Posted on 06/12/2007 4:07:45 AM PDT by Kaslin
Growing up in a family of seven posed all sorts of culinary challenges. It was impossible, for instance, to divide a 12-pack of Popsicles evenly, or a cherry pie, without angering somebody. Bruised feelings were also inevitable whenever my mom pulled out the cookie sheets or a Duncan Hines cake mix. After she finished making the batter, the kids fought for the beater, spatula and bowl.
To end these kitchen free-for-alls, I decided to become the cook so I could claim ownership over any leftover cookie dough or icing. I started cooking in grade school and never stopped. In journalism school, my goal was to one day replace Craig Claiborne, the longtime food critic of The New York Times. I abandoned that idea after concluding that if I wrote about cooking for a living, I'd probably stop enjoying it.
What does this have to do with personal finance? Well it's a stretch, but since this is the third anniversary of my column, I thought I'd mix my love of cooking with my love of saving money. With gasoline prices rising, budgets are even tighter, but I see little evidence of people saving money by cooking. Look at any grocery store today and you'll find the expanded freezer sections stuffed with foods like pot roast, french toast, fried chicken and vegetable soup that people used to prepare themselves.
This willingness to spend more and get less is just as evident in the produce section where you can buy fruits and vegetables already sliced. When I was at the grocery store last week, I was amazed to find red potatoes that were already chopped. Who knew people couldn't cut up potatoes themselves?
The potatoes were near other unnecessary items like diced bell peppers and snack-sized packages of celery for lunches. The little package of celery costs $2.29, or about 33 cents an ounce. That might not sound so horrible unless you realize that buying a stalk of celery at that price would cost you more than $5 a pound.
While I was at the store, I paid $1 for a cantaloupe that weighed two pounds, but steps away from the pile of fat cantaloupes, I found precut cantaloupe that would have cost me $6.99 for 20 ounces. I can't help but wonder who buys precut fruit at these prices.
All this convenience comes with a higher price tag - and in the case of frozen entrees - less taste. I found lots of expensive food in the freezer case too, including a two-pound package of frozen pork ribs for $13.59. A few aisles away, the store was having a great sale on fresh pork ribs for just $1 a pound.
Some people assume that clipping coupons is all you need to do to save money at the grocery store, but that's not true. It's often the processed foods that offer coupons, which is why I rarely find any worth clipping. Instead, you can save money by buying healthful foods and cooking them yourself. If people tried cooking good wholesome meals from scratch, even just once or twice a week, they could probably shrink their grocery bill.
To get you started, I'm sharing my recipe for roasted chicken and mashed potatoes, which I've been making for my family for many years. It not only tastes good, but it's pretty easy to make and it costs much less than a frozen chicken dinner.
ROASTED CHICKEN
Most people dry chickens out by roasting them on low heat. Unless you enjoy chicken shoe leather, broil the chicken first to trap the juices.1 chicken (I buy mine at whatever grocery store is selling them for 99 cents a pound or less.)
Set oven for broil. Sprinkle chicken with salt and broil in roasting pan for 10 or 15 minutes. Reduce temperature to 425 degrees. Bake until the chicken's drumstick is easily pulled out. For a 4.5-pound chicken, the bird should be done within 90 minutes.
MASHED POTATOES
3 pounds potatoes - Idaho or Yukon Gold
1/2 stick butter
1/4 cup cream, half & half or milk
Peel potatoes, cut in large chunks and simmer in pot of water until barely soft. Drain thoroughly. Beat potatoes and butter together with a mixer or use a potato masher. Add liquid and combine. Salt and pepper to taste.
GRAVY
Most people would require hypnosis before they'd believe they can make gravy, but it's not hard. And making your own is far better than the jarred gravy glop that stores sell.1 cup drippings from roasted chicken1/3 cup flour1 can chicken broth
Heat chicken drippings in a pot on medium heat and then stir in flour. Continue stirring over medium heat for about a minute. The mixture should become a paste. Gradually add the broth. Continue stirring until the gravy combines and gets thicker. Season with salt and pepper.
If you don't have a cup of drippings, I generally use a ratio of three parts drippings to one part flour. If the gravy seems too thick, add a little water.
LOL!!!
It looks the main difference between your garbage soup and my zoo chili is that I tend to not use already cooked meat, unless I have some in the fridge when I go to make a pot.
