Garlic White Bean Soup

I tried to think of some clever name for this, something to do with vampires since I just finished watching True Blood and it is garlic soup afterall, but failed at that task.

While on the topic, whose the worst actor/actress on the show? Tara? Sookie? That kid that exploded in the episode? Whoops, did I just give that one away?

Anyways....

This soup was pretty tasty. I ended up using the broth again once we got sick of it after a few too many bowls and made something else in it- I think pasta or potatoes.

If you love garlic and white beans, then this is definitely for you. If you also are sick and need a light soup that is refreshing, this is it. It's got the perfect hint of garlic and enough protein to fill you up.

Ingredients:
6 cups water (free)
2 bouillon veggie cubes ($.20)
1 bag of dry white beans ($1.25)
2 whole garlic heads ($1.50)
1 small onion chopped ($.33)
4 tablespoons butter ($.10)
2 tablespoons marsala cooking wine ($.10)
2 tablespoons soy sauce ($.5)
salt and pepper to taste (I prefer white pepper)
Total price: $3.53

Recipe:
1. Soak beans overnight in large cooking pot filled with water. This softens them up for a quicker cooking time the next day. Or you can cheat and use the rapid version on the beans bag.
2. Boil together bouillon cubes and water. Add whole cloves of garlic and chopped onion. Once boiling add together the rest of the ingredients.
3. Cook for 45 minutes on medium.
4. You can add cream to it if you prefer a creamy version, but I liked it like a broth.
5. And like I said, once you get sick of it - you can make some amazing rice, potatoes, or pasta with the leftovers. Just substitute them instead of the water in your usual recipe.

Tada! Tasty, garlic-y, vampire-resistant, bean soup. Just make sure to mouthwash before you go kissing anyone.

Cucumber Crackers

I've never really loved cucumber and usually ask for my sushi to be made without it. But being so cheap and pretty at the farmer's market lately, I couldn't help myself.

For $1, I snagged this huge eccentric cucumber and thought long and hard (ha - like a cucumber) about what to do with it. I decided to use half and save the rest for another recipe I found online - which sidenote, was fantastic. Check Honey Vinegar Cucumber Recipe on pinterest here:
http://nancycreative.com/
As for these guys, I've since made them again. The recipe is so easy and you can pretty much play around with it however you'd like. Just used slice cucumber instead of crackers, so tasty and so much healthier.

Salmon Cucumber Snacks

Ingredients:
1/2 a huge cucumber ($.50)
1 can of alaskan salmon (I buy them at BJs or Sam's Club) ($2)
1 tablespoon of asian sesame dressing ($.10)
1 teaspoon sesame seeds
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon mustard
1 small tomato
dried basil
Total: $3

Recipe:
1. Peel and slice cucumber. Arrange on plate or platter.
2. Mix in bowl the rest of the ingredients (minus the tomato).
3. Since this recipe is mayo-less (although you can make it like tuna salad with mayo too if you like), I had to roll up and use my hands to press the salmon together into small balls.
4. I placed each one on top of the cucumber and atopped it with a small slice of tomato.
5. Sprinkle with basil. Done and so easy!

Tuna Noodle Casserole from Scratch!

I used to think making things from "scratch" took too much time and ended up costing more anyways. For instance, one time I tried making chocolate pecan pie. I gathered all the ingredients at the grocery store and when I looked down at my buggy, it was over $15 worth of items. I changed my mind, put everything back, and got a specialty chocolate pecan pie from Whole Foods for the same price.

But lately I haven't had a choice budget wise. I don't go around making fancy pies for any old occasion, but I do end up buying more ingredients that need more work. For example, brown rice, whole wheat noodles, ramen noodles, corn meal, dried beans, etc.

But it's not really much more work putting it all together, especially when you already have the ingredients at home like I did for this recipe. No shopping trip necessary.

