share your results and ideas in the comments.

Chili on the Cheap

Last Sunday, we had the family over to celebrate my youngest's first birthday. The timing of the day was such that I needed to come up with a lunch that could be ready to serve the moment we walked in the door from church. I came up with the idea of chili and cornbread because both could be made ahead. I took the chili out of the refrigerator and put it in the crockpot before we left for church in the morning and I made the cornbread the night before and quickly reheated it in the oven when it was time to eat.

The chili must have been ok because I had virtually no leftovers from my big pot of it. Even my brother-in-law who has proclaimed that he “Does not like chili” had two bowls. Because of this, my sister-in-law has asked for the recipe. Here is my dilemma...I didn't use one. You see, lately I have been on a quest to slash our grocery expenses drastically. I have discovered I can cook the cheapest when I don't follow recipes to a tee, but instead use what I have on hand or can purchase at a bargain.

With the exception of baking which is a bit of an exact science to make things rise properly, most cooking has a lot of play in it. I tend to read tons of recipes that I never actually use. I read them to try and understand the common threads that make up a particular dish. For example, when I wanted to make chili, I went to my favorite recipe site, All Recipes, and did a search on “chili”. Then I sorted these by rating so that I could look at the most tried and true and loved recipes. The recipes are quite varied, but if you look closely at what makes up the bulk of each recipe, you will notice that there are some trends. Most recipes are based on many of the same ingredients or at least the same types of ingredients. I noticed that chili tends to be made up of some sort of tomato base (whole canned tomatoes, tomato juice, etc.), chili powder, beans of some type, meat of some type, and then there are various extras that give each chili its unique flavor.

Now, if I just picked a chili recipe and then proceeded to go out and purchase all of the ingredients that I needed for it, it may not end up being any bargain. So, I looked at what I had on hand first and created my own recipe based on those things.
So here is my recipe:

TOMATOES:
These make up the base of the chili. I used a large (28 oz) can of whole tomatoes, a large can of crushed tomatoes and a (14oz) can of diced tomatoes. I did not drain any of them.

MEAT:
Most recipes have some sort of beef (ground, roast, etc) although I found several that also included some type of sausage. Since I didn't have anything on hand in this department I bought a couple of pounds of ground beef because it seemed to be the best deal and I know we love that in chili.

BEANS:
Most recipes call for kidney beans or chili beans which are already seasoned. My family members are not big bean fans even though I am trying to train them to be for the sake of saving money and eating healthy. I ended up using a can of black beans and a can of pinto beans because that is what I had on hand. I did use a little trick my friend, Angela, told me. After draining the beans, I put over half of them into my food processor and ground them up. This gives you the nice bean flavor in your chili without so many whole (obvious) beans themselves.

SPICE/HEAT:
I used chili powder which is what gives most recipes their standard chili flavor. I think I used about ¼ cup. I also added one fresh jalapeño, because I had them on hand to make pico de gallo. How much spice you use is up to you and your family's personal taste. I added some and then tasted. I have found that bottled hot sauce is really yummy, too, but I was about out of it last weekend.

THE EXTRAS:
There's quite a few extras that can go into chili. I read through several recipes, taking note of what I had on hand and what I thought would blend together without a clashing of flavors. I keep a fairly well stocked pantry and spice cabinet so I had quite a few things available to add to my chili.

Here is the list of what I threw in:

Onions! We LOVE onions around here, so I think I added two chopped yellow onions.

Garlic. We also love garlic and it can add a little kick so I think I used 4-5 fresh cloves, minced.

Cumin. 1-2 tsp.

Beef Bouillon. I actually used beef soup base, but 3-4 bouillon cubes would be equivalent.

Beer. It adds a really nice flavor to chili. I used a bottle of Budweiser that was hiding in the basement from who-knows-when.

Worcestershire sauce. I splashed some in. It was perhaps a tablespoon.

Brown sugar. I used a loose ¼ cup.

