november 5, 2008: frugal feasts red state/blue state stews

beef with baby vegetables
Hearty Pork Stew

Pork Stew
Serves 6 at $1.75 per serving

1 ½ lbs pork butt, cut into 1 inch pieces
1 teaspoon dried sage, crushed
1 teaspoon dried mint, crushed
1/4 cup of butter, divided
8 ounces fresh button mushrooms halved or quartered
2 medium onions, chopped
4 cloves garlic minced
1 14 ounce can chicken broth
1 bay leaf
1 pound bag frozen crinkle cut carrots
3 tablespoons all -purpose flour
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
salt and pepper to taste

For Serving:

Hot buttered noodles

Preheat oven to 350. Sprinkle pork with sage and mint. Melt 1 tablespoon of the butter in a 12 inch oven proof skillet with lid or other heavy lidded pot over medium heat. Brown the pork in the butter, turning often. Remove the pork from the pan and set aside. Add the mushrooms, onions and garlic to the skillet and cook for about 5 minutes until the onions are tender. Stir in the chicken broth, and add the bay leaf, salt and pepper and the browned pork. Cover the pan and place in the preheated oven for 30 minutes. Stir in the carrots and return to the oven for another 20 minutes until the carrots are tender.

Melt the remaining butter in a small sauce pan over medium-low heat. Whisk in the flour and the Worcestershire sauce. Cook, stirring constantly for one minute and remove from heat.

Transfer the pan from the oven to the stove top and bring the pork to a boil over medium heat. Add the flour mixture and stir well. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook uncovered for two minutes or until sauce is slightly thickened. Remove bay leaf and serve over hot buttered noodles.

Beef Stew with Baby Vegetables

Inspired by our favorite blue state cook, Ina Garten.
6 servings at $2.00 per serving
2 strips uncooked bacon, cut into small dice
2 lb package beef chuck for stew , cut into bite sized pieces, approx ½ inch.
1 teaspoon fresh ground pepper,
1 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 teaspoon rosemary, chopped
1 bottle red wine, 1 can beef broth or a mixture of both
1 can diced tomatoes
1 teaspoon dried rosemary, plus more for garnish
1 cup frozen peas, thawed and drained
1 cup frozen pearl onions thawed and drained
1 cup frozen baby carrots, thawed and drained
For Serving:
1 medium sized loaf of skinny French bread, cut into thin slices
1 clove of garlic, peeled and cut in half
Cook the bacon in a heavy lidded pot over medium heat until the bacon is crisp. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon and set aside.
Sprinkle the beef with the salt and the pepper. Working in batches, brown the meat in the bacon fat over medium heat. Cook for 1-2 minutes stirring occasionally until at least one side of each beef piece is brown.
Add the minced garlic and stir around with the meat for one minute. Add the wine and broth if using, and the can of tomatoes. Bring to a simmer and cover the pot. Keep the meat at a simmer for approximately 1 hour, until the beef is tender when pierced with a fork. Add the thawed vegetables and simmer for another 10 minutes, until the vegetables are warmed through.
Rub the bread slices with garlic. Put two slices in the bottom of each of 6 soup bowls. Ladle the beef and vegetables over the bread. Garnish with some additional rosemary and serve hot.

october 22, 2008: frugal feasts calzones!

Family Style Calzones
Each makes four generous servings
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees
For each Calzone you'll need one 18.5 ounce bag of refrigerated store brand pizza dough.

To prepare dough: dust the counter with flour. Dump the pizza dough out on the flour. Using your hands and a rolling pin, slowly stretch the dough into a rectangle approximately 19 inches by 12 inches. Take your time, the dough is very springy. If you tear a hole in the dough, just wet the edges and pinch the hole closed.

Spread the filling over the dough leaving at least an inch border around all four sides. Slowly stretch the dough up and over the filling and pinch together in the center to make a central seam. Fold the ends over and pinch them too. Place on a cookie sheet. Brush with the olive oil and sprinkle with the seasonings. Bake for approximately 20 minutes until the crust is golden brown and cooked through. Serve at room temperature.

Pepperoni, Tomato and Cheese Calzone
1/2 of a 4.5 ounce bag of turkey pepperoni (lower fat and still delicious)
8 ounces sharp provolone cheese, shredded
1 cup canned diced tomatoes, drained well
1 teaspoon rosemary, divided
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, or to taste
Mix together the pepperoni, cheese, tomatoes and half the rosemary. Sprinkle the remainder of the rosemary and the red pepper flakes on the top of the calzone before baking.