Ingredients:
1 box of whole wheat rotini ($1.09 at walmart)
3 small carrots, peeled and chopped ($1)
1/2 bag of frozen peas ($.50)
1 can of albacore tuna ($1.20)
2 cups (soy) milk ($.75)
1 garlic clove ($.10)
4 tbsp butter ($.10)
4 tbsp flour
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp parsley
1 tsp mustard powder
1/4 tsp salt
Total $4.74-5

Recipe:
1. Steam carrots in a pot until tender and ready, about 10 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, prepare the garlic alfredo sauce in a small saucepan.
    a. Add butter to saucepan on medium and wait til it melts a few minutes.
    b. Add chopped garlic.
    c. Wait a few minutes and stir frequently.
    d. Add flour and mix it up into a sticky doughy roux.
    e. Add milk and bring to a boil on high. Then reduce heat to simmer on low for about 10 minutes until thick.
    f. Add cheese, salt, soy, parsley, mustard, and any other spices you want.
3. Boil noodles according to package, about 10 minutes.
4. Add carrots and frozen peas to bowl. Then add noodles when ready. Top with sauce. And stir it up. May need more salt, so add to your liking.

Polenta Fries and Beans

Polenta is amazing. Polenta has blown my mind. It is probably my new favorite ingredient in anything at all. It is so easy, it is so cheap, it is so wonderful. I could go on.

I used to think it came in those tube packages at the grocery store, but they lied. It's a big fat lie. Polenta comes from something called CORN MEAL, and it's found near flour or breadcrumbs in a pouch like flour. It's used for making cornbread but polenta - isn't anything corn tasting at all, really. It tastes like pasta to me, pasta dumplings. And all you do is add water, really. Like I said, cheapest, easiest meal ever. Oh, the big caveat being you have to wait hours for it to cool. But if you think ahead, it's no problem really.

Ways to make Polenta:
1. Under pasta sauce and baked
2. Rolled in to balls and fried golden
3. Cut in to strips and fried like fries (see picture)
4. Baked as a loaf and layered with cheese
5. Mixed with herbs, whatever your heart desires
6. Sauteed in butter but not too crispy
7. Mushy like grits (so says the packaging, I've never actually made this one)
8. Stuffed into tomatoes
9. Cut into pancake patties and fried
10. Etc.....

I have gone crazy searching polenta on pinterest. I think I have made it under pasta, as dumplings, as a sliced loaf, and tonight as fries. Four times I've made polenta, and I still have more left in the one package.

Directions:
1. Add 1 cup corn meal to 2 cups of water in saucepan.
2. Boil and stir vigorously. Don't walk away!
3. Turn down heat from high to medium-low.
4. Stir until thick and difficult to stir without sticking. If you choose, add some cheese and herbs (basil and parsley).
5. Transfer to dish of your choice (pie pan for baking, loaf pan for slicing, shallow brownie pan for slicing in to fries, etc.). Or if making dumpling balls, roll them up and cook right away.
6. Refrigerate for 2-3 hours or overnight.
7. Slice it up, or shape it how you'd like. If baking, you don't need to slice obviously.
8. Bake 350 degrees for 20 minutes or pan-fry/sautee in butter in a frying pan.
9. Top with cheese, salt, and pepper. Or pasta sauce, or accompanied by beans (as in picture). Whatever your heart desires. Polenta is so amazing. :)

Yellow Squash Veggie Rice Sesame Bowl under $5

Another empty fridge day here. Rummaging through the empty shelves I found that same bottle of sesame asian salad dressing, three petite sized yellow squash from the farmer's market last week, less than a cup of brown rice, and some frozen veggies in the freezer. I decided to put them all together and make an asian veggie rice bowl reminiscent of a teriyaki bowl I used to order back home at one of my favorite sushi restaurants.

Ingredients:
3 very small yellow squash or 2 regular sized, chopped in thick slices and quartered $2
half a bag of frozen peas $.50
half a bag of frozen corn $.50
half a bottle of sesame salad dressing $.50 (see post below, these are the sizzling salad kit for $2 and comes with 2 bottles)
1 cup of brown rice $.25 (it's $.85 a small bag)
Total price for 2 people = $3.75

Recipe:
1. Make rice according to package. I like to add some seasonings if I have them, so I added a splash of sesame oil and some sesame seeds. I use a rice cooker now which you literally pour in water and rice and forget about it until the button pops up. No more burned rice.
2. Steam yellow squash in small saucepan with an inch of water. Drain excess water after about 5 to 10 minutes.
3. In a small bowl, microwave frozen veggies about 4 minutes until hot.
4. Mix squash with peas and corn gently to not mush everything. Generously pour salad dressing on top.
5. When rice is ready, divide evenly between two bowls. Top with sesame veggies. Sprinkle sesame seeds on top if you have.
6. Enjoy.