Apple Cider Vinegar. I used a splash – a tablespoon or two.

Cinnamon. I just shook some in. It was perhaps a teaspoon.

Fresh cilantro. I only added this because I had it on hand. It tastes wonderful and added pretty flecks of green into the chili. I used about ½ a bunch, chopped.

Salt. Add it to taste.

Black pepper.

THE PROCESS:
I browned the ground beef along with the onions in the bottom of the pot and then drained off the grease. Then I started adding in the rest starting with the tomatoes and working down the list here. I taste tested often along the way to make sure I was happy with the flavor. It is better to add too little of an ingredient if in doubt about it because that can be fixed.

After all the ingredients are in, it is important to let this simmer a bit for the flavors to blend together. In my case here, I let it simmer for an hour and then let it cool and placed it in the fridge. Then it had about 4 or so hours in the crockpot the next day. This made a good sized pot of chili.

I served it with fresh pico de gallo (which is something that my family has learned to crave), fritos, sour cream, and sharp cheddar cheese.

CHEAP EATS: Oriental Oats Recipe Update

Monday I posted about one of my favorite cheap eats, oatmeal. I included a recipe for Oriental Oats that I had found in my Le Leche League cookbook, but noted that I had not tried it. Well, it was a busy week and one evening I found myself wondering at 5:30pm what we were going to have for dinner. That recipe popped into my mind and I decided to try it.

I began mixing up the recipe although I wasn't exactly sure how it would actually turn out because I had never cooked anything quite like it. You mix rolled oats and eggs and cook them while you stir fry up some veggies. We used onion and broccoli because it is what I had handy. Then you add the veggies, some broth and soy sauce into the cooked oat mixture and cook it until the liquid has been absorbed.

This was a HUGE hit with my family! This actually shocked me because as I was cooking it, I kept getting grilled by my hungry children: "WHAT are you making? WHAT is it called? WHAT are you putting in that?" I explained it as best as I could and figured if they were hungry enough they would it it regardless. So, imagine my surprise when they couldn't get enough of it! The oat/egg mixture gets somewhat chewy and reminded me of the consistency of ground beef in the finished dish. Thank goodness I made some rice to serve this over or we wouldn't have had near enough. I will be doubling the recipe next time because my kids pigged it down. Even Patrick who is not real big on rice and stir fry type dishes really liked this.

Because of our recent budget constraints, I have been trying to make more meatless meals, but my family, especially hubby, sometimes feels cheated with these. I was really happy to find a dish that satisfied everyone and is very economical to make. I figure that entire meal only cost $2-3 to feed our family of 7. It also was balanced with carbs, veggies, and plenty of protein. Although meatless, it included eggs as well as the combination of whole grains and veggies which creates a complete protein. In all actuality, this cheap eating is probably going to help our health as well as our wallet.

Here is the recipe again:

Oriental Oats

2 eggs, beaten
1 1/2 cups rolled oats
4T. oil
2 cups chopped or sliced mixed onions, sprouts, mushrooms and broccoli
3/4 cup water
1 T. soy sauce

Combine eggs and oats in a bowl; mix well. Cook in 2 tablespoons oil in skillet for 3 to 5 minutes or until dry and separate. Saute vegetables in remaining oil in small skillet. Add to oats with water and soy sauce. Simmer until liquid is absorbed, stirring occasionally. May add 1 cup chopped meat. May substitute butter for oil; may substitute broth or stock for water and soy sauce. Yield 6 servings. (From "Whole Foods for the Whole Family" LeLeche League International)

CHEAP EATS: Oatmeal

What do you think of when you hear the word oatmeal? Pasty stuff in a bowl? Cookies with raisins? Perhaps granola?

A Healthy Choice

I know there are many people who do not think very highly of oatmeal, but oatmeal is a very healthy food. Oatmeal that we buy in our local grocery store is rolled oats. The oats grains are processed by running them between heavy rollers to "flake" them. Therefore, oatmeal is a whole grain food.

