You could easily pay $9.00 for an appetizer-size serving of this delicious soup in some trendy Manhattan restaurant. It would probably arrive in one of those annoying one-inch deep bowls.
But we're going to make this soup at home, serve it in a normal bowl, and we're going to do it for around three bucks for the entire pot. Which means this soup runs about 45-50c a serving, making it a front-runner for one of our most laughably cheap recipes here at Casual Kitchen.
People who say healthy food has to cost a lot simply have no clue.
I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we did!
******************************
Carrot and Tarragon Soup
Heavily adapted and simplified from Laurel's Kitchen
Ingredients:
6-7 carrots, peeled, cut into large 2-3” chunks
2-3 potatoes, peeled, cut into large 2-3” chunks
Water to cover
2-3 Tablespoons butter (or olive oil or canola oil)
2 onions, coarsely chopped
1 generous teaspoon dried tarragon
2 cups milk
2-3 cups water
1/2 cup white table wine
1/4 teaspoon black pepper and optional salt to taste
Directions:
1) Peel carrots and potatoes, chop into 2-3” chunks, and cover with water in a 4 quart pot. Bring to a boil and simmer until carrots are tender/al dente, about 20 minutes.
2) While carrots and potatoes are simmering, chop onions and add to a large soup pot with butter and dried tarragon. Saute onions for 10 minutes or so on medium heat until soft. Let stand.
3) When carrots and potatoes are cooked, drain and transfer to a food processor or blender in (roughly) three batches. With each batch, add about a third of both the 2-3 cups each of the milk and water. Puree until smooth, then transfer puree to soup pot and combine with the onions/tarragon. Add any of the remaining water and milk to the soup pot, bring to a boil, and simmer for 5-7 minutes or so. Add black pepper and optional salt if desired.
Serves 6-7 as a main dish.
Two recipe notes:
1) Let's itemize the cost of this laughably cheap recipe:
Butter/oil 15c
Onions 40c
Carrots 60c
Potatoes 40c
Milk 65c
Cheap box white wine 75c
Spices 10c
Total Cost: about $3.05 or about 45-50c per serving
2) Second, thinking about a snotty Manhattan restaurant serving $9 soups in one-inch deep bowls reminds me of Aesop's fable of the fox and the stork.
3) Finally, a few related links for new readers:
a) The 25 Best Laughably Cheap Recipes at Casual Kitchen
b) MORE! Top 25 Laughably Cheap Recipes at Casual Kitchen
c) Ten Healthy Recipes for Under $1 a Serving
d) Glossary of Casual Kitchen Memes
Showing posts with label recipes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label recipes. Show all posts
Carrot and Tarragon Soup (Yet Another "Laughably Cheap" Recipe!)
Labels:
laughablycheap,
recipes,
vegetarianism
Recipe: Chicken with Potatoes
Once again, Laura is stepping in this week to share another recipe... and some more of her thoughts on what's fast becoming her cooking specialty: Indian cuisine. Enjoy!
***************************
A discussion of Indian cuisine is not complete without a mention of spices. The spices! Oh how my nose runs, my eyes water, how I love that burn in the back of my throat.
In my previous post, I mentioned I was the lucky recipient of two fantastic Indian cookbooks. And a spice grinder.
But why, I asked myself that Christmas morning, would I need a spice grinder to make Indian food? Mystified, I flipped through the recipes in both cookbooks. It didn't take long to realize that nearly half of all the ingredients in each recipe were spices. And though many recipes called for whole spices, just as often the spices were ground. Coriander, cumin, peppercorns... all these can be bought whole--but ground when needed--to bring out their full, fresh flavors.
Clearly, I would be using the spice grinder a lot. But where to get whole spices, and more importantly where to get them at a reasonable price? Our solution, one discussed elsewhere at Casual Kitchen, was to visit a local ethnic market in our community. Try it yourself and you’ll be blown away by the quantity and quality, as well as the price!
Several years ago I did just that, lumbering home from a Parsippany Indian grocery store with two enormous grocery bags of spices for about $50 total. It may seem like a lot of money to spend on spices, but years later we are still using them to make incredibly delicious food.
And: Don't forget the old lie about throwing out old spices, particularly if you buy spices in whole form rather than ground.
Though this week’s recipe is more involved than in my previous post, it can easily be doubled and savored for longer. I hope you enjoy it!
******************************
Chicken with Potatoes
From An Invitation to Indian Cooking by Madhur Jaffrey
Ingredients:
3 medium potatoes
1 medium onion, coarsely chopped
3 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
1 inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and coarsely chopped
5 Tb water
1 ½ lbs chicken thighs, skinned
5 Tb canola oil
1 inch cinnamon stick
1 bay leaf
4 cardamom pods
2 whole hot dried red chili peppers
2 whole black peppercorns
½ tsp ground turmeric
½ cup tomato sauce
2 cups chicken broth
½ tsp salt
Directions:
1) Peel and quarter potatoes. Boil potatoes for 25 minutes, drain and set aside.
2) Place onion, garlic, ginger and 5 tablespoons of water in a blender, and blend to a smooth paste. Set aside.
3) Rinse chicken and pat dry. Heat oil in a large, deep-sided skillet over medium-high heat. Add cinnamon, bay leaf, cardamom, whole red peppers, and peppercorns. Cook 1 minute, then fry chicken pieces quickly on all sides until golden brown. Remove chicken with slotted spoon and set aside.
4) Pour the paste from blender into skillet, add turmeric and stir for 3 minutes. Add tomato sauce and chicken broth. Bring to a boil, then cover and lower heat, simmering gently for 15 minutes.
5) Add potatoes, salt and browned chicken pieces to the sauce. Bring to a boil, then cover and simmer on low for 20-25 minutes until chicken is tender, stirring occasionally. Serve over rice.
Serves 4.
**********************
A final note: Many Westerners associate Indian food with curry. But did you know that curry is not even a spice? Rather, it is a blend of ground spices that varies from one household to the next. As Madhur Jaffrey bluntly says in her classic cookbook An Invitation to Indian Cooking, "no Indian ever uses curry powder in his cooking."
Garam masala, like curry, is a spice blend called for in many Indian recipes, and you can create it yourself with a trusty kitchen spice grinder.
READ NEXT: Why Spices Are a Complete Rip-Off and What You Can Do About It
***************************
A discussion of Indian cuisine is not complete without a mention of spices. The spices! Oh how my nose runs, my eyes water, how I love that burn in the back of my throat.
In my previous post, I mentioned I was the lucky recipient of two fantastic Indian cookbooks. And a spice grinder.
But why, I asked myself that Christmas morning, would I need a spice grinder to make Indian food? Mystified, I flipped through the recipes in both cookbooks. It didn't take long to realize that nearly half of all the ingredients in each recipe were spices. And though many recipes called for whole spices, just as often the spices were ground. Coriander, cumin, peppercorns... all these can be bought whole--but ground when needed--to bring out their full, fresh flavors.
Clearly, I would be using the spice grinder a lot. But where to get whole spices, and more importantly where to get them at a reasonable price? Our solution, one discussed elsewhere at Casual Kitchen, was to visit a local ethnic market in our community. Try it yourself and you’ll be blown away by the quantity and quality, as well as the price!
Several years ago I did just that, lumbering home from a Parsippany Indian grocery store with two enormous grocery bags of spices for about $50 total. It may seem like a lot of money to spend on spices, but years later we are still using them to make incredibly delicious food.
And: Don't forget the old lie about throwing out old spices, particularly if you buy spices in whole form rather than ground.
Though this week’s recipe is more involved than in my previous post, it can easily be doubled and savored for longer. I hope you enjoy it!
******************************
Chicken with Potatoes
From An Invitation to Indian Cooking by Madhur Jaffrey
Ingredients:
3 medium potatoes
1 medium onion, coarsely chopped
3 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
1 inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and coarsely chopped
5 Tb water
1 ½ lbs chicken thighs, skinned
5 Tb canola oil
1 inch cinnamon stick
1 bay leaf
4 cardamom pods
2 whole hot dried red chili peppers
2 whole black peppercorns
½ tsp ground turmeric
½ cup tomato sauce
2 cups chicken broth
½ tsp salt
Directions:
1) Peel and quarter potatoes. Boil potatoes for 25 minutes, drain and set aside.
2) Place onion, garlic, ginger and 5 tablespoons of water in a blender, and blend to a smooth paste. Set aside.
3) Rinse chicken and pat dry. Heat oil in a large, deep-sided skillet over medium-high heat. Add cinnamon, bay leaf, cardamom, whole red peppers, and peppercorns. Cook 1 minute, then fry chicken pieces quickly on all sides until golden brown. Remove chicken with slotted spoon and set aside.
4) Pour the paste from blender into skillet, add turmeric and stir for 3 minutes. Add tomato sauce and chicken broth. Bring to a boil, then cover and lower heat, simmering gently for 15 minutes.
5) Add potatoes, salt and browned chicken pieces to the sauce. Bring to a boil, then cover and simmer on low for 20-25 minutes until chicken is tender, stirring occasionally. Serve over rice.
Serves 4.
**********************
A final note: Many Westerners associate Indian food with curry. But did you know that curry is not even a spice? Rather, it is a blend of ground spices that varies from one household to the next. As Madhur Jaffrey bluntly says in her classic cookbook An Invitation to Indian Cooking, "no Indian ever uses curry powder in his cooking."
Garam masala, like curry, is a spice blend called for in many Indian recipes, and you can create it yourself with a trusty kitchen spice grinder.
READ NEXT: Why Spices Are a Complete Rip-Off and What You Can Do About It
Recipe: Saag Murgh (Chicken with Spinach)
Readers, this week's post was written by my lovely wife Laura. Enjoy!
**************************
Occasionally, Daniel gets a break. Once in a while I take over the cooking, and this week I'm taking over the writing too.
When it's my turn to cook, I usually dive into my Indian cookbooks and our huge stash of spices, and get to work. I still remember my first taste of Indian food back in college, in the vegetarian-infused atmosphere of Ithaca, NY. I was 22 years old, a girl from the provinces, and my Midwestern taste buds could barely process the impossibly exotic flavor of the vindaloo I’d ordered. Never mind the tongue-twisting burn!
Dan's sister had discovered Indian cooking years before that, and one Christmas, knowing my curiosity about the cuisine, she gifted me two excellent Indian cookbooks and a spice grinder---opening up an entire world to me.
From Bengal to Punjab: The Cuisines of India (Smita Chandra, 1991) and An Invitation to Indian Cooking (Madhur Jaffrey, 1973) were written by two Indian expats who share their delightful stories growing up in Indian kitchens, and have graciously adapted their recipes to Western kitchens. Both cookbooks are excellent.
Contrary to its reputation, Indian food doesn't have to be complex and difficult. It doesn't even have to be vegetarian. Today's recipe is healthy, delicious, and surprisingly easy to make. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did.