Brocciflower Quiche

As I wait for the oven to preheat I will write up the recipe here before I forget. Don't worry 'I'll delete this posting if it tastes awful. Cause you never know when you cook - it's like 75% good judgment and 25% chance. Atleast in my opinion. The more you cook though, the less you leave up to chance.

For instance, when making this quiche, I used a recipe as a guide but there were pieces I wanted to change, flavors I imagined different. So I kinda closed my eyes at the spice rack and thought about how I wanted it to taste, then picked those spices: lemon seed, dried celery, dried shallots, garlic salt, cracked pepper, nature's seasoning salt, and a sprinkle of cayenne.

Anyways to be precise here is the quiche I am making after my quick visit to the local farmer's market and grabbing some BROCCIFLOWER (broccoli-cauliflower hybrid) for $1. You can substitute cauliflower or broccoli if you can't find this rare specimen.

Ingredients:
3 eggs
3/4 cup soy milk
1/2 cup half and half cream
1 small head of broccoli/cauliflower/brocciflower (about 1 cup)
1 frozen pie crus - or be a champ and make your own! It just takes more time and money.
1 cup shredded cheese (I bought two 2cup bags in two differernt types, one yellow and one white cheese - pick your favorite)
1 tsp dijon mustard
spices: these were my picks but you can use whatever you like. To follow my lead, I used a sprinkle (like less than1/8tsp tsp) of each pretty much listed above. With a smaller sprinkle of cayenne and pepper for flavor. Oh and I was generous with the shallots, about 1 to 2 tablespoons.

Recipe:
1. While oven is preheating at 400 degrees, steam your broccoli (or whatever veg) in a small saucepan. To do so, boil an inch of water on high and place the veggie flowers in the pot. Cover loosely for 5 minutes. Drain liquid out.
2. In a medium sized bowl, mix the milk, cream, eggs, and 1/3 cup of the cheese. Add in the spices of your choice (see mine above).
3. Spread the dijon mustard on the pie crust. Prick with fork. Bake for 10 minutes.
4. Reduce heat to 375 degrees. Pour rest of cheese on crust. Then top with broccoli. Then pour over liquid milk/egg mixture SLOWLY. You may end up with a little extra. Don't be like me and try and squeeze it all in and make a huge mess :( Bake 45-50 minutes.
5. Let it cool 10 minutes before eating. By the way, it came out pretty darn good :)

Under $5 asian dinner: peanut noodles, sesame zucchini, & teriyaki tofu

Here are some recipes of some very easy, simple entrees for a collective "asian style" dinner at home.

Peanut Sauce Ramen Noodles
Ingredients:
1/3 cup Almond or Peanut Butter
1/4 cup Soy Sauce
2 Tbsp rice vinegar
2 Tbsp water
2 Tbsp jelly (pineapple, apple, or jalapeno will work)
1/4 tsp ginger powder
4 Tbsp soy milk (any milk will work too)

Stir together with a whisk and voila. Pour over three packets of ramen and throw away the seasoning packet it comes with.

Sesame Zucchini
Ingredients:
1 huge zucchini or 2 smaller ones
1/4 cup sesame dressing
2 Tbsp sesame seeds
1/4 tsp ginger powder
1/4 tsp garlic salt

I will admit it. I cheated. I love making my own sauces and I could've if I put my mind to it, but I had some leftover sesame asian salad dressing. So what did I do? I chopped a HUGEmongous zucchini fresh from our local farmer's market. To chop like this, I cut thick one inch circles and then cut them into four quarters each. I topped them with the dressing and threw on some extra sesame seeds, sprinkled with ginger powder, and garlic salt, and called it my own.

Baked Teriyaki Tofu (adapted from http://kosherfood.about.com/od/vegetarianmaindishes/r/tofu_teri.htm )
1 package firm tofu
drizzle of oil
2 Tbsp of your favorite packaged teriyaki sauce (tip: I bought the new Kraft sizzling salads set for $2 that comes with a small bottle of teriyaki and a small bottle of sesame dressing)
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Press water out of firm tofu. This is quite a challenge, I've made a few awful batches of tofu before because of forgetting this step - too little and too watery, too much and it all squishes. So I read online a trick tonight. Wrap tofu in paper towels, then in a dish towel. Place under a cutting board and top the cutting board with heavy items like a few cans. Wait 10 minutes. Done.
3. Slice in 1/4 inch pieces, into about 6 slices or tofu steaks.
4. Line the pan with parchment paper.
5. Coat with oil and then purchased teriyaki sauce. Sprinkle with garlic powder. I know, cheating once again. I promise soon to make a real teriyaki sauce from scratch. It never tastes the same, atleast not the ones I've made yet.... but it's cheaper usually and I don't feel like a cheater.
6. Bake for 35 minutes.