White Garlic Calzone
1 cup part skim ricotta
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
1 clove garlic, minced
1 egg, well beaten
8 ounces shredded mozzarella
1 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning, divided
1 teaspoon olive oil

Beat together the ricotta, parmesan, garlic, egg, mozzarella , pepper, salt and half the Italian seasoning. Sprinkle the remainder of the Italian seasoning on top of the calzone before baking.
Cool to warm room temperature before serving.

october 8, 2008: frugal feasts crockpot chicken

Crockpot Chicken

You’ll need 2-3 breast halves for each recipe. The cooked chicken makes killer chicken salad mixed with nothing more than mayo, salt and pepper, so don’t be afraid to buy the big package of breasts when they are on sale.

Trim all the fat off boneless skinless breasts and nestle them into the bottom of the Crockpot. Splash on some cream, just enough to moisten the breasts, about ½ cup and put the cover on. Crank the dial to low and leave for 6 hours. Remove from the pot with a slotted spoon and shred with two forks.

Chicken Enchiladas
1 can diced tomatoes, undrained
1 can cream of mushroom soup
½ cup milk or cream
2 tablespoons chili powder
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 can black beans, rinsed
1 cup frozen shoepeg corn, defrosted
2 ribs celery, chopped fine
2 cooked, shredded chicken breasts
1 package small sized whole wheat tortillas
1 large can enchilada sauce
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
Sour cream and chopped green onions, optional

In a large bowl, stir together the tomatoes, mushroom soup, milk or cream and the spices. Add the beans, corn, chicken and celery and stir to combine.
Spray a large casserole dish with cooking spray. With one of the short sides of the dish towards you, lay a tortilla out across the pan. Spread about 2/3 cup chicken mixture onto the tortilla in a line across the middle of the tortilla, to within a half inch of each side. Flip one side of the tortilla over the filling and roll the whole thing up. Slide it towards you to the end of the dish. Repeat filling and rolling the tortillas until the pan is full. Scrunch the filled tortillas towards you to make room in the pan to work. You can also do this on the counter but it can be hard not to drop filling out whe n you transfer it to the dish.
Pour the enchilada sauce down the middle of the pan, making a fairly wide stripe of sauce on top of the enchiladas. Wrap the casserole dish with foil and bake for 45 minutes at 350 degrees. Remove the foil, sprinkle the cheese on top of the sauce and return to the oven for 5 minutes to melt the cheese. Serve with sour cream and chopped green onions, if using.

Chicken Potpie
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees
1 stick of butter
½ of a small onion, diced
1/3 cup flour
4 cups of any combination of milk and light cream or half and half, microwaved for 4 minutes to warm
2 packages chicken bouillon mix
3 cooked and shredded chicken breasts
1 package frozen peas and carrots, thawed
1 package frozen small pearl onions, thawed
1 package premade, rolled pie crusts
1 egg, beaten (optional)

Make the white sauce. In a very large saucepan, melt the butter over low heat. Add the diced onions and cook for 3-4 minutes until onions are cooked but not brown, stirring a few times. Add the flour and stir around making sure that the flour is combined with the butter. Cook for 2 minutes on low heat, stirring constantly. Add the milk/cream mixture all at once and stir vigorously, scraping the bottom of the pan. A whisk is great for this. Add both packages of chicken buillion powder and stir to incorporate thoroughly. Bring this sauce to a boil, stirring constantly. The sauce should thicken right up. Remove from heat and set aside.
Put the chicken, peas and carrots and onions into a large casserole dish. Stir to make sure that everything is evenly distributed. Pour all of the cream sauce over the dish and using a fork, stir to combine everything together. Unroll the two pie crusts. Wet one edge of one of the crusts with some water, and overlap the two crusts together. Lightly roll with a rolling pin to make the combined crusts big enough to cover your dish. Wet the top edge of the casserole dish with water. Place the crusts on top of the casserole dish and smoosh the edges of the crust into the top edge of the dish, scrunching the cru st to fit along the edges. It’s perfectly okay if the crust is wrinkly or if there are gaps – it just makes it look more homemade. Poke some holes in the crust with a fork.
Brush the crust with the beaten egg if using.
Put the potpie in the oven and immediately turn the temp down to 375 degrees. Cook for 50 minutes, until dish is bubbling and crust is golden. If the crust looks too brown and the filling isn’t yet bubbling, loosely lay a sheet of foil over the top and continue baking until bubbly.