I’m definitely ging to try my hand at your garbage soup.
I do not consider mine a burden... but seven would be for life. That is what my post meant to say.
I also understand your position. Most of my problem is my wife. I hate every minute of being married. I chose wrong. Not much I can do about it now. I do know I only have 9 more years of this shit.
When the kids graduate I am gone. Then I can finally enjoy what remaining years I have.
Knowing my luck..God will strike me dead the day after my divorce.
What do you use to cook livers for chopped chicken liver if not the chicken fat?
Your posts just make me sad. I hope your life cheers up soon! Honest!
You bet! Borrow these books from the library and see what you think:
“How to Grow More Food on Less Land...Than You Ever Though Possible” by John Jeavons. “Square Foot Gardening” by Mel Bartholomew is very good, too.
I used both of those references to produce a TON of food on a suburban 1/4 acre lot in town before I bought my farm.
My garden is smaller this year; I manage a Garden Center now and don’t have as much time to devote to it. This year I ONLY put in 40 tomato plants and 40 pepper plants, LOL!
Thanks! I’ve seen that site in the past, but haven’t visited in a while. :)
Probably healthier, too. Your government has decided that, while whole chickens must be disease and injury free for sale, those chickens that can't pass inspection can be parted out and the "good" pieces sold.
It only takes a couple minutes to cut up a chicken - why pay double or more for someone else to do it?
I'm not sure I agree with you on that. Around here broiler/fryers are grown specifically for being parted out. Others are grown for roasting, and still others are grown for whole fryers.......among other things.
I'm not saying what you say doesn't happen, it is not the norm, not according to what I have learned in 25 years of observation of the poultry industry. When one moves to an area to take a job as a reporter and one of the major industries is the poultry industry, one tends to learn.........and over the years I have observed the good, the bad, and the ugly. No one could pay me enough to work in the industry, but I'm sure glad it's around because I do love my chicken :)
No kidding! I have a lot of money invested in top quality knives, I don't mind using them. My girlfriend says I am about the only person she knows who actually knows what each knife is for, and actually uses them properly.
My favorite is my clam knife, obviously.
LOL!!!!!!!!
My husband is also the knife guy around here, he knows how to use them and more importantly how to keep them properly honed. Properly sharpened knives doing wonders incutting down on the amount of human blood shed in the kitchen :)
Blood is OK for flavoring, but I definitely prefer it not to be human.
I used to be notorious for cutting myself, usually while cutting onions or citrus.
Well, I got rained out for doing any work inn the gardens, so I guess I best go get myself ready for my other jobs.......I will become mom again in about 10 minutes and then have to leave for my partime bartending job ...... oh joy :)
Have a good one, and don’t cut yourself!
I make my own broth — primarily because I have to watch sodium and if you’ve ever looked at the sodium content (even on the low sodium stuff), you’ll see what I mean.
Anyway, I cook my own broth out of any unused chicken parts I can get my hands on, like the necks, gizzard, parts that I don’t care for — then when it’s cooked, I put the cooled chicken broth in a zippered baggie and lay it flat while I zip up the baggie. Then I stack them up in the freezer.
Amen to that!
“Use leftover mashed potatoes for potato soup”
I also use mashed potatoes for thickening navy bean soup, beef stew, etc.
Thanks for the recipe for potato soup. Am going to try it next week.
LOL!
We lived in a condo for years and I still canned my own tomato sauce — bought “culls” from the farm stand. I made 84 quarts of tomato sauce one year. (They lasted into the second year — was a tad too much, but it was my first year at canning so I didn’t know how much I’d want.) It’s amazing how much better food tastes when you put your own sauce in soups. I can get it spiced just the way we like it.
This year I’m going to can tomato sauce, marinara sauce, spaghetti sauce (arribiata), and a chili spiced sauce. Might make some brescetta too while I’m at it. Since this is the first summer we’ve been retired, I’m really curious to see how many tomatoes I get from the plants I’ve put out.
This makes for the loveliest meat for chicken salad, pie or, best of all--chicken soup with the skimmed broth. Meat from roasted chicken makes for a better-flavored broth than poached childen... Enough to eat on for three days for four people--$15, including some sandwiches for lunch. Not bad.
People are indeed growing broke because they can't make a meal for themselves. Watch Rachel Ray.
Do you have a hot pepper jelly recipe you’d be interested in sharing? I’ve been looking for one for years.
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