Whole grain foods are vital to a healthy diet. The 2005 American dietary guidelines recommend that we eat 3 serving of whole grains each day. Whole grain foods differ from refined "white" foods in the fact that the germ and bran are still intact. Refined white foods (white flour) have these parts removed. Studies show that whole grains reduce the risk of heart disease, help in weight management, and are a better choice for those with diabetes.

Oatmeal is naturally free of sodium and cholesterol and low in fat. In addition to this, it is a great source of water soluble fiber which functions to lower blood cholesterol levels.

Old-Fashioned vs. Quick Oats

When you visit your local grocery store, you will most likely see two kinds of plain oats on the shelf: Old-Fashioned and Quick-Cooking. Old fashioned are plain rolled oats, while quick-cooking have been processed by partially cooking them, drying them and packaging. I personally tend to steer clear of these. The are less nutritious and cook up to the consistency of glue. Their advantage is that they cook quicker. Old-fashioned oats only take about 5 minutes to cook anyway, so the time savings is minimal.

What To Do With Oatmeal

The simplest way to eat oatmeal is as a cooked cereal. About 1/2 cup of oatmeal equals a serving. For each 1/2 cup serving use 1 cup water. Place water and oats in a pot. bring to a boil and simmer for a few minutes until it is the desired consistency. I let it cook about five minutes after the water boils. If you like really chewy oatmeal, wait to add the oats until after after the water has come to a boil.

Now you can eat it just like this, but we like to add a little sweetness and fun to our bowl of oatmeal.

Things we like to add are:

• Sweeteners (sugar, brown sugar, honey, maple syrup)
• Fresh fruit (berries, apples)
• Dried fruit (raisins, Craisins, dried cherries or blueberries)
• Milk or cream
• Apple butter
• Jam
• Cinnamon

Now, if you want a real treat, make sure you prepare extra and make Fried Oatmeal. Take the plain leftovers and pack them into a loaf pan and place them in the refrigerator. After a few hours, the oatmeal will have gelled into an unappetizing loaf. Don't be put off by this. Pop it out of the pan, slice it and fry it in a skillet with plenty of butter until the outside is all crispy. Serve it with maple syrup. Fried oatmeal is a delightful treat that my kids love. My oldest is not a big fan of oatmeal, but gets excited about it when she sees that I have made extra to fry up the next day.

Now, what if you just don't have time in the morning to prepare this? There are a couple a options you can try. Oatmeal can be prepared ahead the night before so it is ready to eat by morning. One simple option is Slow-Cooker Oatmeal done in the crock pot. If you are looking for something more elaborate and dressed up from your crock pot, Christmas Morning Oatmeal sounds delightful.

If you are desiring the simplest and most frugal method to make your oatmeal ahead of time, try the Thermos method. For a personal serving of oatmeal on the go, measure 1/2 cup rolled oats into thermos. Add 2 cups boiling water and close. The oats will be ready to eat any time the following day.

Another idea for quick oatmeal on the go is the instant version. You can go out and purchase those expensive sugary packets at the grocery store, or you can make your own with 1/4 cup quick cook oats, 1/2 teaspoon of sugar and a pinch of salt in a zip-lock baggie. To eat, place this in a bowl with 1/4 cup of water or milk and microwave for 60 seconds. To jazz up the flavor of your packets, add some powdered milk or non-dairy creamer, cinnamon or other spices, raisins, or other dried fruit.

Granola

Another wonderful way to use oatmeal is to make granola and granola bars. Now you can buy these from the store, but the homemade version tastes great, is healthier, and costs way less. What's better is that you can make it using what you have available in your pantry, saving you even more. Now, because we have allergy issues with nuts in our house, I spent some time trying to find a good granola recipe without them. That is actually kind of tough to do, but I found this recipe for Cinnamon Raisin Oatmeal that the whole family LOVES. I have come up with a basic recipe for granola that you can use what you have on hand.