september 24, 2008: frugal feasts lasagna

Photo by Ken Williams of the Concord Monitor

Lasagna The Frugal Feasts Way

Basic Recipe-makes 1 11 by 15 pan, at least 20 servings.
Fewer if the eaters are really depressed.
1 32 ounce jar marinara sauce - Prego is good here, but whatever is on sale works fine
1 1/2 cups water
6 cups shredded mozzarella
1 cup grated parmesan
16 ounce tub of ricotta cheese
small bottle Wishbone Italian dressing
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 eggs
Fresh ground pepper and kosher salt to taste - approx ½ teaspoon each
1 large package no boil lasagna noodles

Mix together the jar of sauce and the water in a pitcher and set aside.In a medium sized bowl beat together the ricotta, parmesan, 3 cups of mozzarella, eggs, Italian dressing, garlic, salt and pepper and set aside.

Optional fillings

Sausage: remove skins from one package sweet Italian sausage with fennel and place in a large skillet over medium heat. Break into small pieces with a wooden spoon and cook until sausage is no longer pink, about 5 minutes. Remove from skillet with a slotted spoon and add to the sauce in the pitcher.

Roasted Veggies: Roughly chop 1 pound of mixed veggies (we like zucchini and summer squash but red pepper, onion and mushroom would also be delicious) into 1 inch pieces. Place on baking sheet and toss with 2 tablespoons olive oil, 2 cloves of minced garlic and salt and pepper to taste. Roast at 375 degrees until cooked and starting to brown (about 20 minutes), stirring occasionally. Add to ricotta mixture.

Assembling the lasagna:Pour about 1 1/2 cups of sauce into the bottom of an 11X15 inch pan. Place 4 no-boil noodles in bottom of pan. Spread half of the ricotta mixture on top of the noodles. Spread another 1 1/2 cups sauce on top of the ricotta. Top with four more noodles. Top with the rest of the ricotta. Top with another 1 1/2 cups sauce and four more noodles. Cover the top with sauce, making sure that all of the top layer of noodles is covered. Cover the whole dish with two sheets with foil and seal well. Bake at 375 degrees for one hour. Remove the foil and cover the top of the lasagna with the rest of the cheese. Broil for 2-3 minutes until the cheese is bubbling and brown. Let sit for 15 minutes before serving.

september 10, 2008: frugal feasts pasta puttanesca, peter's garlic bread

Puttanesca Sauce
8 Generous servings at $.93/serving
2 Tablespoons Olive oil
2 Cloves of garlic, minced
2 Tablespoons capers
4 anchovy fillets packed in oil, chopped
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (or to taste)
Fresh ground pepper, about ½ teaspoon or to taste
1 cup Kalamata olives, pitted and chopped
2 large or 4 small cans diced tomatoes, undrained
Shredded parmesan or romano cheese and chopped parsley for serving (optional).
1 ½ boxes thin spaghetti or linguine

Bring a large pot of salted water to boil.
Start the sauce (directions below)
When the water boils, add the spaghetti and cook just until done. Drain and put in a large serving bowl. Toss with a little olive oil and set aside.
Sauce Directions:
Warm the olive oil in a large pan. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about a minute. Add the rest of the ingredients and simmer while the spaghetti cooks. Serve on top of the pasta.

Peter’s Garlic Bread
8 generous servings at $.75 per serving
2 sticks of butter at soft room temp
1 cup shredded parmesan or parmesan cheese
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1 tablespoons “Texas Pete” hot sauce OR several dashes of Tabasco or to taste
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 large loaf of Italian bread—just the regular, fat, unsliced loaf from the grocery store

Slice the loaf lengthwise but keep the side attached. Open flat onto a piece of foil large enough to wrap loaf in.
Mash together the remaining ingredients in a small bowl. Using a spatula, smear the butter mixture all over both sides of the bread. Close and wrap in the foil. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes. Remove, cut into inch wide slices and serve in a napkin lined basket.

august 27, 2008: frugal feasts grilled up and gorgeous

Marinated Vegetable Salad
Serves 8:
3 medium sized ripe tomatoes, chopped
1 medium cucumber, chopped
1 red or yellow or green sweet pepper, chopped
1 can small black pitted olives
1/4 cup minced red onion
3 tablespoons cider or balsamic vinegar
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 ½ teaspoons snipped fresh thyme or ½ teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon snipped fresh oregano or ¼ teaspoon dried oregano
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon fresh ground pepper
1/2 cup crumbled feta
Leaf lettuce (optional)

Put the first 5 ingredients in a large bowl. Whisk together the onion, vinegar, oil, herbs, salt and pepper in a small bowl. Add to the veggies and toss gently. Chill until serving.