***********************************
Saag Murgh (Chicken with Spinach)
from From Bengal to Punjab: The Cuisines of India by Smita Chandra
Ingredients:
2 lbs chicken thighs, skinned
20 oz (2 boxes) frozen chopped spinach
2 medium onions, diced
4 large cloves garlic, grated
¾ inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and grated
Seasoning/spice mix:
3 Tablespoons canola oil
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
4 cardamom pods
6 whole cloves
1 inch cinnamon stick
1 teaspoon ground coriander seeds
½ teaspoon ground turmeric
salt, to taste
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
8 Tablespoons plain yogurt
½ teaspoon garam masala
Directions:
1) Rinse chicken, pat dry and set aside. Thaw the spinach thoroughly and let drain in a colander.
2) In a large saucepan over medium heat, warm the oil. Add the cumin seeds, cardamom pods, cloves, cinnamon stick, coriander seeds, turmeric, salt and cayenne pepper. Cook for 1 minute, then add the onions and saute until lightly browned, about 8 minutes. Gradually add the yogurt, stirring constantly. Cook for 2 minutes, then add the drained spinach. Mix well and cook for 2 minutes more, then add the chicken.
3) Cover the pan, reduce heat to low, and cook for 40 minutes, stirring occasionally. Uncover, increase the heat to medium-high, and boil off most of the liquid. Mix in the garam masala and serve on a bed of cooked rice.
Serves 4 generously.
A note on spices: all the spices included in this recipe are easily found in your local supermarket or ethnic grocery store (more on this last tip in a later post!).
**************************
Occasionally, Daniel gets a break. Once in a while I take over the cooking, and this week I'm taking over the writing too.
When it's my turn to cook, I usually dive into my Indian cookbooks and our huge stash of spices, and get to work. I still remember my first taste of Indian food back in college, in the vegetarian-infused atmosphere of Ithaca, NY. I was 22 years old, a girl from the provinces, and my Midwestern taste buds could barely process the impossibly exotic flavor of the vindaloo I’d ordered. Never mind the tongue-twisting burn!
Dan's sister had discovered Indian cooking years before that, and one Christmas, knowing my curiosity about the cuisine, she gifted me two excellent Indian cookbooks and a spice grinder---opening up an entire world to me.
From Bengal to Punjab: The Cuisines of India (Smita Chandra, 1991) and An Invitation to Indian Cooking (Madhur Jaffrey, 1973) were written by two Indian expats who share their delightful stories growing up in Indian kitchens, and have graciously adapted their recipes to Western kitchens. Both cookbooks are excellent.
Contrary to its reputation, Indian food doesn't have to be complex and difficult. It doesn't even have to be vegetarian. Today's recipe is healthy, delicious, and surprisingly easy to make. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did.
***********************************
Saag Murgh (Chicken with Spinach)
from From Bengal to Punjab: The Cuisines of India by Smita Chandra
Ingredients:
2 lbs chicken thighs, skinned
20 oz (2 boxes) frozen chopped spinach
2 medium onions, diced
4 large cloves garlic, grated
¾ inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and grated
Seasoning/spice mix:
3 Tablespoons canola oil
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
4 cardamom pods
6 whole cloves
1 inch cinnamon stick
1 teaspoon ground coriander seeds
½ teaspoon ground turmeric
salt, to taste
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
8 Tablespoons plain yogurt
½ teaspoon garam masala
Directions:
1) Rinse chicken, pat dry and set aside. Thaw the spinach thoroughly and let drain in a colander.
2) In a large saucepan over medium heat, warm the oil. Add the cumin seeds, cardamom pods, cloves, cinnamon stick, coriander seeds, turmeric, salt and cayenne pepper. Cook for 1 minute, then add the onions and saute until lightly browned, about 8 minutes. Gradually add the yogurt, stirring constantly. Cook for 2 minutes, then add the drained spinach. Mix well and cook for 2 minutes more, then add the chicken.
3) Cover the pan, reduce heat to low, and cook for 40 minutes, stirring occasionally. Uncover, increase the heat to medium-high, and boil off most of the liquid. Mix in the garam masala and serve on a bed of cooked rice.
Serves 4 generously.
A note on spices: all the spices included in this recipe are easily found in your local supermarket or ethnic grocery store (more on this last tip in a later post!).
Recipe: Spicy Masala Chickpeas
Readers, thanks for indulging me as I took a short break from posting. I'm thinking it would be fitting to get back into the swing of things by sharing yet another healthy, delicious and laughably cheap recipe!
Today's recipe is so vegetarian- and vegan-friendly that it hardly even casts a shadow. It takes about 20-25 minutes to prepare and feeds 3-4 at a cost of around $1.25 per serving. Enjoy!
********************************
Spicy Masala Chickpeas
Ingredients:
1 large onion, chopped
1/4 vegetable oil (we used canola oil)
2 teaspoons ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground cumin
3/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon turmeric
2 14.5-ounce cans chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons lemon juice
Small handful of either fresh parsley or fresh cilantro, chopped
Directions:
1) In a large non-stick pan, saute the chopped onion in oil on high heat for 5 minutes or so, until onions are slightly browned and caramelized.
2) Add the coriander, cumin, cayenne and turmeric. Reduce heat, continue sauteing the onions until nearly soft, another 4-5 minutes.
3) Add the rinsed/drained chickpeas, salt and pepper, fresh parsley (or cilantro) and 1/4 cup water. Deglaze your pan if any of the onion/spice mixture is sticking to the bottom. Saute for another 5-7 minutes. If the chickpeas appear to be drying out too much, feel free to add another few tablespoons of water if desired. Serve over rice.
Serves 3-4.
*************************
Recipe Notes:
1) Note that this dish is not meant to be a sauce: the chickpeas should be moist, but not in a liquid.
2) Spiciness: Wimpy spice readers can feel free to reduce the cayenne pepper to 1/2 or 1/4 teaspoon, depending on your level of wimpiness. We found 3/4 teaspoon gives the dish plenty of heat.
Read Next: MORE! Top 25 Laughably Cheap Recipes at Casual Kitchen
How can I support Casual Kitchen?
Easy. Do all your shopping at Amazon.com
via the links on this site! You can also link to me or subscribe to my RSS feed. Finally, consider sharing this article, or any other article you particularly enjoyed here, to Facebook, Twitter (follow me @danielckoontz!) or to bookmarking sites like reddit, digg or stumbleupon. I'm deeply grateful to my readers for their ongoing support.
Today's recipe is so vegetarian- and vegan-friendly that it hardly even casts a shadow. It takes about 20-25 minutes to prepare and feeds 3-4 at a cost of around $1.25 per serving. Enjoy!
********************************
Spicy Masala Chickpeas
Ingredients:
1 large onion, chopped
1/4 vegetable oil (we used canola oil)
2 teaspoons ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground cumin
3/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon turmeric
2 14.5-ounce cans chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons lemon juice
Small handful of either fresh parsley or fresh cilantro, chopped
Directions:
1) In a large non-stick pan, saute the chopped onion in oil on high heat for 5 minutes or so, until onions are slightly browned and caramelized.
2) Add the coriander, cumin, cayenne and turmeric. Reduce heat, continue sauteing the onions until nearly soft, another 4-5 minutes.
3) Add the rinsed/drained chickpeas, salt and pepper, fresh parsley (or cilantro) and 1/4 cup water. Deglaze your pan if any of the onion/spice mixture is sticking to the bottom. Saute for another 5-7 minutes. If the chickpeas appear to be drying out too much, feel free to add another few tablespoons of water if desired. Serve over rice.
Serves 3-4.
*************************
Recipe Notes:
1) Note that this dish is not meant to be a sauce: the chickpeas should be moist, but not in a liquid.
2) Spiciness: Wimpy spice readers can feel free to reduce the cayenne pepper to 1/2 or 1/4 teaspoon, depending on your level of wimpiness. We found 3/4 teaspoon gives the dish plenty of heat.
Read Next: MORE! Top 25 Laughably Cheap Recipes at Casual Kitchen
How can I support Casual Kitchen?
Easy. Do all your shopping at Amazon.com
Labels:
laughably easy,
laughablycheap,
recipes
Hawaiian-Style Lentil Soup with Seared Spam
This week we'll share a laughably cheap recipe with just a touch of Hawaii. And yep, you read the title of this post correctly: it's got Spam in it.
Interestingly, this recipe is laughably cheap to make everywhere BUT in Hawaii. But wherever you are, you'll find this recipe easy, hearty, filling, nutritious and delicious. Enjoy!
*******************************
Hawaiian-Style Lentil Soup with Seared Spam
Ingredients:
1 pound lentils
About 12-14 cups water
Olive oil
1 large onion, coarsely chopped
1 14.5 ounce can red beans or kidney beans, drained and rinsed, optional
1 can Spam, cut into smallish 1-2 inch pieces
A generous teaspoon paprika or smoked paprika
A generous teaspoon garlic powder (or 3 cloves garlic, minced)
Hot sauce, to taste
Salt/pepper to taste
3-4 small/medium carrots, peeled and sliced into nickels
1 15-ounce can diced tomatoes
Rice or brown rice
Directions:
1) In a large soup pot combine lentils and water. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Simmer for 60-90 minutes until lentils are done to your liking.
2) Meanwhile, in a separate large non-stick saucepan, heat a few Tablespoons of oil, then add the onions and cut-up Spam. Raise heat to high and saute until onions and Spam begin to brown and start to stick to the bottom of the pan (5-10 minutes, roughly). Reduce heat to medium, then add the garlic (or garlic powder), carrots, canned tomatoes, spices and hot sauce, and saute/simmer for another 7-10 minutes. Turn off heat and let stand until lentils are ready.
3) When lentils are done to your liking, add the veggies/Spam/spice mixture to the lentils, then deglaze the saucepan with an additional half cup of water. Add this deglazing liquid to the soup pot. Return lentils to a boil, remove from heat, and serve in bowls over rice or brown rice.
Serves 8-10.
*********************************
Recipe Notes:
1) Creeped out by Spam? We were admittedly flummoxed at first by Hawaii's partly ironic love affair with Spam too (not to mention it's an obvious example of a second order food, a category of food we tend to avoid). If you can't bring yourself to include this very Hawaiian touch to this recipe, feel free to substitute 12-16 ounces of any other kind of meat (sausage, dark meat poultry, chopped ham or bacon, etc. would all work well in this recipe), or simply leave the meat out for an entirely vegan version.
2) Not as laughably cheap as I'd like: Here in Honolulu, where a pound of lentils costs more than double (and a can of black beans costs more than quadruple) what we'd pay back in our home state of New Jersey, this hearty soup isn't quite as laughably cheap as I'd like it to be. However, you can still make this entire pot of soup for about $12-13 (about $1.30-1.50 per serving) even here in Hawaii. It’s not quite the 60-70c per serving a pot of lentil soup might cost us back home but, still, it's miraculously less expensive and a whole lot more healthy than even the least expensive restaurants in Waikiki.
