Day 14: Valentine's Meal
Veal ragu and panna cotta with macerated strawberries.
More on the meal here.
100 Dollars for Food...and That's It!
Hi, my name is Reggie.
I have a fitness and nutrition blog: www.sweatyguineapig.com.
I also have a website that features easy exercise movements: www.everydaysweat.com
And I have recently launched iFS - Integrated Food Solutions: www.eatifs.com
Contributors
Day 13: What I Eat Almost Everyday
I make a grilled cheese sandwich in a grill pan (no butter needed), pop the soup in the microwave, done. There is no better quick and easy combination than grilled cheese and tomato soup.
Can't say I like any of Pacific's other soups, but this one hits the spot every time. This was my dinner on Day 13 (and Days 12, 11, 10, 15...you get the picture.)
Posted by Melanie Lee
Comments [0]
Days 14 and 15: Grocery Lists
My grocery list on Day 14
In preparation for Valentine's Day...
Knox gelatin: $1.49
2 lb. of yellow onions: $0.99
Strawberries: $2.50
Navel oranges: 4/$1.00
Aqua roll: $0.75
1 lb. of ground veal: $2.99
Heavy cream: $1.79
Green pepper: $0.80
Total: $12.31 (all from C-town)
Money leftover: $38.87
My grocery list on Day 15
In preparation for our trip to West Virginia...
Bananas: $0.50
2 red peppers: $2.09
1 dozen large farm raised eggs: $2.39
28 oz. Tuttoroso crushed tomatoes: $0.88
Italian sausage: $4.65
1 sub roll: $1.49
Total: $11.40 (all but the bananas from Fairway in Red Hook)
Money leftover: $27.47
I'm a little panicked! Hopefully what I've bought so far will last until the end of Week 3.
Posted by Melanie Lee
Comments [0]
Day 15: Tuna Noodle Casserole
I've been craving tuna noodle casserole all week, so I spent a luxurious $9.80 today buying ingredients. I sorta followed the recipe from http://pinchmysalt.com/2008/09/19/serious-comfort-tuna-noodle-casserole-recipe, but I didn't have parmesan or butter to cook the breadcrumbs. This casserole should be enough for about 3 meals, and the ingredients enough for another casserole.
------------------
Remaining budget: $62.28
Posted by Sei-Wook Kim
Comments [1]
Day 13: 3 Course Lunch and Dinner, Under 20
We, 3 dudes, in the office needed to let some steam out, so we split
the cost of the lunch and dinner.
For lunch
Starter: Coconut Curry Pea Soup with Garlic Bread
Entree: Homemade Basil Pesto and Fresh Pasta, served with Fennel Parsley Salad
Dessert: Dutch Chocolate Brownies with Ganache.
For dinner:
Starter: Bruschetta
Entree: Chicken Pot Pie
Dessert: Coconut Chocolate Molten Brownies
We also made cocktails to celebrate Valentine's day (we celebrate
anything at any given time), and the cost was considered as business
expense (HA!). I made Sgroppino (Italians cocktail), recipe by Giada
de Laurentiis. Sei-Wook made French Sheets, which was delicious. Pete
made a more masculine drink, Penicillin.
Although the power circuit switched off few times from overusing
kitchen appliances, we made fabulous meals with less than 20 dollars,
and still have leftover ingredients for later.
Posted by Reggie Soang
Comments [0]
Day 12: Looking for Comfort
It's been very windy in Jersey. Although the temperature has been
around 50's, I had no desire of going out. This is also the time of
the year when everyone gets sick (I have a little sniffle.) because of
the drastic change in weather. I like to stay home and just be around
my stove.
I am still working on my muffin crumbs from a week ago, so I made
another bread pudding for breakfast today and had sliced banana with
honey on the side.
For lunch, I made Swedish meatballs and heated leftover risotto from
last night. I didn't follow the recipe exactly, but I took down the
concept, which is the method to keep the meatballs very moist, soft,
and creamy. The creaminess comes from the binding of the meat, which
is made of an egg yolk and bread crumbs soaked in milk. I defied the
norm and substituted bread crumbs with muffin crumbs (I have to get
rid of them somehow besides making bread puddings). Adding soaked
"bread crumbs" to meat also helps it stay moist and soft. For more
details, please visit: www.sweatyguineapig.com.
For dinner, I made polenta, which is the perfect dish for a windy day.
Polenta is rich and flavorful, yet does not make me feel bloated like
after having cream of mushroom. I used homemade stock, which gives a
deeper flavor, to simmer cornmeal.
For dessert, I made coconut double hot chocolate with meringue float.
I tweaked the recipe given by NY Times,
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/11/dining/111arex.html?ref=dining. It
has too much coconut milk and sugar. I didn't think I could handle a
heavy chocolate drink tonight.
Does anybody still need help with last minute Valentine's Day menu?
Posted by Reggie Soang
Comments [0]
Days 9 to 12: Comfort Food
I'm now sick too. Lentil soup hit the spot and so does my own version of fried rice.
I made the soup in our new pressure cooker. I threw in smoked pork shoulder, onion, carrot, celery, water, curry, cayenne, and lentils. That was it! Once the pot was at pressure, it only took 20 minutes to cook. It took about the same amount of time to cool.
In my fried rice, I used egg, soy sauce, sesame oil, ginger, garlic, bok choy, scallions, and ketchup. Fried rice is comfort food on a lazy day when there's nothing but rice, eggs, and a few other ingredients in the fridge.
Breakfast: peanut butter and jelly sandwiches
Lunch: lentil soup and one day of free pizza at school
Dinner: more lentil soup, some of Pete's kimchi fried rice, and my own fried rice tomorrow
Approximate cost of the soup: $3.34 for about six to eight servings
Approximate cost of the fried rice: less than a $1
Posted by Melanie Lee
Comments [0]
Day 11 Meals: Back to Cooking
Finally...back to the kitchen.
I finished all the leftover food yesterday. I started off the day by
making fluffy ricotta pancakes with poached apple and honey cranberry
syrup. The acidic cranberry juice is the perfect complement to honey.
After I used the honey cranberry juice to poach apple, I reduced the
liquid until thickened and drizzled it all over the pancakes and
apple.
I only had some snacks for lunch. I toasted a slice of sourdough and
slathered on some butter and drizzled some honey (honey just goes
really well with carbs). I also ate few homemade granola cereal cubes.
It was a quick bite before I had to run some errands.
I went big on dinner. I made risotto with peas, shiitake mushrooms,
and sardines. I topped the rice with a teaspoon of goat cheese and it
turned out quite delicious. I can't yet to find a word to describe the
flavor, but you ought to try it next time when you attempt to make
risotto.
Currently seeking a cocktail to make for Valentine's day party in
Barrel office...any suggestions?
Posted by Reggie Soang
Comments [0]
Day 10: Kimchi fried rice
Went out and bought some fatback (fatty pork) - over a pound for $1.10. Cut off the fat and used the meat to make a large amount of kimchi fried rice. Had for lunch and dinner.
I now have 70.73. Am currently enjoying a cup of Swiss Miss hot chocolate spiked with vodka and Kahlua.
Posted by Peter Kang
Comments [1]
Comments [0]