Here's a picture of the final CHEAP dinner.

In order of greatness, after the final tasting, the peanut rames were the best, then the zucchini, and lastly the tofu. I still need to play with the stuff more. I just don't like the eggy consistency. Any tips welcome!

Total Bill $5:
$.66 (22 cents a pack of ramen x 3)
$1 huge zucchini at farmer's market - cheaper if bought elsewhere
$2 firm tofu
About $1.34 for spoonfuls of all the other ingredients (peanut butter, teriyaki sauce, oil, spices, etc.)

Groceries on a budget

Tonight is my hubby and my 14 month wedding anniversary. I know, kinda lame to celebrate each month but I try and do something special. Money has been extremely tight this month (that is an understatement actually, it's practically nonexistant - don't worry, we'll be okay). So I got groceries yesterday, about 10 bags for $30!!

Here is what I got, in case you are a broke grad student too (or on a budget):
- 9 packages of ramen noodles (at 22 cents each, what a bargain - just make sure to throw out those sodium-laced awful seasoning packets and make your own sauces)
- 4 packages of 50 cent mac and cheese twists, thanks Walmart.
- 2 bags of frozen veggies (99 cents each) really so easy. Add dehydrated onions and spices (like garlic salt, soy sauce, parsley) to frozen peas and microwave. It tastes much fancier than it really is.
- Eggs
- Milk
- Toilet Paper
- Cereal
- Frozen pizza - as you can see below, I am a big fan of fancying up very cheap $2 frozen pizzas (add mushrooms, corn, tuna, zucchini, cherry tomatoes, balsamic drizzle, pesto, basil, fresh mozarrella, whatever is in your fridge leftover that kinda makes sense, just not all at once)
- frozen pancakes
- firm tofu
- frozen breakfast potatoes
- frozen bean burritos (eight for $3, it's pretty amazing, and you can chop up fresh tomatoes, add salsa, guac, sour cream, etc)

I may have forgotten a few other items, but we should be good for atleast a week on all this. Thank goodness, our fridge was absolutely empty.

Anyways, I am SOOO excited to make dinner tonight for our anniversary. I must again thank pinterest for the wonderful ideas I am going to create. Hubby has no idea I am going come up with such a nice meal out of the seemingly pile of crap items I purchased. No offense, it wasn't the most nutritious at first glance.

Here is the menu, I'll post pics and recipes later, after taking the dog to the park this afternoon:
1. Teriyaki Baked Tofu Steaks
2.  Asian Sesame Zucchini
3. Peanut Sauce ramen noodles
4. Salmon Croquettes

Who needs to go get sushi? Not meeee........ although I would, if I could.

Gnocchi is one of my favorite menu options.

I am a die-hard pinterest fan, so I pretty much followed this easy ricotta gnocchi recipe to a tee.
http://budgetbytes.blogspot.com/2011/08/easy-ricotta-gnocchi-258-recipe-065.html

So simple, it is just tedious rolling out each gnocchi on your fork if you like that fluffy, lumpy texture like I do. I don't really like the square pillow gnocchi version aka lazy man's gnocchi.

So to get the right texture, use the prongs of a fork and lightly roll around your dough on it til it looks kinda right.

For the sauce, I came up with this all on my own. Nothing like a good pink sauce or vodka sauce (minus the vodka) I love pink sauce so I used what I had to create a version of one that I thought would be good and was yummy.

Pink Sauce:
3 Tbsp tomato paste or 1/2 cup tomato sauce
4 oz cream cheese
2 Tbsp cream or milk (or until desired consistency)
2 Tbsp butter
(1/4 tsp each) salt, pepper, parsley, whatever spices you like (italian seasoning would go nicely)

I've made this a few times and usually just combine what I've got in the refrigerator that makes sense, so feel free to play around with the ingredients, give or take a few here and there and it should be okay.