Read Next: The 25 Best Laughably Cheap Recipes at Casual Kitchen
How can I support Casual Kitchen?
Easy. Do all your shopping at Amazon.com
via the links on this site! You can also link to me or subscribe to my RSS feed. Finally, consider sharing this article, or any other article you particularly enjoyed here, to Facebook, Twitter (follow me @danielckoontz!) or to bookmarking sites like reddit, digg or stumbleupon. I'm deeply grateful to my readers for their ongoing support.
Interestingly, this recipe is laughably cheap to make everywhere BUT in Hawaii. But wherever you are, you'll find this recipe easy, hearty, filling, nutritious and delicious. Enjoy!
*******************************
Hawaiian-Style Lentil Soup with Seared Spam
Ingredients:
1 pound lentils
About 12-14 cups water
Olive oil
1 large onion, coarsely chopped
1 14.5 ounce can red beans or kidney beans, drained and rinsed, optional
1 can Spam, cut into smallish 1-2 inch pieces
A generous teaspoon paprika or smoked paprika
A generous teaspoon garlic powder (or 3 cloves garlic, minced)
Hot sauce, to taste
Salt/pepper to taste
3-4 small/medium carrots, peeled and sliced into nickels
1 15-ounce can diced tomatoes
Rice or brown rice
Directions:
1) In a large soup pot combine lentils and water. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Simmer for 60-90 minutes until lentils are done to your liking.
2) Meanwhile, in a separate large non-stick saucepan, heat a few Tablespoons of oil, then add the onions and cut-up Spam. Raise heat to high and saute until onions and Spam begin to brown and start to stick to the bottom of the pan (5-10 minutes, roughly). Reduce heat to medium, then add the garlic (or garlic powder), carrots, canned tomatoes, spices and hot sauce, and saute/simmer for another 7-10 minutes. Turn off heat and let stand until lentils are ready.
3) When lentils are done to your liking, add the veggies/Spam/spice mixture to the lentils, then deglaze the saucepan with an additional half cup of water. Add this deglazing liquid to the soup pot. Return lentils to a boil, remove from heat, and serve in bowls over rice or brown rice.
Serves 8-10.
*********************************
Recipe Notes:
1) Creeped out by Spam? We were admittedly flummoxed at first by Hawaii's partly ironic love affair with Spam too (not to mention it's an obvious example of a second order food, a category of food we tend to avoid). If you can't bring yourself to include this very Hawaiian touch to this recipe, feel free to substitute 12-16 ounces of any other kind of meat (sausage, dark meat poultry, chopped ham or bacon, etc. would all work well in this recipe), or simply leave the meat out for an entirely vegan version.
2) Not as laughably cheap as I'd like: Here in Honolulu, where a pound of lentils costs more than double (and a can of black beans costs more than quadruple) what we'd pay back in our home state of New Jersey, this hearty soup isn't quite as laughably cheap as I'd like it to be. However, you can still make this entire pot of soup for about $12-13 (about $1.30-1.50 per serving) even here in Hawaii. It’s not quite the 60-70c per serving a pot of lentil soup might cost us back home but, still, it's miraculously less expensive and a whole lot more healthy than even the least expensive restaurants in Waikiki.
Read Next: The 25 Best Laughably Cheap Recipes at Casual Kitchen
How can I support Casual Kitchen?
Easy. Do all your shopping at Amazon.com
Labels:
Hawaii,
laughably easy,
laughablycheap,
recipes,
soups
Chicken Stew with Turnips and Mushrooms
Today's recipe is a savory and nuanced soup recipe that Laura adapted and modified from a recipe over at Eating Well. It's healthy, easy, and it's a complete meal in a pot. And like nearly every recipe here at Casual Kitchen, it doesn't cost a lot of time or money to prepare.
If you're not a big fan of turnips, not to worry! We're not either, but we still loved this soup. Somehow--no clue how or why--the mildly bitter turnip taste blends in and meshes flawlessly with all the other flavors. This soup is hearty and profoundly delicious. Enjoy!
******************************
Chicken Stew with Turnips and Mushrooms
Ingredients:
1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
2 Tablespoons olive oil
2 large turnips (about 1 lb), peeled (see note #1 below) and cut into 1-inch pieces
8 ounces mushrooms, sliced
1 onion, sliced
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 cup dry red wine
4 cups chopped frozen kale
3 cups chicken stock (or 3 cups water and 2 cubes chicken bouillon)
1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
Directions:
1) Cut chicken into 1-inch pieces and season with salt and pepper.
2) Heat 1 Tablespoon oil in a soup pot over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook, stirring frequently, until lightly browned, 3 to 4 minutes. Set cooked chicken aside.
3) Add the remaining 1 Tablespoon oil to the pot. Add turnips, mushrooms, onion and garlic and saute on medium heat for about 3-5 minutes, until the onion softens. Add wine and continue to saute for another minute. Add the kale, stock/broth and rosemary.
4) Return the chicken to the pot and bring everything to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until the turnips are tender, about 12-13 minutes. Serve over rice.
Serves 5.
**********************************
Recipe Notes:
1) A note on prepping turnips: Turnips have a tough, thick skin, and you'll need to peel it all off before chopping the turnips into pieces and adding them to the soup. Either a knife or an aggressively wielded vegetable peeler works fine for this task. Just keep in mind if you use a vegetable peeler, you may have to make a few passes around the surface of the turnip.
2) What? More frozen kale? Yes! Once again, we've saved ourselves some effort by using frozen kale rather than fresh kale, making this recipe more pantry friendly.
3) For the turnip fans: If, unlike me, you actually are a big fan of turnips, there's another recipe here at Casual Kitchen you ought to check out: Southern Black-Eyed Pea Soup with Collards.
How can I support Casual Kitchen?
Easy. Do all your shopping at Amazon.com
via the links on this site! You can also link to me or subscribe to my RSS feed. Finally, consider sharing this article, or any other article you particularly enjoyed here, to Facebook, Twitter (follow me @danielckoontz!) or to bookmarking sites like reddit, digg or stumbleupon. I'm deeply grateful to my readers for their ongoing support.
If you're not a big fan of turnips, not to worry! We're not either, but we still loved this soup. Somehow--no clue how or why--the mildly bitter turnip taste blends in and meshes flawlessly with all the other flavors. This soup is hearty and profoundly delicious. Enjoy!
******************************
Chicken Stew with Turnips and Mushrooms
Ingredients:
1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
2 Tablespoons olive oil
2 large turnips (about 1 lb), peeled (see note #1 below) and cut into 1-inch pieces
8 ounces mushrooms, sliced
1 onion, sliced
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 cup dry red wine
4 cups chopped frozen kale
3 cups chicken stock (or 3 cups water and 2 cubes chicken bouillon)
1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
Directions:
1) Cut chicken into 1-inch pieces and season with salt and pepper.
2) Heat 1 Tablespoon oil in a soup pot over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook, stirring frequently, until lightly browned, 3 to 4 minutes. Set cooked chicken aside.
3) Add the remaining 1 Tablespoon oil to the pot. Add turnips, mushrooms, onion and garlic and saute on medium heat for about 3-5 minutes, until the onion softens. Add wine and continue to saute for another minute. Add the kale, stock/broth and rosemary.
4) Return the chicken to the pot and bring everything to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until the turnips are tender, about 12-13 minutes. Serve over rice.
Serves 5.
**********************************
Recipe Notes:
1) A note on prepping turnips: Turnips have a tough, thick skin, and you'll need to peel it all off before chopping the turnips into pieces and adding them to the soup. Either a knife or an aggressively wielded vegetable peeler works fine for this task. Just keep in mind if you use a vegetable peeler, you may have to make a few passes around the surface of the turnip.
2) What? More frozen kale? Yes! Once again, we've saved ourselves some effort by using frozen kale rather than fresh kale, making this recipe more pantry friendly.
3) For the turnip fans: If, unlike me, you actually are a big fan of turnips, there's another recipe here at Casual Kitchen you ought to check out: Southern Black-Eyed Pea Soup with Collards.
How can I support Casual Kitchen?
Easy. Do all your shopping at Amazon.com
Hearty Kale and Lentil Stew
Today's recipe is so easy, so laughably cheap and makes so much food that I can barely believe it.
Best of all, I didn't even have to prepare it! Laura's been doing a lot more of the cooking over the past few weeks, and she's been working on her recipe selection, an important yet underappreciated skill in the kitchen. And unless lentils are ridiculous to you, today's recipe meets all of CK's requirements for an ideal recipe: it's healthy, delicious, easy, scalable, and doesn't cost a lot.
In other words, it's yet more proof that healthy eating doesn't have to be expensive or time-consuming--or even hard! I hope you enjoy this delicious stew as much as we did.
***************************************
Hearty Kale and Lentil Stew
Ingredients:
3-4 Tablespoons oil
4 large carrots, diced
2 onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
14 cups water
3 cups lentils, rinsed
4 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon black pepper
4 cups frozen kale, chopped if necessary
3-4 Tablespoons fresh parsley
1 teaspoon salt
2-3 Tablespoons lemon juice
Directions:
1) In a large stock pot, add oil and saute carrots, onions and garlic for five minutes.
2) Add water, lentils, cumin and black pepper, bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 50 minutes or so, until lentils are tender.
3) Add kale, parsley, salt and lemon juice, simmer for 10 minutes more. Serve with rice or brown rice.
Serves 8-10.
*******************************
Recipe Notes:
1) Frozen kale?
We found, believe it or not, that frozen kale makes this recipe both easier and (more importantly) much more pantry-friendly. You can keep a couple of bags of frozen kale in your freezer indefinitely, for recipes like this, whereas fresh kale can go bad on you (even if you use CK's secret method for storing fresh greens!). The thing about produce and fresh greens is this: while they usually cost less than frozen or canned produce and greens, they can also impose a sense of time pressure on your recipe planning (CK followers familiar with the concept of first-order and second-order foods will instantly understand why this is). But in this case, frozen kale offers us a win-win solution: it costs roughly the same as fresh kale--a rare violation of the Rule of First-Order Foods. Still more evidence that life is lived by heuristic, not by algorithm.
2) Credit where credit's due:
The original inspiration for this recipe was Jay Salomon's Vegetarian Soup Cuisine,
a cookbook we often feature here at CK because of its amazing collection of scalable, delicious and unusual soups and stews. The original source was Moroccan Lentil and Kale Stew on page 84. We simplified Jay's recipe by removing a couple of steps, and then we scaled it up and tweaked the ingredients a little. Finally, for the millionth time, buy this cookbook. It's incredibly useful for any cook seeking interesting, healthy and low-cost recipes.
6 Proven Benefits of Kale
How can I support Casual Kitchen?