When ready to serve, line a salad bowl with leaf lettuce (optional). Spoon in the vegetable mixture. Sprinkle with the feta cheese, and maybe a little more of the herbs.


Roasted Pepper Sandwiches
Serves 8:
4 large Sweet Bell Peppers
1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
3/4 pound deli sliced cheddar or other sliced cheese
Salt and pepper to taste
8 burger buns, toasted

Hold the pepper upright on a cutting board by the stem. Cut straight down the side of the pepper with a sharp knife taking off the entire side in one slice. Cut off the remaining three sides so that you have four fairly large, flat pieces of pepper. Drizzle the peppers with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
Put the slices skin side down on a medium hot grill, turning when the peppers look soft and slightly charred.
Fit a slice of cheese into the pepper and leave on the grill until the cheese melts.

Serve 2 pieces on each bun and top with dilled Mayonnaise

Dilled Mayonnaise

This spread is a quick and easy way to add some flavor to even a standard burger. Robin likes the new mayo made with olive oil by Kraft -- yummy!

1cup of Mayonnaise
2 teaspoons sugar
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons fresh chopped dill
Salt and pepper to taste—start with ¼ teaspoon of each

Combine all ingredients in a small bowl. This tastes best if made a few hours in advance.

Grilled Burgers with Garlic and Provolone

2 ½ lbs 80% lean ground beef
1 cup coarsely chopped provolone—1 small (4 ounce) package of sliced or a ¼ pound chunk from the deli counter.
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh herbs – sage is good here
1 teaspoon kosher salt and ½ teaspoon fresh ground pepper
8 burger buns, toasted

Put all ingredients into a large bowl. Gently combine all ingredients by hand. Shape into 8 patties and refrigerate.

Grill on a medium hot grill for 4 minutes on each side for medium.

Serve with fresh lettuce and dill mayo for a nice twist on an old favorite

august 13, 2008: frugal feasts fritatta and fruit crisp

Fritatta

3 tablespoons Olive oil
2 medium red potatoes, scrubbed and sliced thin
1 small onion, cut in half and then into very thin slices
1 medium zucchini, chopped into small chunks
2 medium tomatoes, chopped into small chunks
8 eggs
3/4 cup sour cream
teaspoon salt and and pepper to taste.
Chopped fresh herbs or ½ teaspoon dried sage or thyme
½ cup shredded cheese – cheddar or monteray jack
Salsa and more sour cream for serving, optional
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Boil the potatoes for 3 minutes in salted water. Drain well and set aside
Heat a cast iron skillet or another heavy pan that can go into the oven oven on the stove over medium heat. Warm the olive oil and add the drained potatoes and onion. Push around the pan for about 6-7 minutes on medium heat, until the potatoes start to brown and the onions are soft. Add the zucchini and the tomatoes and continue cooking until the zucchini softens, about 3 minutes. Beat the eggs in a medium bowl with a whisk. Add the sour cream and the herbs and beat until combined. Add the cheese. Add the salt and several grindings of black pepper. Pour the egg mixture on top of the vegetables and slide the skillet into the oven. Roast until the eggs are set in the center, about 20 minutes Remove from the oven and cut into 8 wedges. Serve hot or at warm room temperature.
Makes 6 generous servings @ $.86/serving

Fruit Crisp – for eight. If this is too much, halve all ingredients and bake in an 8 or 9 inch square pan.
2 cups all purpose flour
2 cups light brown sugar
1 cup quick cook oats (not instant)
1 stick butter, very soft
4 cups fresh fruit: 6 medium peaches and 1 cup raspberries or
any combination of blueberries, raspberries, blackberries or 8 medium peaches or
8 apples peeled and sliced.
Approx ½ cup sugar
Vanilla ice cream, optional.
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
Put the fruit into a large shallow baking pan, like a pyrex or decorative ceramic dish. Add the ½ cup sugar or more to taste and mix well. Set aside.
Dump the flour, sugar oats and butter into a medium bowl. Mash together with a fork, working in the butter until the mixture comes together into clumps. Sprinkle this over the fruit making a thick even covering. Bake for about 35-40 minutes until the topping is dark brown and the fruit is bubbling.
Serve warm with ice cream if desired.
Makes 8 generous servings @ $.81/serving