Trish's Basic Granola

Mix together

Dry ingredients:

3-4 cups old-fashioned oats

1-2 cups dry add-ins (nuts, coconut, seeds)

Mix together

Syrup:

1/4 cup oil

1/2 sweetener (This can be a combination of honey, pure maple syrup, white or brown sugar. If you use sugar, you will need to cook this on the stove until the sugar granules dissolve. I like to to use 1/4 cup honey and 1/4 cup maple syrup and skip the heating step.)

Add syrup to dry ingredients and mix through thoroughly. I usually end up using my hands for this. Spread out on a jellyroll pan (cookie sheet with sides) and place in a preheated 350 degree oven. Bake for 20-30 minutes stirring or flipping the granola occasionally.

Remove from oven and allow to cool.

Add up to 1 cup extra goodies which may be a combination of raisins, dried fruit, or chocolate chips.

Enjoy! We eat this like cold cereal with milk or plain as a snack.

If granola bars are more your speed this is my favorite recipe I have found: Playgroup Granola Bars. These are delicious and don't hang around long in this house.

Oatmeal in Baking

If you do a search on my favorite recipe site, http://www.allrecipes.com/, for "oatmeal," you come up with oodles of cookie recipes. Oatmeal cookies are wonderful, but you can use oatmeal in so many other baking projects. I have found that you can substitute 1 cup of oatmeal for 1 cup of flour in almost all of your baking recipes. I have tried it personally in muffins, breads, quick breads, and cookies. I imagine that it would also work in cakes and pancakes, too. I think it would be delicious in an applesauce cake. This is a great way to sneak in some whole grain goodness to baked goods using white flour. Usually the oats don't even get noticed, but if they do they don't affect the overall taste and give things a nice texture. We are especially fond of them in muffins.

Beyond Breakfast

Now, you may be thinking that oatmeal is just for breakfast and baking, but they can even be incorporated into dinner. Whole, unrolled oats called oat groats may be cooked and served in place of rice. Oat groats can be usually be found at your local health food store. Locally, I have a natural foods coop store that sells them in bulk. To cook oat groats, use 2 cups of water or broth to 1 cup oats. Bring to a boil and simmer for about 40 minutes. Here is a recipe for Oat Groat Pilaf I found, but have not tried. A couple other dinner items I found online were Oatmeal Soup and Scot Oatcakes.

While perusing my cookbooks I also came across this unique recipe. It sounds like something my family would enjoy and I plan to try it.

Oriental Oats

2 eggs, beaten

1 1/2 cups rolled oats

4T. oil

2 cups chopped or sliced mixed onions, sprouts, mushrooms and broccoli

3/4 cup water

1 T. soy sauce

Combine eggs and oats in a bowl; mix well. Cook in 2 tablespoons oil in skillet for 3 to 5 minutes or until dry and separate. Saute vegetables in remaining oil in small skillet. Add to oats with water and soy sauce. Simmer until liquid is absorbed, stirring occasionally. May add 1 cup chopped meat. May substitute butter for oil; may substitute broth or stock for water and soy sauce. Yield 6 servings. (From "Whole Foods for the Whole Family" LeLeche League International)

Just How Cheap is Oatmeal?

I can purchase a 42 ounce container of store brand old-fashioned oats regularly for $2.99 ($1.14/pound). Occasionally, I can get it on sale for $1.99 (76 cents/pound). I can do even better buying it in bulk at the health food store where I can get it for as low as 69 cents/pound. Even the organic oatmeal is only 89 cents/pound there. If you figure that one serving of oatmeal is 1/2 cup (40 grams) dry oatmeal (1 cup cooked), you can get over 22 servings per pound of oatmeal. That is 22 servings for just 69 cents or just 3 cents per serving! Isn't that amazing?

If you are trying to cut your food budget, don't forget to buy the oatmeal. It will be easy on your pocketbook, good to your body and delightful on your tongue. Oatmeal is truly CHEAP EATS.

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