Easy. Do all your shopping at Amazon.com
via the links on this site! You can also link to me or subscribe to my RSS feed. Finally, consider sharing this article, or any other article you particularly enjoyed here, to Facebook, Twitter (follow me @danielckoontz!) or to bookmarking sites like reddit, digg or stumbleupon. I'm deeply grateful to my readers for their ongoing support.
Best of all, I didn't even have to prepare it! Laura's been doing a lot more of the cooking over the past few weeks, and she's been working on her recipe selection, an important yet underappreciated skill in the kitchen. And unless lentils are ridiculous to you, today's recipe meets all of CK's requirements for an ideal recipe: it's healthy, delicious, easy, scalable, and doesn't cost a lot.
In other words, it's yet more proof that healthy eating doesn't have to be expensive or time-consuming--or even hard! I hope you enjoy this delicious stew as much as we did.
***************************************
Hearty Kale and Lentil Stew
Ingredients:
3-4 Tablespoons oil
4 large carrots, diced
2 onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
14 cups water
3 cups lentils, rinsed
4 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon black pepper
4 cups frozen kale, chopped if necessary
3-4 Tablespoons fresh parsley
1 teaspoon salt
2-3 Tablespoons lemon juice
Directions:
1) In a large stock pot, add oil and saute carrots, onions and garlic for five minutes.
2) Add water, lentils, cumin and black pepper, bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 50 minutes or so, until lentils are tender.
3) Add kale, parsley, salt and lemon juice, simmer for 10 minutes more. Serve with rice or brown rice.
Serves 8-10.
*******************************
Recipe Notes:
1) Frozen kale?
We found, believe it or not, that frozen kale makes this recipe both easier and (more importantly) much more pantry-friendly. You can keep a couple of bags of frozen kale in your freezer indefinitely, for recipes like this, whereas fresh kale can go bad on you (even if you use CK's secret method for storing fresh greens!). The thing about produce and fresh greens is this: while they usually cost less than frozen or canned produce and greens, they can also impose a sense of time pressure on your recipe planning (CK followers familiar with the concept of first-order and second-order foods will instantly understand why this is). But in this case, frozen kale offers us a win-win solution: it costs roughly the same as fresh kale--a rare violation of the Rule of First-Order Foods. Still more evidence that life is lived by heuristic, not by algorithm.
2) Credit where credit's due:
The original inspiration for this recipe was Jay Salomon's Vegetarian Soup Cuisine,
6 Proven Benefits of Kale
How can I support Casual Kitchen?
Easy. Do all your shopping at Amazon.com
Labels:
laughably easy,
laughablycheap,
recipes,
soups
Almost Meatless Sausage and Chickpea Stew
Readers, just a quick housekeeping update: after today's post I'm going to take a hiatus here at Casual Kitchen for the next few weeks. I'll be back with some new posts in October!
**************************************************
You can prepare this hearty, protein-packed soup in about 40 minutes for under a dollar a serving. And it makes a ton. It’s a classic example of a highly scalable recipe: From just a single, not-very-long cooking session in your kitchen, you and your family can enjoy many healthy, low-cost meals.
I hope you love this delicious, inexpensive soup recipe as much as we did. Enjoy!
Almost Meatless Sausage and Chickpea Stew
Ingredients:
4-5 Tablespoons olive or canola oil
2 onions, chopped coarsely
1 teaspoon paprika
½ to ¾ teaspoon black pepper and salt, to taste
4 garlic cloves, chopped
2-3 links sausage, cut into bite-sized chunks
3 carrots, chopped
1 28 ounce can diced tomatoes
1-2 bouillon cubes, to taste
About 7-8 cups of water (enough to cover everything)
3-4 potatoes, peeled (if desired), and cubed
2 14.5 ounce cans chickpeas, drained and well-rinsed
Handful of fresh parsley (optional)
Directions:
1) In a large soup pot, saute onions, garlic, paprika, black pepper/salt and sausage pieces in oil over medium high heat until onions and sausage are beginning to brown, about 5 minutes.
2) Add carrots, diced tomatoes and 1-2 bouillon cubes, bring to a boil and simmer for another 5 minutes or so.
3) Add water, potatoes and chickpeas. Bring to a boil and simmer for 15 minutes or so, stirring occasionally, until potatoes are tender. Remove from heat, add optional fresh parsley, combine well and serve immediately.
Serves 10.
************************
Recipe Notes:
1) Once again, as all Casual Kitchen readers well know, eating healthy food doesn’t have to be time-consuming, difficult or expensive. Here’s a rundown of the cost of today’s recipe:
onions: 75c
garlic: 25c
carrots: 50c
sausage: $2.00
diced tomatoes $1.00
potatoes: $1.00
chick peas: $1.20
parsley: 99c
spices, oil, bouillion cubes: ~75c
Total: $8.44, or 84c/serving.
2) A quick thought about why I borrowed/stole the phrase "Almost Meatless" and used it in the title of today's recipe. It's a sincere homage to one of the most intriguing cookbooks I've ever reviewed here at Casual Kitchen: Joy Manning and Tara Mataraza Desmond's brilliant cookbook Almost Meatless.
I've featured it a few times here at CK, most recently in the unusual Almost Meatless Potato Corn Chowder, which was part of my new-recipe-a-day trial in June. If you're looking for a collection of intriguing recipes that will help you adopt a more conscientious diet and cut your food bill, be sure to take a look at this cookbook!
Read Next: The Best of Casual Kitchen 2014
How can I support Casual Kitchen?
Easy. Do all your shopping at Amazon.com
via the links on this site! You can also link to me or subscribe to my RSS feed. Finally, consider sharing this article, or any other article you particularly enjoyed here, to Facebook, Twitter (follow me @danielckoontz!) or to bookmarking sites like reddit, digg or stumbleupon. I'm deeply grateful to my readers for their ongoing support.
**************************************************
You can prepare this hearty, protein-packed soup in about 40 minutes for under a dollar a serving. And it makes a ton. It’s a classic example of a highly scalable recipe: From just a single, not-very-long cooking session in your kitchen, you and your family can enjoy many healthy, low-cost meals.
I hope you love this delicious, inexpensive soup recipe as much as we did. Enjoy!
Almost Meatless Sausage and Chickpea Stew
Ingredients:
4-5 Tablespoons olive or canola oil
2 onions, chopped coarsely
1 teaspoon paprika
½ to ¾ teaspoon black pepper and salt, to taste
4 garlic cloves, chopped
2-3 links sausage, cut into bite-sized chunks
3 carrots, chopped
1 28 ounce can diced tomatoes
1-2 bouillon cubes, to taste
About 7-8 cups of water (enough to cover everything)
3-4 potatoes, peeled (if desired), and cubed
2 14.5 ounce cans chickpeas, drained and well-rinsed
Handful of fresh parsley (optional)
Directions:
1) In a large soup pot, saute onions, garlic, paprika, black pepper/salt and sausage pieces in oil over medium high heat until onions and sausage are beginning to brown, about 5 minutes.
2) Add carrots, diced tomatoes and 1-2 bouillon cubes, bring to a boil and simmer for another 5 minutes or so.
3) Add water, potatoes and chickpeas. Bring to a boil and simmer for 15 minutes or so, stirring occasionally, until potatoes are tender. Remove from heat, add optional fresh parsley, combine well and serve immediately.
Serves 10.
************************
Recipe Notes:
1) Once again, as all Casual Kitchen readers well know, eating healthy food doesn’t have to be time-consuming, difficult or expensive. Here’s a rundown of the cost of today’s recipe:
onions: 75c
garlic: 25c
carrots: 50c
sausage: $2.00
diced tomatoes $1.00
potatoes: $1.00
chick peas: $1.20
parsley: 99c
spices, oil, bouillion cubes: ~75c
Total: $8.44, or 84c/serving.
2) A quick thought about why I borrowed/stole the phrase "Almost Meatless" and used it in the title of today's recipe. It's a sincere homage to one of the most intriguing cookbooks I've ever reviewed here at Casual Kitchen: Joy Manning and Tara Mataraza Desmond's brilliant cookbook Almost Meatless.
Read Next: The Best of Casual Kitchen 2014
How can I support Casual Kitchen?
Easy. Do all your shopping at Amazon.com
Labels:
laughably easy,
laughablycheap,
recipes
On Trusting Food Bloggers, Cookbook Authors and Their Recipes
How do you know if you can trust a recipe from a food blogger, a chef, or a cookbook author? Why do we trust some recipe authors more than others? And why do we not trust certain recipe authors at all?
We're inundated by food blogs, food websites and recipe aggregation sites these days. There are so many cookbooks out there, and more coming out every year, that it's almost funny. And they all seem to have some kind of marketing angle, food niche or some celebrity chef behind them in order to stand out from the pack.
And there's nothing more frustrating than trying a new recipe and having taste bad. It can take the fun out of cooking for weeks. No, months!
New cooks--those who haven't yet developed an eye for discerning good recipes from bad ones--are like lambs led to slaughter in this world.
But yet there are certain cooks and chefs I instinctively trust: writers and cookbook authors like Mollie Katzen,
Paul Prudhomme
and Jay Solomon,
for example. Among food bloggers, I instinctively trust recipes from people like Dave at Food and Fire, Melissa at Alosha's Kitchen, Jules at Stonesoup, and Mike at Dad Cooks Dinner, just to name a few.
And then there are the cooks and food bloggers I instinctively don't trust: like Martha Stewart, or Shauna Ahern. Martha Stewart has a reputation for complex, often difficult, recipes. Shauna Ahern has an unfortunate reputation for publishing sloppy, error-ridden recipes.
I think it comes down to consistency. As circular as it may sound: if you're reliable, people will rely on you. They'll see you as a generally sound source of good recipes. This is what I'd like to have for my reputation here at Casual Kitchen. People know what they're predominantly going to get here: easy, healthy and laughably inexpensive recipes. Sure, not all readers will like all of my recipes, but the majority of readers should like the majority of my recipes... or else I'm doing it wrong.
I'd also add that the standards differ between regular bloggers and professionalized websites or cookbooks or magazines. Recipes from professionalized sites have test kitchens, editors, copy editors and fact-checkers: in other words, they have a staff of people who exist to check things over. This isn't to say that you'll never find a mistake in a professionalized publication, but the vast majority of mistakes will get caught and fixed.
Therefore, the professionalized realm is, and should be, less forgiving: If you publish a bad or error-ridden recipe on a professionalized media site, your reputation can suffer permanent harm.
I think this is why, for example, a widely-read food blogger like Shauna Ahern can catch heavy flack after publishing error-ridden recipes on professionalized food sites. Ahern's infamous "Potato-Mushroom Tart" on Martha Stewart's website is an object example: not only did it leave out "potatoes" in the ingredient list (an error several commenters quickly caught), but the savory recipe also accidentally included a sweet crust recipe containing cinnamon and sugar (an error that several commenters caught after having made the recipe, which apparently tasted awful). By the way, this recipe, and the Martha Stewart-affiliated website that contained it, have long since been deleted. But as we all know, the internet never forgets.
