Posts tagged ‘home cookin’’
Case of the Tuesdays
I know I sound like Amy right about now, but I totally have a case of the Tuesdays.
It was one of those days when I had so much going on and so much running through my head that it was super difficult to concentrate on my work and I couldn’t wait to come home and put on my sweatpants.
Oh, and do some laundry. But that’s neither fun nor exciting, so we’ll just pretend that I’m important enough to have a butler that does my laundry for me.
Ok so “laundry” might not be in a butler’s job description, but I’ve always wanted someone to buttle for me and I don’t particularly enjoy doing my own laundry. So there.
Having a rough day also means that I’m craving comfort food. Technically, I crave comfort food every night, but that’s neither here nor there.
I wanted to make some healthy comfort food, though, a) because I’m trying to clean up my eats a little bit and b) because I started Insanity this morning.
Oh yes I did. Eeek! I’m not going on a diet for this program (diet is such a dirty little word anyway) but I want to see how great my results will be if I add some effort to improving what I put into my mouth in addition to kicking my own butt 6 mornings per week.
So, comfort food that’s healthy. I see meatballs in my future…
I made Spicy Thai Turkey Meatballs with Coconut Sauce
The meatballs are just an easy combo of 1 package ground turkey breast (check the package- not all ground turkey is just breast meat and can have 16g fat/serving), 1/2 a yellow onion, a couple minced garlic cloves, spices (1 teaspoon each of ginger, basil, turmeric, cumin, and 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon), 2 t Thai chili paste, a bunch of cilantro, 1/2 cup breadcrumbs and an egg.
Combine everything in a bowl and mix with your piggies. (ie, hands. Sorry, I thought I was a kindergarten teacher there for a minute.)
I baked them in the oven at 375° for about 20 min, til they weren’t pink in the middle.
The sauce was ridiculous. Here’s what I used:
3 T minced onion
1 clove garlic, minced
1 T brown sugar
1/4 t cinnamon
1/2 t each cumin, basil, ginger, turmeric
1 1/2 T Thai chili paste
1/4 cup chicken stock (or broth)
1 can light coconut milk
1 T soy sauce
salt
2 T minced cilantro
1 t corn starch
———————————–
Saute onion and garlic over medium-high heat until translucent. Add brown sugar, chili paste and spices to pan. Add chicken stock and let simmer until most of the broth evaporates. Stir in coconut milk and soy sauce. Create a slurry by combining corn starch with 2 t of water and pour into the sauce. Add cilantro and simmer until slightly thickened.
I sort of winged it with this recipe. I’m wild like that. Somehow this recipe was genius and turned out really, really well. I don’t say that lightly.
It’s like a hug in food form.
Aahh, much better. And tomorrow’s already hump day!
I Caved
Maybe it’s because I’ve been in denial that it’s actually going to be winter soon.
Maybe it’s because I’m clinging on to my warm weather wardrobe like I’m a 41 year old football player and it’s my career.
Maybe it’s because it hit 70° two days ago.
All I know is that I have been a horrible friend to autumn this year.
I sort of have a complex about autumn. In Chicago we usually go from summer to winter in about 14 hours. I have a hard time accepting autumn’s arrival because I know that it’s only a matter of a few short weeks before I get slapped in the face by wintertime in Chicago.
But tonight, my friends, I caved in to autumn’s seductive ways.
I cooked…
…a squash.
An acorn squash, to be precise. Even the gourd family taunts me with the changing seasons by classifying this as a “winter” squash.
It was sitting on my counter, staring at me, so I decided to give in and roast it the easiest way I know how:
Cut the sucker in half across its equator and scoop out the seeds and stringy pulp. I also like to cut some slits and poke some holes in the flesh to let more of the seasonings absorb into it.
I placed it cut side down on a foil lined baking sheet and roasted for 30 minutes in a 400° oven.
Then I flipped the halves over and added some butter and brown sugar.
Plus a little salt, pepper and cinnamon for good measure.
Back in the oven for another 20 minutes or so. Then, because I’m a wild and crazy guy (err…girl) and enjoy all things caramelized and/or crunchy, I cranked up the broiler and blasted the squash for another 5-10 minutes.
Oh autumn, I’m sorry I scorned you. Thank you for waiting for me to come around before you took off and left me with your bitchy sister, winter.
I paired my squash with a green salad that has absolutely nothing to do with the season. But I needed some leafy greens, so you know…I went with it.
I’m thinking I’ll use the other half of the squash for lunch tomorrow, maybe mixed with some cooked brown rice. Oh, the options.
What’s Really Cheaper?
I remember the first cook book I ever received.
Ok, the term “remember” may be overstating it. I don’t remember the name, but I remember the gist. It was a basic cook book for recent high school grads being packed up and shipped off for college life.
It had “recipes” for things like oatmeal and tuna salad. Not exactly haute cuisine, but it made its point clearly and concisely:
Cook food whenever you can instead of ordering late night pizza and depending on crappy dining hall food. It tastes better and will save you money.
Amidst the mayhem of late nights and new friends, not just during college but the years after, the idea of using cooking to save money drew me in. I learned to love to cook. I learned that the grocery store is like Disneyworld for grown-ups. (So is the liquor store, but that’s a story for a different day)
The only problem is that I felt a little lied to by that cookbook and by everyone telling me that cooking all of my meals would save me tons of money.
Because the truth is, when you’re young and single and have incredibly developed taste buds it’s not always cheaper to buy entire packages of fresh herbs and meats and other perishable items. When you’re cooking for one sometimes it actually is cheaper to eat out.
So I learned how to cook meals that required very few or very cheap ingredients. Or both. I don’t always cook like this, because sometimes I have to get fancy. It’s in my nature.
But sometimes, like tonight, I stick to this method. And I really think it was cheaper. Let’s do some math!
3/5 package jalapeno chicken sausages @ $3.99: $2.40
1 baking potato: $0.39
1 1/2 small onions: $0.40
1/2 package of cilantro @ $1.79: $0.90
Grand total: $4.09
I included some of these:
If you had to also buy spices, sure it would add to the price, but I don’t count my everyday spices in my grocery total. They’re staples that last a long time- a good investment because the cost per use is incredibly low!
I served a simple green salad on the side with some lettuce that I had bought for dinner a few nights ago.
All that food fed two people! So, seriously, cook for yourself. $2 a person? It’s cheaper than fast food and a lot less processed.
What was the most money-saving meal you made recently?
