United Way Hunger Challenge Day 4: Thursday, 1/28/10 – Learning and Cuisine Rapide (Quick Food)

More homemade Peanut Butter cookies with a ready cup of milk.

Cookies and Milk

The peanut butter cookies are still going strong.  I’ve baked at least one cookie sheet a day since I mixed up the batter on Monday.  Still have more batter in the fridge too. We’re enjoying PB cookies and so are our friends, postman and auto mechanic. Home Food to share…it doesn’t get better than that!

Challenge 8: Getting Schooled On Grocery Prices

Glad I kept some money aside for necessary purchases during the week because we ran out of milk  (probably because of the cookies).  Thanks to the Hunger Challenge I’ve started comparing the prices of the basics like the 1% milk I purchased today.  The results surprised me.  Prices last week varied considerably at my favorite stores:

Half Gallon 1% Milk

Fred Meyer $1.59

Safeway $1.69

Grocery Outlet $1.79

I’m a careful price-watcher, but this one got by me.  Until now I’ve been thinking that the discount store, Grocery Outlet, would be the cheapest, because they are cheaper for so many items.  Well, I’ll be.

My price notebook and the basic tools to get the best prices.

Why does this matter? We use at least a half-gallon of 1% milk a week, often more.  At a price difference of $.20 each this means a potential savings of a least $10 a year by always buying the least expensive choice.  I wonder how many of our usual items have this kind of price differential?  From now on I’ll be using the little notebook I started to record price comparisons for this Challenge.

Final Shopping Tally; total spent $58.68

Bought a Safeway bakery baguette ($1.29) for dinner tonight with the milk ($1.69), at a total cost of $3.08  Spent $55.60 earlier in the week for a total spent of $58.68  This leaves $1.32 from my original $60 budget for two people. Not enough for a cup of Starbucks coffee. Oh well.

Day 4 Meals: A Culinary Stutter Followed by Cuisine Rapide

Because we were going out, I had to swap around today’s menu plan with Friday’s so we could have a fast dinner tonight. That meant a culinary stutter, the same breakfast and lunch today as yesterday.  Hey, they’re favorites, so it worked out.  Breakfast was oatmeal with raisins.  Lunch was grilled cheese sandwiches with orange slices.

A fast dinner: Grilled chicken on Assiago topped baguette. Garden salad topped with creamy avocado lime dressing.

Dinner was a fast fix: grilled chicken sandwiches on fresh Assiago cheese topped baguette and a green salad.  I’ve found that these fresh supermarket baguettes ($1.29 Safeway) make a very nice dinner sandwich with a little mayo, lettuce and tomatoes to go with the chicken.

Made a new flavored mayonnaise salad dressing. This one contained a mashed avocado ($.69/ea), a juiced lime ($.25/ea), a minced garlic clove ($.34/head) and a little milk.

Avocado Salad Dressing:

http://www.bestfoods.com/recipe_detail.aspx?RecipeID=2401&Version=1

The bread loaf was actually larger than we need for two sandwiches, so I’ve frozen the remainder to make croutons for future soups or salads.  Freezing is necessary because this bread is lovely and moist when fresh, but it will dry out while you are looking at it. No preservatives maybe? I wonder.

I Heart George Forman

Cooked the chicken on our large George Forman Grill with the removable grill plates.  It has to be one of my favorite cooking implements. Have already worn out two others with non-removable plates; this one is the best.  It’s fast and does a fabulous job, especially with vegetables like peppers, mushrooms and sweet onions.  Fish and chicken are really good too.  I’d take this appliance with me to a desert island if the island had electricity.

United Way Hunger Challenge Day 3: Wednesday, 1/27/10 – Starbucks Temptation = Oh no! Broccoli Again?

Things still going okay; am actually getting into the rhythm of this. Breakfast was dependable and microwave-quick; oatmeal again, this time with chopped apple and cinnamon. I need to further explore all the things you can add to vary oatmeal.

Challenge 6: Can’t Afford Tomato Soup For Lunch

A gooey grilled cheese sandwich on whole grain bread with crunchy apple slices.

My original menu called for homemade tomato soup to go with the grilled cheese sandwiches I planned for two lunches. I have a fabulous recipe. Grilled cheese sandwiches just call for tomato soup; it’s a winter tradition. I researched the ready-made canned tomato soups at the grocery store, and even though they were inexpensive, they are loaded with salt. Just one cup of canned soup contains 30% of an adult’s recommended daily salt allotment? I don’t think so. Sometimes cheap is not a real bargain.

Over the weekend, when my fabulous spreadsheet added up all my planned purchases for the week, I was over-budget. Something had to go. What got jettisoned was my homemade tomato soup. Sigh. Well, at least the grilled cheese sandwiches were good.

Challenge 7: Starbucks, why did you do this to me?