Look, nobody is saying everything must be perfect everywhere and always. But if you're publishing recipes on major media company websites, you (or the site publishing you, or ideally both) have an obligation to not post recipes with catastrophic errors in them. Don't you think?
Readers, how do you know who to trust when you read food blogs? How do you think about this issue?
For further reading:
1) Shauna Ahern's infamous and error-ridden Potato Mushroom Tart post, courtesy of the wayback machine.
It's quite interesting to read the comments--there's an entire a story arc there. First, a series of increasingly frustrated comments from readers who can't believe such a glaring error could exist in a recipe from a well-known food blogger on a Martha Stewart site no less. Next, days later, a response from a site editor. Then, yet another day later, a response/excuse from Shauna Ahern herself ("I'm not sure why people are so upset"). After that, a series of weird sockpuppet-like comments ("this recipe was delish!"). And then an intriguing meta-discussion of whether it's "mean" or "a personal attack" or "hate" to criticize a bad recipe on a major media company's food website. Really interesting on a few levels.
2) About a month later, Ahern published another highly suspect recipe, this time on The Food Network's website.
3) Not for the faint of heart, and don't go here if you have anything else to do today: A 1,391-page (and growing) thread on Shauna Ahern at the Get Off My Internets forum.
How can I support Casual Kitchen?
Easy. Do all your shopping at Amazon.com
via the links on this site! You can also link to me or subscribe to my RSS feed. Finally, consider sharing this article, or any other article you particularly enjoyed here, to Facebook, Twitter (follow me @danielckoontz!) or to bookmarking sites like reddit, digg or stumbleupon. I'm deeply grateful to my readers for their ongoing support.
We're inundated by food blogs, food websites and recipe aggregation sites these days. There are so many cookbooks out there, and more coming out every year, that it's almost funny. And they all seem to have some kind of marketing angle, food niche or some celebrity chef behind them in order to stand out from the pack.
And there's nothing more frustrating than trying a new recipe and having taste bad. It can take the fun out of cooking for weeks. No, months!
New cooks--those who haven't yet developed an eye for discerning good recipes from bad ones--are like lambs led to slaughter in this world.
But yet there are certain cooks and chefs I instinctively trust: writers and cookbook authors like Mollie Katzen,
And then there are the cooks and food bloggers I instinctively don't trust: like Martha Stewart, or Shauna Ahern. Martha Stewart has a reputation for complex, often difficult, recipes. Shauna Ahern has an unfortunate reputation for publishing sloppy, error-ridden recipes.
I think it comes down to consistency. As circular as it may sound: if you're reliable, people will rely on you. They'll see you as a generally sound source of good recipes. This is what I'd like to have for my reputation here at Casual Kitchen. People know what they're predominantly going to get here: easy, healthy and laughably inexpensive recipes. Sure, not all readers will like all of my recipes, but the majority of readers should like the majority of my recipes... or else I'm doing it wrong.
I'd also add that the standards differ between regular bloggers and professionalized websites or cookbooks or magazines. Recipes from professionalized sites have test kitchens, editors, copy editors and fact-checkers: in other words, they have a staff of people who exist to check things over. This isn't to say that you'll never find a mistake in a professionalized publication, but the vast majority of mistakes will get caught and fixed.
Therefore, the professionalized realm is, and should be, less forgiving: If you publish a bad or error-ridden recipe on a professionalized media site, your reputation can suffer permanent harm.
I think this is why, for example, a widely-read food blogger like Shauna Ahern can catch heavy flack after publishing error-ridden recipes on professionalized food sites. Ahern's infamous "Potato-Mushroom Tart" on Martha Stewart's website is an object example: not only did it leave out "potatoes" in the ingredient list (an error several commenters quickly caught), but the savory recipe also accidentally included a sweet crust recipe containing cinnamon and sugar (an error that several commenters caught after having made the recipe, which apparently tasted awful). By the way, this recipe, and the Martha Stewart-affiliated website that contained it, have long since been deleted. But as we all know, the internet never forgets.
Look, nobody is saying everything must be perfect everywhere and always. But if you're publishing recipes on major media company websites, you (or the site publishing you, or ideally both) have an obligation to not post recipes with catastrophic errors in them. Don't you think?
Readers, how do you know who to trust when you read food blogs? How do you think about this issue?
For further reading:
1) Shauna Ahern's infamous and error-ridden Potato Mushroom Tart post, courtesy of the wayback machine.
It's quite interesting to read the comments--there's an entire a story arc there. First, a series of increasingly frustrated comments from readers who can't believe such a glaring error could exist in a recipe from a well-known food blogger on a Martha Stewart site no less. Next, days later, a response from a site editor. Then, yet another day later, a response/excuse from Shauna Ahern herself ("I'm not sure why people are so upset"). After that, a series of weird sockpuppet-like comments ("this recipe was delish!"). And then an intriguing meta-discussion of whether it's "mean" or "a personal attack" or "hate" to criticize a bad recipe on a major media company's food website. Really interesting on a few levels.
2) About a month later, Ahern published another highly suspect recipe, this time on The Food Network's website.
3) Not for the faint of heart, and don't go here if you have anything else to do today: A 1,391-page (and growing) thread on Shauna Ahern at the Get Off My Internets forum.
How can I support Casual Kitchen?
Easy. Do all your shopping at Amazon.com
Labels:
blogging,
cookbooks,
recipe development,
recipes
Ten Healthy Recipes for Under $1 a Serving
Rising food costs getting you down? Are you looking for ways to save money on food?
Casual Kitchen is here to help. Today I bring you a small collection of ten of the least expensive recipes in CK's entire history. Enjoy these delicious, cheap and healthy meals!
And while you're at it, enjoy two of Casual Kitchen's other collections of laughably easy and laughably cheap recipes! You can find the links at the bottom of this post.
*************************************
1) Hilariously Easy Slow Cooker Bean Stew
The easiest recipe in this entire blog. Serves 4-5 generously at a cost of just 50-60c per serving.
2) Roasted Garden Barley
At a gloriously low cost of just 40c a serving, this humble recipe serves 5-6 as a main course, and as many as eight for a side dish.
3) Shaksouka
For a total cost less than three bucks, this easy and intriguingly spiced recipe generously feeds three.
4) Easy Tomato Curry
Healthy, easy, delicious... and just 95c a serving. One of our favorite recipes from last month's Recipe-A-Day trial.
5) Fresh Garden Pasta with Chickpeas and Garlic Oil
It might not be the easiest recipe on this list, but at 70c a serving, this interesting pasta dish will be worth your while.
6) Black Bean and Giant White Corn Posole
Barely 85c per serving for a strikingly different take on black beans. Takes only about 35 minutes to make too.
7) Savory Baked Chickpeas and Garlic
Weighing in at a laughably cheap 91c per serving, this recipe takes just a few minutes of prep work to make.
8) Spicy Mote and Chicken Stew
Yet another top favorite from our recent Recipe-A-Day trial, this healthy (and delicious!) recipe costs less than 60c a serving.
9) Coconut Curry with Collard Greens and Black Eyed Peas
Packed with protein and a wide range of nutrients at just 97c a serving.
10) Garden Gumbo
This hearty recipe comes from way back in CK's archives and it costs about 80c per serving. From Jay Solomon's amazing book Vegetarian Soup Cuisine: 125 Soups and Stews from Around the World,
one of our foundational cookbooks.
********************************
Finally, here are two more great sources of cheap, easy and healthy recipes:
The Top 25 Laughably Cheap Recipes at Casual Kitchen
MORE! Top 25 Laughably Cheap Recipes at Casual Kitchen
How can I support Casual Kitchen?
Easy. Do all your shopping at Amazon.com
via the links on this site! You can also link to me or subscribe to my RSS feed. Finally, consider sharing this article, or any other article you particularly enjoyed here, to Facebook, Twitter (follow me @danielckoontz!) or to bookmarking sites like reddit, digg or stumbleupon. I'm deeply grateful to my readers for their ongoing support.
Casual Kitchen is here to help. Today I bring you a small collection of ten of the least expensive recipes in CK's entire history. Enjoy these delicious, cheap and healthy meals!
And while you're at it, enjoy two of Casual Kitchen's other collections of laughably easy and laughably cheap recipes! You can find the links at the bottom of this post.
*************************************
1) Hilariously Easy Slow Cooker Bean Stew
The easiest recipe in this entire blog. Serves 4-5 generously at a cost of just 50-60c per serving.
2) Roasted Garden Barley
At a gloriously low cost of just 40c a serving, this humble recipe serves 5-6 as a main course, and as many as eight for a side dish.
3) Shaksouka
For a total cost less than three bucks, this easy and intriguingly spiced recipe generously feeds three.
4) Easy Tomato Curry
Healthy, easy, delicious... and just 95c a serving. One of our favorite recipes from last month's Recipe-A-Day trial.
5) Fresh Garden Pasta with Chickpeas and Garlic Oil
It might not be the easiest recipe on this list, but at 70c a serving, this interesting pasta dish will be worth your while.
6) Black Bean and Giant White Corn Posole
Barely 85c per serving for a strikingly different take on black beans. Takes only about 35 minutes to make too.
7) Savory Baked Chickpeas and Garlic
Weighing in at a laughably cheap 91c per serving, this recipe takes just a few minutes of prep work to make.
8) Spicy Mote and Chicken Stew
Yet another top favorite from our recent Recipe-A-Day trial, this healthy (and delicious!) recipe costs less than 60c a serving.
9) Coconut Curry with Collard Greens and Black Eyed Peas
Packed with protein and a wide range of nutrients at just 97c a serving.
10) Garden Gumbo
This hearty recipe comes from way back in CK's archives and it costs about 80c per serving. From Jay Solomon's amazing book Vegetarian Soup Cuisine: 125 Soups and Stews from Around the World,
********************************
Finally, here are two more great sources of cheap, easy and healthy recipes:
The Top 25 Laughably Cheap Recipes at Casual Kitchen
MORE! Top 25 Laughably Cheap Recipes at Casual Kitchen
How can I support Casual Kitchen?
Easy. Do all your shopping at Amazon.com
Labels:
laughablycheap,
recipes
29 Easy, Inexpensive Recipes From the Recipe a Day Trial [FULL ARCHIVE]
For your convenience, readers, here's a full archive of every single recipe from June's Recipe A Day trial. Enjoy!
#1: Seared Curried Scallops with Coconut Rice
#2: Shaksouka
#3: Spicy Tuna, Tomatoes and Red Beans
#4: Sauteed Kale in Coconut and Lime Sauce
#5: Green Apple Charoset
#6: Vinegar Braised Chicken and Onions
#7: Crisp Tofu with White Beans and Gremolata
#8: Easy Lemon-Lime Quinoa
#9: "Almost Meatless" Potato Corn Chowder
#10: Laura's Secret Hummus
#11: Easy Tomato Curry
#12: Garden Pasta with Chickpeas and Garlic Oil
#13: Spicy Crock Pot Spare Ribs
#14: Sardine Superfood Salad
#15: Spicy Spanish Potato Onion Soup
#16: Warm Asian-Style Sesame Spinach Salad
#17: Citrus Braised Chicken and Root Vegetables
#18: Homemade Cherry Pie
#19: Black Bean and Giant White Corn Posole
#20: Spicy Asian-Style Slow Cooker Spare Ribs
#21: Savory Baked Chickpeas and Garlic
#22: Easy Zucchini Coin Soup
#23: Easy Marinated White Bean Casserole
#24: Spicy Mote and Chicken Stew
#25: Easy Red Pepper and Hazelnut Spread
#26: Mote Con Huevos
#27: Savory Blueberry Rice
#28: Broccoli and Elbow Pasta Frittata
#29: Paul Prudhomme-Style Fried Catfish
How can I support Casual Kitchen?
Easy. Do all your shopping at Amazon.com
via the links on this site! You can also link to me or subscribe to my RSS feed. Finally, consider sharing this article, or any other article you particularly enjoyed here, to Facebook, Twitter (follow me @danielckoontz!) or to bookmarking sites like reddit, digg or stumbleupon. I'm deeply grateful to my readers for their ongoing support.
#1: Seared Curried Scallops with Coconut Rice
#2: Shaksouka
#3: Spicy Tuna, Tomatoes and Red Beans
#4: Sauteed Kale in Coconut and Lime Sauce
#5: Green Apple Charoset
#6: Vinegar Braised Chicken and Onions
#7: Crisp Tofu with White Beans and Gremolata
#8: Easy Lemon-Lime Quinoa
#9: "Almost Meatless" Potato Corn Chowder
#10: Laura's Secret Hummus
#11: Easy Tomato Curry
#12: Garden Pasta with Chickpeas and Garlic Oil
#13: Spicy Crock Pot Spare Ribs
#14: Sardine Superfood Salad
#15: Spicy Spanish Potato Onion Soup
#16: Warm Asian-Style Sesame Spinach Salad
#17: Citrus Braised Chicken and Root Vegetables
#18: Homemade Cherry Pie
#19: Black Bean and Giant White Corn Posole
#20: Spicy Asian-Style Slow Cooker Spare Ribs
#21: Savory Baked Chickpeas and Garlic
#22: Easy Zucchini Coin Soup
#23: Easy Marinated White Bean Casserole
#24: Spicy Mote and Chicken Stew
#25: Easy Red Pepper and Hazelnut Spread
#26: Mote Con Huevos
#27: Savory Blueberry Rice
#28: Broccoli and Elbow Pasta Frittata
#29: Paul Prudhomme-Style Fried Catfish
How can I support Casual Kitchen?
Easy. Do all your shopping at Amazon.com
Labels:
Recipe-a-day,
recipes
Recipe A Day #29: Paul Prudhomme-Style Fried Catfish
We're at the end of one of the most aggressive experiments I've done here at Casual Kitchen: 29 brand new recipes, shared daily with readers over the course of the entire month of June.
And today, for our final recipe of my recipe-a-day trial, we're going to feature a chef who has influenced me substantially over the years: Paul Prudhomme, and his exceptional cookbook Chef Paul Prudhomme's Louisiana Kitchen
.
Paul Prudhomme is of course a legend for teaching the world about Louisiana Cajun and Creole cuisine, and we've featured him here at Casual Kitchen a few times over the years: with his palate-searing Cajun Meatloaf, his stunning Barbecued Shrimp, his not-easy-but-still-worth-it Shrimp Creole, and of course his simple and staggeringly good Chocolate Mousse.
And today's recipe is one of my favorites. It's easy, and it has all the exciting flavors and spices that you'd expect from Paul Prudhomme. It'll be one of your favorites too, I'm sure of it.
Paul Prudhomme-Style Fried Catfish
Ingredients:
2.5 pounds catfish filets, frozen or fresh
Vegetable or corn oil for deep frying
Spice mix: Combine well:
1 Tablespoon salt
1 Tablespoon cayenne pepper
1 Tablespoon paprika
1 Tablespoon garlic powder
1 Tablepoon black pepper
1½ teaspoons onion powder
1½ teaspoons oregano
1½ teaspoons thyme
Dredge pans:
Dredge pan #1: 1 cup flour plus 1½ teaspoons seasoning mix above, combined well.
Dredge pan #2: 2 eggs, 1 cup milk, and ¼ cup mustard, whisked/combined well.
Dredge pan #3: 2 cups flour, 1.5 cups cornmeal, plus 2 generous Tablespoons of the seasoning mix above, combined well.
Directions:
1) Prepare dredge pans according to instructions above, using three small loaf pans or pie pans.
2) Use remaining seasoning mix to liberally season both sides of each of the fish filets, then cut catfish filets into nugget-sized pieces, about 2-3 inches long and 1 inch wide.
3) Pour oil in a large pan so you have enough to be about 3 inches deep. Heat oil to around 300F or until smoking just slightly. Meanwhile, set up an assembly line with the fish, the three dredging pans and the frying oil (see photo below).
4) Dredge the fish pieces first in Dredge pan #1, next in Dredge pan #2 (the egg mixture), and then, finally, in Dredge pan #3 (flour/cornmeal mixture), making sure you really press the flour/cornmeal mixture firmly into the fish with your fingers or a spoon. Fry the fish in batches of five or six pieces at a time, until golden brown and crispy. Place on paper towels to drain, and serve with a side of vegetables, Lemon-Lime Quinoa, or Savory Blueberry Rice.
Serves 5-6.
******************************
Recipe Notes:
1) Easier than it looks: This recipe at first seems complicated, but it really isn't. There's just a little bit of arrangement involved in setting up your fish dredging/frying assembly line, but other than that this recipe is shockingly easy.
2) Intimidated by fish? I've said elsewhere, probably repeatedly, that I'm often intimidated cooking fish. I cook it for too long, I don't cook it long enough, and because it's a relatively costly food, I feel, I don't know, like a wasteful moron when it doesn't come out perfectly. If you feel the same, do not fear this recipe. I promise you: it's almost impossible to screw up. The fish nuggets have very wide tolerances for cooking time. You'll know when the breading becomes a luscious golden brown that the fish inside is done--and done perfectly.
3) Thoughts on scale: When I cook here at Casual Kitchen, I usually cook for just the two of us. This recipe, with a generous side of Savory Blueberry Brown Rice, (over)fed us for two dinners plus two lunches for Laura to take to work. However, a minor problem with this recipe--a problem common to any recipe where you bread and fry something--is that the breading gets soggy the next day. If you're cooking for two, make the recipe as it is above, but save back half of the fish filets for day two and fry them then. And then, for a time- and effort-saving tip, put the breading/dredging materials into plastic storage containers--just put a lid on each container and stack it in your fridge for re-use with the rest of the fish the following day. And, let the oil cool on your stove and you can re-use that too!
4) Save the spice mix and egg mixture: When you're done with this recipe you'll have some leftover spice mix and some leftover egg mixture. Do not throw them away!! Save the spice mix for other dishes: I sprinkle it over my morning eggs for example, and to mess with Laura's head, once in a while I'll put a generous shake or two of Paul Prudhomme onto her oatmeal. Also, a suggestion for any leftover egg mixture from Dredge pan #2: add a couple of Tablespoons of it to your next batch of scrambled eggs for a delicious taste experience. PS: You can also freeze the egg mixture.
5) This is the end: Finally, readers, I hope you enjoyed my June Recipe A Day experiment, and thank you for coming along for the ride with me. It was hard work, but very much worth it: Laura and I ate really well last month, and we've got quite a few new recipes that we'll likely add to our cooking rotation. I hope you got some new recipes out of it too! I'll put together an archive post and a summary post with the best and most popular recipes in the coming weeks.
How can I support Casual Kitchen?
Easy. Do all your shopping at Amazon.com
via the links on this site! You can also link to me or subscribe to my RSS feed. Finally, consider sharing this article, or any other article you particularly enjoyed here, to Facebook, Twitter (follow me @danielckoontz!) or to bookmarking sites like reddit, digg or stumbleupon. I'm deeply grateful to my readers for their ongoing support.
And today, for our final recipe of my recipe-a-day trial, we're going to feature a chef who has influenced me substantially over the years: Paul Prudhomme, and his exceptional cookbook Chef Paul Prudhomme's Louisiana Kitchen
Paul Prudhomme is of course a legend for teaching the world about Louisiana Cajun and Creole cuisine, and we've featured him here at Casual Kitchen a few times over the years: with his palate-searing Cajun Meatloaf, his stunning Barbecued Shrimp, his not-easy-but-still-worth-it Shrimp Creole, and of course his simple and staggeringly good Chocolate Mousse.
And today's recipe is one of my favorites. It's easy, and it has all the exciting flavors and spices that you'd expect from Paul Prudhomme. It'll be one of your favorites too, I'm sure of it.
Paul Prudhomme-Style Fried Catfish
Ingredients:
2.5 pounds catfish filets, frozen or fresh
Vegetable or corn oil for deep frying
Spice mix: Combine well:
1 Tablespoon salt
1 Tablespoon cayenne pepper
1 Tablespoon paprika
1 Tablespoon garlic powder
1 Tablepoon black pepper
1½ teaspoons onion powder
1½ teaspoons oregano
1½ teaspoons thyme
Dredge pans:
Dredge pan #1: 1 cup flour plus 1½ teaspoons seasoning mix above, combined well.
Dredge pan #2: 2 eggs, 1 cup milk, and ¼ cup mustard, whisked/combined well.
Dredge pan #3: 2 cups flour, 1.5 cups cornmeal, plus 2 generous Tablespoons of the seasoning mix above, combined well.
Directions:
1) Prepare dredge pans according to instructions above, using three small loaf pans or pie pans.
2) Use remaining seasoning mix to liberally season both sides of each of the fish filets, then cut catfish filets into nugget-sized pieces, about 2-3 inches long and 1 inch wide.
3) Pour oil in a large pan so you have enough to be about 3 inches deep. Heat oil to around 300F or until smoking just slightly. Meanwhile, set up an assembly line with the fish, the three dredging pans and the frying oil (see photo below).
4) Dredge the fish pieces first in Dredge pan #1, next in Dredge pan #2 (the egg mixture), and then, finally, in Dredge pan #3 (flour/cornmeal mixture), making sure you really press the flour/cornmeal mixture firmly into the fish with your fingers or a spoon. Fry the fish in batches of five or six pieces at a time, until golden brown and crispy. Place on paper towels to drain, and serve with a side of vegetables, Lemon-Lime Quinoa, or Savory Blueberry Rice.
Serves 5-6.