Happened to pass by a Starbucks in-store counter today. While I was breathing in the coffee aroma and reflecting on how this was as close as I was going to come to delicious coffee this week, since it is not in the budget, I spotted small free sample cups on the counter. Without thinking, I dived in…oh joy, a sample of a flavored coffee beverage! At the very last second I put my little cup down, as I suddenly remembered, no free food.

Dinner: Broccoli Reappears in a Frittata

Frittata of onion, potato & broccoli topped with cheese. Chevre cheese crumbles and dressing on green salad.

Frittatas are my go-to dinner choice. This versatile, inexpensive and delicious Italian peasant dish is real Home Food. I usually set aside a few vegetables and potatoes during the week to make a Frittata. This week I had an extra baked potato from Monday and you guessed it, extra broccoli from Tues. I can’t help it, broccoli is a winter crop and it’s in-season, all bright green and frost-sweet.

Actually, a frittata can be made with any combination of vegetables you happen to have on hand, I have made some odd combos that have turned out well. In my opinion, the critical vegetable to include is onion. Precook it until it is soft and sweet. Caramelization, created by pre-browning most of the vegetables, especially the onions and potatoes, is your friend here.

Then arrange the warm vegetables in a non-stick (essential or you get scrambled eggs with veg) omelet pan containing melted butter. Pour on some beaten eggs to bind it together. Turn when brown, then season. Top with grated cheese and brown bottom side. Thanks to the onion, the broccoli is only a bit player; you hardly know it’s there. But it is, making its nutritional best effort.

United Way Hunger Challenge Day 2: Tuesday, 1/26/10 – More Broccoli and a Panko Experiment

Today’s meals went okay.  Breakfast was that funky favorite, Toad-in-a-hole.  No amphibians are involved.  It’s a piece of bread with a round hole cut into it.  After the bread lightly browns in a little butter, an egg is fried in the hole.  I’m with Julia Child, everything is better with butter.

Lunch was the all American standby, PB&J on whole wheat bread.  Fast and portable.  I put half of today’s snack fruit, a banana, on the sandwich too.  Hi Elvis! Not quite the same as his favorite sandwich, but good.

Challenge 5: Try Something New

Panko crusted, baked chicken strips with stir-fried broccoli and Jasmine rice.

Ahh, dinner and the big experiment.  I love the Panko breadcrumb coated items in Asian restaurants.  Have always wanted to try them at home but have been put off by the price of a box of Panko.  What do you know, there in Fred Meyer was an inexpensive brand of Panko (Kikkoman $1.53/ 8 oz box).  I bought it, my only impulse buy of the week.

Okay.  So I cut two of those sale chicken breasts into strips, dipped them in beaten egg then rolled them in Panko and baked them in a hot oven.  Good result.  Think I will work on the seasoning; salt & pepper is not quite enough, needs a kick.  A dipping sauce would also be great.

Rounding out dinner was stir-fried broccoli and Jasmine rice.  Not everyone enjoys broccoli, but we do.  I could probably eat it every day.  Doesn’t hurt that broccoli is a fiber and nutritional powerhouse, with 12 vitamins and minerals.  Jasmine rice ($1.69/ lb in Fred Meyer bulk bins) smells so wonderful when it cooks, a little like popcorn, but better.  Food that smells that good while cooking is true Home Food!

United Way Hunger Challenge Day 1: Monday, 1/25/10 – No coffee for 5 days = Argh. Peanut Butter Cookies = Yes!

Shopping Finished

Finally got the week’s grocery shopping done this morning.  Including the shopping this weekend, I went to five stores total.  Way more than I normally would for a week, but wanted to pick up the buys and get the best prices.  Actually, most of these stores I hit once a month, not once a week.

Thankfully all my menu planning and scouring the grocery store newspaper ads paid off…Bought all the week’s groceries and still have a few dollars left for more milk and bread if needed.

Here’s the  Shopping Tally: $55.60

Orowheat Bakery Outlet  $5.64

Hau Hau Market $4.76

Fred Meyer $28.51

Grocery Outlet $5.44

Safeway $11.25

Total    $55.60  with $4.40 left for more bread & milk

Challenge 4: No Coffee

Whew, I’m tired because of all that planning and shopping.  Sure could use a cup of coffee.  Sadly, a half-pound of decent coffee and a quart of half & half would be 13% of this week’s budget (sale coffee from Safeway $5.99 + half & half from Grocery Outlet $1.89 = $7.88).  Am making due with some loose Irish Breakfast tea from the Fred Meyer bulk bins (1.3 oz = $1.92).  Finding that a hot drink gets me halfway there, but am still mourning the loss of coffee; and maybe suffering from caffeine withdrawal.

Challenge 5: Naked salads.

Without the funds for oil and vinegar to make vinaigrette, I really stressed over salad dressings.  I didn’t have any dressings, but planned four days of green salads. Finally, ready for something new, I researched the Web for mayonnaise flavoring ideas, since mayo was on my shopping list.

Kalamta Olive & Cheese Salad Dressing:

http://www.bestfoods.com/recipe_detail.aspx?RecipeID=3902&Version=1

The first days’ dressing contained a few Kalamata olives, ($.57) from the Safeway olive bar, blended in with Grocery Outlet Chevre cheese crumbles ($2.00/4 oz) then thinned with milk. The result was tasty.

Day 1 Meals:

Lots of healthy vegetables, baked potato & broccoli with cheese. Accompanied with a green salad topped with Kalamata olive and Chevre dressing.

Breakfast was oatmeal with raisins; fixed in the microwave it’s fast and with all that virtuous fiber, has real staying power.  Lunch was egg salad sandwiches on whole wheat bread with lettuce.  Dinner was a baked potato with cheese and stir-fried broccoli.  On the side, a green salad with Chevre Cheese/Kalamata olive salad dressing.  Snacks today were an apple and some super peanut butter cookies.

Fresh from the oven peanut butter cookies..................still too hot to taste.

Peanut Butter Cookies:

The best buy I scooped up was a jar of house brand peanut butter for $1.  Using the $1.00 off coupon from the Sunday paper plus the sale price made it a score at Fred Meyer.  Used a cup of this chunky PB to make just the best Peanut Butter cookies.  Found the Dorie Greenspan recipe in the Jan 17, 2010 Parade magazine (http://www.parade.com/food/recipes/parade/011710-peanut-butter-cookies.html)

Better than any PB cookies I’ve ever bought, and fairly easy to make.  Didn’t have time to cook them all, so the remainder is waiting in the fridge as walnut-sized sugar coated balls.  Will bake them over the week. Now on several days this week our home will smell of wonderful baking cookies.  Then the best part, eating warm-from-the-oven PB cookies with an icy glass of milk.  Yum…Home Food.

United Way Hunger Challenge: Saturday 1/23/10 and Sunday 1/24/10 – Prep and Shop

Challenge 2: Nutritious Menus & Shopping List

According to the Hunger Challenge rules fresh produce and healthy protein should be included each day.  Protein is the major concern because it tends to be the most expensive nutritional category.  I chose to minimize animal protein by purchasing just four chicken breasts on sale at Safeway ($.99/lb).  In a supporting role everyday were the faithful protein standbys, eggs ($1.69/dozen), a block of good old orange cheese ($3.99/ 2 lbs) and milk ($1.59/ half gallon).  Normally I’d also include some favorite bean dishes, as they’re excellent protein sources, but did not this week.

I finally had to set up a spreadsheet to manage my shopping list to manage the quantities and shopping in my five stores.  It worked quite well.  For me, planning ahead is the only way I could have managed this Hunger Challenge.  Quite an undertaking.  Every cent and every food item was accounted for.

Challenge 3:  Purchase Everything

After the shopping list was in order I got $60 in cash and put in envelope. Like Food Stamps, when cash is gone, it’s gone.  Then shopping is no longer possible and you make do with what you have.

Very fresh & inexpensive produce from a wonderful ethnic market.

Five stores will see me and my shopping list for the 2010 Hunger Challenge.  They are: Fred Meyer, Grocery Outlet, Safeway, a bread thrift store and my favorite ethnic market.  So far I’ve shopped thee stores with two to go.  For most of the pantry items that needed to be purchased, rather than relying on what was on our shelves, I purchased small quantities from grocery bulk bins.  I’ve found that ethnic markets have good produce prices.

United Way Hunger Challenge 2010 – Getting Started!

D’s Home Food was inspired by United Way’s 2010 Hunger Challenge. Can two adults (my daughter & I) eat for five days on what Food Stamps would allow us = $12/day x 5 days = $60???

In the past my family and I were on Food Stamps, so I have direct personal experience. Am not on Food Stamps now, however I may qualify, as I am currently unemployed. This means I am very interested in sharing ideas on how to make a very limited food budget stretch until it snaps.

Challenge 1: Salt & Pepper Only

According to the Hunger Challenge rules ALL food items used in the five days, except for good ol’ salt & pepper, must be purchased from our $60 total budget. Here’s the FIRST CHALLENGE: we can’t use even the most basic items like oil, vinegar or spices from our kitchen shelves. We start with a clean slate. Even basic pantry items must be purchased this week and they sure can take a bite out of a small budget.

Home Food

Every nationality and ethnic group has its tradition of wonderful, filling, peasant dishes utilizing cheap available foodstuffs to fill hungry bellies in a satisfying way. That’s “home food”. Great stuff. I’m a foodie and I love to learn about other cultures through their food.

My plan is to focus on Canadian/American comfort foods for this Food Challenge. Start at home, and then maybe later explore the Home Food of the world.

Good luck fellow Hunger Challengers! Enjoy your week and new experiences!

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