******************************
Recipe Notes:
1) Easier than it looks: This recipe at first seems complicated, but it really isn't. There's just a little bit of arrangement involved in setting up your fish dredging/frying assembly line, but other than that this recipe is shockingly easy.
2) Intimidated by fish? I've said elsewhere, probably repeatedly, that I'm often intimidated cooking fish. I cook it for too long, I don't cook it long enough, and because it's a relatively costly food, I feel, I don't know, like a wasteful moron when it doesn't come out perfectly. If you feel the same, do not fear this recipe. I promise you: it's almost impossible to screw up. The fish nuggets have very wide tolerances for cooking time. You'll know when the breading becomes a luscious golden brown that the fish inside is done--and done perfectly.
3) Thoughts on scale: When I cook here at Casual Kitchen, I usually cook for just the two of us. This recipe, with a generous side of Savory Blueberry Brown Rice, (over)fed us for two dinners plus two lunches for Laura to take to work. However, a minor problem with this recipe--a problem common to any recipe where you bread and fry something--is that the breading gets soggy the next day. If you're cooking for two, make the recipe as it is above, but save back half of the fish filets for day two and fry them then. And then, for a time- and effort-saving tip, put the breading/dredging materials into plastic storage containers--just put a lid on each container and stack it in your fridge for re-use with the rest of the fish the following day. And, let the oil cool on your stove and you can re-use that too!
4) Save the spice mix and egg mixture: When you're done with this recipe you'll have some leftover spice mix and some leftover egg mixture. Do not throw them away!! Save the spice mix for other dishes: I sprinkle it over my morning eggs for example, and to mess with Laura's head, once in a while I'll put a generous shake or two of Paul Prudhomme onto her oatmeal. Also, a suggestion for any leftover egg mixture from Dredge pan #2: add a couple of Tablespoons of it to your next batch of scrambled eggs for a delicious taste experience. PS: You can also freeze the egg mixture.
5) This is the end: Finally, readers, I hope you enjoyed my June Recipe A Day experiment, and thank you for coming along for the ride with me. It was hard work, but very much worth it: Laura and I ate really well last month, and we've got quite a few new recipes that we'll likely add to our cooking rotation. I hope you got some new recipes out of it too! I'll put together an archive post and a summary post with the best and most popular recipes in the coming weeks.
How can I support Casual Kitchen?
Easy. Do all your shopping at Amazon.com
Labels:
Recipe-a-day,
recipes
Recipe A Day #28: Broccoli and Elbow Pasta Frittata
Readers, we're really getting down to the end of June's Recipe A Day trial, and today's recipe, a simple but not-quite-ordinary frittata, is a textbook type of dish you'll find here at Casual Kitchen.
We've seen frittata recipes elsewhere here at CK, and in fact one of our frittata recipes dates back to the earliest days of CK (uh, and it shows). What's so great about frittatas? They’re easy, they're inexpensive, and you can put into it practically whatever foods you happen to have on hand. Best of all it's a complete, balanced meal.
And (assuming there's any left over) a wedge of frittata microwaves perfectly the next day... providing yet another delicious meal in just seconds.
Today's Broccoli and Elbow Pasta Frittata has yet another twist: with the elbow pasta it's almost a cross between a frittata and mac and cheese! You're going to love it.
Broccoli and Elbow Pasta Frittata
Ingredients:
1 cup elbow pasta, cooked
about 1 -1.5 cups broccoli florets, steamed
2-3 Tablespoons oil
1 onion
5-8 ounces of meat of your choice, chicken, sausage, etc., optional
7 eggs
¼ cup milk
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
¼ to ⅓ cup parmesan cheese
Directions:
1) Cook pasta according to directions and also steam broccoli florets until just cooked to your liking.
2) Place eggs, salt, black pepper and milk in a separate bowl. Whisk until well-combined.
3) Meanwhile, in a large, deep, non-stick pan, saute onion (and optional meat) in oil on medium-high heat until onion is soft and beginning to brown and meat is cooked through. Then, add cooked pasta, steamed broccoli and parmesan cheese to pan. Combining well and make sure everything is well-heated through.
4) Next, add egg mixture to pan, shaking and tilting pan so the eggs are well distributed throughout. Cover and cook on medium heat for 7-10 minutes, until the frittata sets. Then place pan, uncovered, about 3-4 inches below your oven's broiler for an additional 7-10 minutes, until the frittata is fully cooked through and beginning to brown on top.
Serves 4.
**************************************
Recipe Notes:
1) Meat or meatless ideas: Another key advantage of frittatas is you can make them with or without meat--either way, it's a complete meal. We've made this recipe the first time with sliced-up spicy Italian sausage, and the second time with cubes of boneless chicken thighs. In both cases we simply sauteed the meat with the onions. Obviously you could use pork, beef, beans or even tofu in this recipe too.
2) Spicing variations: Some spicing ideas:
* A minimalist frittata with simple black pepper and salt
* Spicy southwest version: cayenne, mild chili powder and cumin
* Poultry lover's special: thyme and poultry seasoning
* Italian lover's special: with extra basil and oregano
* Fresh garden herbs: fresh parsley and fresh basil, chopped and added to the egg mixture.
3) Oven-safe pan? The pan we used is technically not oven-safe, but you really don't need an oven-safe pan to do the few minutes of broiling required of this recipe. Our solution is simply to leave the oven door partially open and have the pan handle sticking outside the oven so it isn't exposed to the broiler's heat. The potentially meltable pan handle will be perfectly safe over the few minutes the frittata is in there. If you look at the last photo in my How to Make a Simple Frittata post you'll see exactly what I mean.
How can I support Casual Kitchen?
Easy. Do all your shopping at Amazon.com
via the links on this site! You can also link to me or subscribe to my RSS feed. Finally, consider sharing this article, or any other article you particularly enjoyed here, to Facebook, Twitter (follow me @danielckoontz!) or to bookmarking sites like reddit, digg or stumbleupon. I'm deeply grateful to my readers for their ongoing support.
We've seen frittata recipes elsewhere here at CK, and in fact one of our frittata recipes dates back to the earliest days of CK (uh, and it shows). What's so great about frittatas? They’re easy, they're inexpensive, and you can put into it practically whatever foods you happen to have on hand. Best of all it's a complete, balanced meal.
And (assuming there's any left over) a wedge of frittata microwaves perfectly the next day... providing yet another delicious meal in just seconds.
Today's Broccoli and Elbow Pasta Frittata has yet another twist: with the elbow pasta it's almost a cross between a frittata and mac and cheese! You're going to love it.
Broccoli and Elbow Pasta Frittata
Ingredients:
1 cup elbow pasta, cooked
about 1 -1.5 cups broccoli florets, steamed
2-3 Tablespoons oil
1 onion
5-8 ounces of meat of your choice, chicken, sausage, etc., optional
7 eggs
¼ cup milk
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
¼ to ⅓ cup parmesan cheese
Directions:
1) Cook pasta according to directions and also steam broccoli florets until just cooked to your liking.
2) Place eggs, salt, black pepper and milk in a separate bowl. Whisk until well-combined.
3) Meanwhile, in a large, deep, non-stick pan, saute onion (and optional meat) in oil on medium-high heat until onion is soft and beginning to brown and meat is cooked through. Then, add cooked pasta, steamed broccoli and parmesan cheese to pan. Combining well and make sure everything is well-heated through.
4) Next, add egg mixture to pan, shaking and tilting pan so the eggs are well distributed throughout. Cover and cook on medium heat for 7-10 minutes, until the frittata sets. Then place pan, uncovered, about 3-4 inches below your oven's broiler for an additional 7-10 minutes, until the frittata is fully cooked through and beginning to brown on top.
Serves 4.
**************************************
Recipe Notes:
1) Meat or meatless ideas: Another key advantage of frittatas is you can make them with or without meat--either way, it's a complete meal. We've made this recipe the first time with sliced-up spicy Italian sausage, and the second time with cubes of boneless chicken thighs. In both cases we simply sauteed the meat with the onions. Obviously you could use pork, beef, beans or even tofu in this recipe too.
2) Spicing variations: Some spicing ideas:
* A minimalist frittata with simple black pepper and salt
* Spicy southwest version: cayenne, mild chili powder and cumin
* Poultry lover's special: thyme and poultry seasoning
* Italian lover's special: with extra basil and oregano
* Fresh garden herbs: fresh parsley and fresh basil, chopped and added to the egg mixture.
3) Oven-safe pan? The pan we used is technically not oven-safe, but you really don't need an oven-safe pan to do the few minutes of broiling required of this recipe. Our solution is simply to leave the oven door partially open and have the pan handle sticking outside the oven so it isn't exposed to the broiler's heat. The potentially meltable pan handle will be perfectly safe over the few minutes the frittata is in there. If you look at the last photo in my How to Make a Simple Frittata post you'll see exactly what I mean.
How can I support Casual Kitchen?
Easy. Do all your shopping at Amazon.com
Labels:
Recipe-a-day,
recipes
Recipe A Day #27: Savory Blueberry Rice
Today we feature a side dish that takes regular old rice and makes it into something truly special. We've adapted and simplified a similar recipe from Mollie Katzen's exceptional new cookbook The Heart of the Plate
(you can find her original version on page 200). Mollie's recipe was already easy: what we've done here at CK is adapt it to make it both more pantry-friendly and even lower cost. Wait until you see the look on your guests' faces when you put a stunning plate of this electric blue rice in front of them!
PS: Have a look also at CK's great list of easy rice side dishes!
Savory Blueberry Rice
Ingredients:
2-3 Tablespoons butter or olive oil
2 cups brown rice
4 cups water
1 onion
2 Tablespoons butter or olive oil
10-12 ounces frozen unsweetened blueberries
salt and black pepper, to taste
lime juice, to taste
Directions:
1) Cook the brown rice: place rice, butter/oil and water in a large pot, bring to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer and cook, covered, for about 40 minutes until rice is done to your liking.
2) Meanwhile, in a separate pan, saute onion in butter/oil on medium-high heat until soft and beginning to brown. Add frozen blueberries and continue to saute until blueberries thaw and begin to release their juices. Continue sauteing for 7-10 minutes until blueberries thicken and have a sauce/jam-like texture. Turn off heat and let stand until rice is done.
3) When rice is done, fluff well with a fork and add blueberry mixture. Combine well, then add salt, black pepper and lime juice to taste. Serve immediately.
Serves 6-7 as a side dish.
****************************************
Recipe Notes:
1) Mild taste, stunning visuals: This is not supposed to be a loud-tasting dish. It's basically just... rice, except that it looks really, really cool and it has an unusual, nuanced set of flavors. However, if nuance isn't enough for you and you'd prefer a more aggressive spicing and flavoring, see the following note.
2) Spicing options: Don't want to settle for "quiet" rice? Some ideas:
* Add two cubes of bouillon to the rice before cooking.
* Add 3/4 teaspoon Tabasco or cayenne pepper for a spicy variation.
* Add shredded parmesan or mozzarella for a risotto-esque variation.
* Add seared chicken, browned sausage or beans to make this into a main dish.
How can I support Casual Kitchen?
Easy. Do all your shopping at Amazon.com
via the links on this site! You can also link to me or subscribe to my RSS feed. Finally, consider sharing this article, or any other article you particularly enjoyed here, to Facebook, Twitter (follow me @danielckoontz!) or to bookmarking sites like reddit, digg or stumbleupon. I'm deeply grateful to my readers for their ongoing support.
PS: Have a look also at CK's great list of easy rice side dishes!
Savory Blueberry Rice
Ingredients:
2-3 Tablespoons butter or olive oil
2 cups brown rice
4 cups water
1 onion
2 Tablespoons butter or olive oil
10-12 ounces frozen unsweetened blueberries
salt and black pepper, to taste
lime juice, to taste
Directions:
1) Cook the brown rice: place rice, butter/oil and water in a large pot, bring to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer and cook, covered, for about 40 minutes until rice is done to your liking.
2) Meanwhile, in a separate pan, saute onion in butter/oil on medium-high heat until soft and beginning to brown. Add frozen blueberries and continue to saute until blueberries thaw and begin to release their juices. Continue sauteing for 7-10 minutes until blueberries thicken and have a sauce/jam-like texture. Turn off heat and let stand until rice is done.
3) When rice is done, fluff well with a fork and add blueberry mixture. Combine well, then add salt, black pepper and lime juice to taste. Serve immediately.
Serves 6-7 as a side dish.
****************************************
Recipe Notes:
1) Mild taste, stunning visuals: This is not supposed to be a loud-tasting dish. It's basically just... rice, except that it looks really, really cool and it has an unusual, nuanced set of flavors. However, if nuance isn't enough for you and you'd prefer a more aggressive spicing and flavoring, see the following note.
2) Spicing options: Don't want to settle for "quiet" rice? Some ideas:
* Add two cubes of bouillon to the rice before cooking.
* Add 3/4 teaspoon Tabasco or cayenne pepper for a spicy variation.
* Add shredded parmesan or mozzarella for a risotto-esque variation.
* Add seared chicken, browned sausage or beans to make this into a main dish.
How can I support Casual Kitchen?
Easy. Do all your shopping at Amazon.com
Labels:
Recipe-a-day,
recipes
Recipe A Day #26: Mote Con Huevos
Today's recipe takes everyday plain old scrambled eggs and--with a minor extra step and an extra ingredient or two--turns them into a memorable and exotic breakfast. We loved this recipe, and you're going to love it too.
Mote Con Huevos
Ingredients:
2 Tablespoons butter (or oil)
1 small onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped finely
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper or red pepper flakes
¼ teaspoon cumin
¼ teaspoon mild chili powder
salt and black pepper to taste
1 15 ounce can white hominy/mote, drained and rinsed
⅓ cup milk
5 eggs
2 Tablespoons chives, minced
1 Tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped
Directions:
1) In a medium-sized non-stick pan, saute the onion, garlic and spices in butter on medium-high heat for 5-7 minutes, until soft. Add mote/hominy, combine well, and saute for another 2 minutes. Then, add milk and continue to saute until nearly absorbed, another 3 minutes or so.
2) Meanwhile, whisk eggs well in a separate bowl. Add eggs, chives and parsley to pan. Cook and stir occasionally as if you were going to make scrambled eggs, until eggs are done to your liking. Serve immediately.
Serves 2-3.
*************************************
Recipe Notes:
1) Use real butter*: Sure, you can use plain olive oil or some other oil in this recipe, but there's something about the flavor combination of mote, eggs and butter. With butter, this recipe simply tastes better.
* Apologies to Jen Yu for stealing the phrase.
2) Canned vs. dried mote/hominy/giant white corn: Once again, you have a choice with today's recipe: use dried giant white corn, or simply buy it in the can. With this recipe--contrary to our recent Spicy Mote and Chicken Stew--I recommend going the easier route and using basic canned hominy or canned mote, which you can find the latin aisle in most grocery stores. Barring that, today's recipe offers you a gift-wrapped reason to visit your local Latin American grocery store.
3) Spice variations: Feel free to improvise with the spices here: In place of my "cayenne, cumin and mild chile powder" version above, consider using thyme and sage, or paprika only, or a super-spicy version with extra cayenne and Tabasco, or, a simple, minimalist version with just salt and black pepper.
How can I support Casual Kitchen?
Easy. Do all your shopping at Amazon.com
via the links on this site! You can also link to me or subscribe to my RSS feed. Finally, consider sharing this article, or any other article you particularly enjoyed here, to Facebook, Twitter (follow me @danielckoontz!) or to bookmarking sites like reddit, digg or stumbleupon. I'm deeply grateful to my readers for their ongoing support.
Mote Con Huevos
Ingredients:
2 Tablespoons butter (or oil)
1 small onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped finely
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper or red pepper flakes
¼ teaspoon cumin
¼ teaspoon mild chili powder
salt and black pepper to taste
1 15 ounce can white hominy/mote, drained and rinsed
⅓ cup milk
5 eggs
2 Tablespoons chives, minced
1 Tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped
Directions:
1) In a medium-sized non-stick pan, saute the onion, garlic and spices in butter on medium-high heat for 5-7 minutes, until soft. Add mote/hominy, combine well, and saute for another 2 minutes. Then, add milk and continue to saute until nearly absorbed, another 3 minutes or so.
2) Meanwhile, whisk eggs well in a separate bowl. Add eggs, chives and parsley to pan. Cook and stir occasionally as if you were going to make scrambled eggs, until eggs are done to your liking. Serve immediately.
Serves 2-3.
*************************************
Recipe Notes:
1) Use real butter*: Sure, you can use plain olive oil or some other oil in this recipe, but there's something about the flavor combination of mote, eggs and butter. With butter, this recipe simply tastes better.
* Apologies to Jen Yu for stealing the phrase.
2) Canned vs. dried mote/hominy/giant white corn: Once again, you have a choice with today's recipe: use dried giant white corn, or simply buy it in the can. With this recipe--contrary to our recent Spicy Mote and Chicken Stew--I recommend going the easier route and using basic canned hominy or canned mote, which you can find the latin aisle in most grocery stores. Barring that, today's recipe offers you a gift-wrapped reason to visit your local Latin American grocery store.
3) Spice variations: Feel free to improvise with the spices here: In place of my "cayenne, cumin and mild chile powder" version above, consider using thyme and sage, or paprika only, or a super-spicy version with extra cayenne and Tabasco, or, a simple, minimalist version with just salt and black pepper.
How can I support Casual Kitchen?
Easy. Do all your shopping at Amazon.com
Labels:
Recipe-a-day,
recipes
Recipe A Day #25: Easy Red Pepper and Hazelnut Spread
This is an interesting, nuanced and rich-tasting spread that--with a little bit of practice--you can put together in just a few minutes. It's adapted from one of my go-to cookbooks for easy recipes, a cookbook we've seen repeatedly in this month's Recipe A Day trial: Jules Clancy's brilliant Five Ingredients Ten Minutes.
And to really wow your guests with delicious spreads and dips, consider pairing this electric orange spread with a striking-looking batch of Easy Beet Pesto and yet another batch of Laura's Secret Hummus!
Easy Red Pepper and Hazelnut Spread
Ingredients:
7-8 ounces chopped hazelnuts (about 200g)
7-8 ounces roasted red peppers, well drained (about 200g)
2 garlic cloves
about 2 Tablespoons red wine vinegar
about 2 teaspoons paprika
½ teaspoon salt, more or less to taste
about 4-5 Tablespoons olive oil, to taste/texture
Directions:
1) Place nuts, roasted red peppers, garlic cloves, paprika and vinegar in a food processor and combine well.
2) Add olive oil and salt gradually, until the spread reaches your desired taste and texture. Serve with carrots, celery, crackers and other vegetables of your choice.
Serves 6 as an appetizer.
******************************
Recipe Notes:
1) This is a dense, rich and thick dip. Even after you add four or five tablespoons of olive oil, it will still be relatively dense, with a mortar-like texture. I wish I could come up with a more appetizing word than "mortar," but here at CK we seek exactitude in our descriptive terminology.
2) Substitutions: Feel free to use walnuts or even pecans in place of hazelnuts. Note that a typical US grocery store will carry chopped walnuts and chopped hazelnuts right next to each other in the baking aisle. Typically pecans will be the most expensive, while walnuts and hazelnuts should cost roughly the same. Often the "chopped" versions of these nuts are less expensive than the whole nuts, so there's no need to pay extra for whole nuts--you're just going to pulverize these puppies anyway.
3) Nut allergies: If you have any enemies with severe nut allergies, this would be a great appetizer to serve them.
How can I support Casual Kitchen?
Easy. Do all your shopping at Amazon.com
via the links on this site! You can also link to me or subscribe to my RSS feed. Finally, consider sharing this article, or any other article you particularly enjoyed here, to Facebook, Twitter (follow me @danielckoontz!) or to bookmarking sites like reddit, digg or stumbleupon. I'm deeply grateful to my readers for their ongoing support.
And to really wow your guests with delicious spreads and dips, consider pairing this electric orange spread with a striking-looking batch of Easy Beet Pesto and yet another batch of Laura's Secret Hummus!
Easy Red Pepper and Hazelnut Spread
Ingredients:
7-8 ounces chopped hazelnuts (about 200g)
7-8 ounces roasted red peppers, well drained (about 200g)
2 garlic cloves
about 2 Tablespoons red wine vinegar
about 2 teaspoons paprika
½ teaspoon salt, more or less to taste
about 4-5 Tablespoons olive oil, to taste/texture
Directions:
1) Place nuts, roasted red peppers, garlic cloves, paprika and vinegar in a food processor and combine well.
2) Add olive oil and salt gradually, until the spread reaches your desired taste and texture. Serve with carrots, celery, crackers and other vegetables of your choice.
Serves 6 as an appetizer.
******************************
Recipe Notes:
1) This is a dense, rich and thick dip. Even after you add four or five tablespoons of olive oil, it will still be relatively dense, with a mortar-like texture. I wish I could come up with a more appetizing word than "mortar," but here at CK we seek exactitude in our descriptive terminology.
2) Substitutions: Feel free to use walnuts or even pecans in place of hazelnuts. Note that a typical US grocery store will carry chopped walnuts and chopped hazelnuts right next to each other in the baking aisle. Typically pecans will be the most expensive, while walnuts and hazelnuts should cost roughly the same. Often the "chopped" versions of these nuts are less expensive than the whole nuts, so there's no need to pay extra for whole nuts--you're just going to pulverize these puppies anyway.
3) Nut allergies: If you have any enemies with severe nut allergies, this would be a great appetizer to serve them.
How can I support Casual Kitchen?
Easy. Do all your shopping at Amazon.com
Labels:
Recipe-a-day,
recipes
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