Frugal Feeds | 5 Basic International Veggie Sofrito's

So far I have been covering a lot of pantry staples because it is an important part of frugal shopping but in order for your diet to be healthy you need to incorporate an abundance of fresh ingredients. Today we'll start looking at the fresh staples needed.

When you start to put fresh ingredients in your shopping list you want to mix the inexpensive staples with low cost seasonal produce. Certain staples are consistent throughout many cultures cuisines. By having them at hand you can create meals from many different cultures. Let's look at several cuisine basics to get you started.

French:
Carrots, Onions, Leeks, Celery, Thyme and Bay leaves

Called Mirepoix: Saute in a bit of butter 3/4 cup carrots, 1/2 cup onions and 1/4 cup celery. 3/4 cup lean ham is often added. Use with braised or pot roasted meats. For seafood dishes, eliminate the ham and replace the carrot with leeks.

Italian:
Onions, Carrots, Mushrooms, Celery, Basil, Parsley and Garlic

Saute in olive oil until browned 1 cup onions, 1/2 cup carrots, 1/4 cup mushrooms, 1/4 cup celery, herbs and 2 cloves garlic. Used with meats and basis for sauce. 4 cups pureed tomatoes is often added.

Spanish:
Yellow Onion, Sweet Green Chile (like Anaheim), Garlic, Tomatoes and Paprika

Saute in a bit of olive oil until browned 1 cup onions, 1 chile, 1 clove garlic. Add 4 cups chopped tomatoes and 1 heaping Tablespoon paprika.

Mexican:
Yellow Onion, Bell Peppers, Chiles, Garlic, Tomatoes

Saute in a bit of corn oil until browned and blistered, 1 cup onions, 1 cup bell peppers, 1 hot chile, 1 clove garlic. Separately broil 4 tomatoes until blackened. Place tomatoes in a brown paper bag and close it. Let the tomatoes sit for five minutes. Remove tomatoes from bag and peel off the skin. Crush the tomatoes and add to the sauteed vegetables. If making a sauce from the vegetables, puree. Often served with cilantro.

Cajun:
Green Bell Peppers, Onions, Celery and Flour

Called the Trinity: Saute in a bit of butter 1 Bell Pepper, 1 onion and 2 stalks of celery. When the vegetables are browned add 2 Tablespoons of flour and allow it to brown lightly. Use for gumbo and with braised meats and vegetables.

As you can see, with just a handful of staple vegetables you will have the basis for several different cuisines. With each of these types of sofritos you can make them ahead of time in larger quantities and just measure out one cup of the sofrito into each freezer bag. Label it and date it. Then you will have handy, versatile starters to many recipes.


Keep the following vegetables on hand and you can always throw these together with a few spices:

carrots
onions
leeks
celery
mushrooms
green chiles
garlic
tomatoes
bell peppers

Frugal Feeds | Seven Simple Almost-Instant Non-Grain Recipes--last minute cooking has never been easier!

Bean flours must be cooked for a few minutes prior to consuming. So, if you are going to use bean flour in a recipe that is served cold you will want to have enough time between cooking the bean flour and mixing it into your recipe so that it can cool sufficiently.

We'll start today by making a quick and easy hummus. Hummus can be used as either a dip or a spread.


Basic Hummus
 
You will need:

1 cup Water

1/2 cup Garbanzo Bean Flour

2 teaspoons Garlic Powder

2 Tablespoons Olive Oil

Salt to taste

That is all you need for your most basic hummus. Place the water into a small pot over medium heat. With a fork, or a whisk, add your garbanzo bean flour a little at a time and stir in thoroughly. By doing it this way you will eliminate lumps. Bring to a steady simmer. Simmer for several minutes. The dip will thicken upon cooling. If you want it thicker, add a little more garbanzo bean flour or simmer it longer while constantly stirring. If you want it less thick add some more water or some low sodium broth. When the consistency is still somewhat thinner than you want (remember that it will thicken more while cooling) add your garlic powder.  Remove from heat. Let cool. Whisk in your olive oil a little at a time. Add salt to taste. Chill and serve. Goes great with chips, vegetable strips, spread on a pita, a bagel or a slice of bread. One serving of Basic Hummus gives you 165 calories and 20% of your daily fiber. Adding tahini or more olive oil will greatly increase the calories. Adding lemon juice, peppers or vegetables will increase the nutrients.

Now make it your own. Start off by only adding one or two optional ingredients until you know how they taste in the recipe and how they taste together. You can stir in a number of items before chilling that will really add to the flavor.

A few Tablespoons of any of the following:
Lemon Juice
Low sodium Broth
Olive oil
Nut Butter--tahini (sesame seed paste), almond butter, cashew butter, peanut butter, soy nut butter
Hot sauce or roasted chiles and peppers like chipoltes
Sweet Paprika
Parsley
Roasted Peppers
Roasted Tomatoes
Sun Dried Tomatoes
Olives



Almost Instant Split Pea Soup

3 1/4 cups low sodium Chicken Broth
3/4 cup Green Pea Flour
Salt and Pepper to taste

This is all you need for your most basic split pea soup. Bring broth to boil in a medium pot. Reduce heat to medium. Whisk in the Green Pea Flour. Simmer for several minutes until thoroughly hot and it is as thick as you like it. If it is already thicker than you like it you can add water or broth to thin it. Unless you used low sodium or salt free broth be sure to taste the soup before you season it with salt. Season to taste and serve. One serving of Almost Instant Split Pea soup gives you 60 calories and 16% of your daily fiber. Adding meats will increase the calories. Adding vegetables will increase the nutrients.

Now make it your own. Just add one or two optional ingredients at first until you know how they taste with the soup and how they taste together.

Stir in any of the following while simmering the soup:

1 cup minced or diced lean ham, lean bacon or lean sausage
1/2 cup minced carrots (if you are using green split pea flour the carrots will make it turn a brownish color, use yellow split pea flour instead)
1/4 cup minced celery
1/4 cup minced onion, green onion or chives
1/2 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon dried mint
1/2 Tablespoon curry powder
1 cup diced, cooked, potato
1/2 teaspoon summer savory
1 cup mixed frozen vegetables


Dollar Stretching


Nut butters are expensive but beans are not. White beans have a very light flavor that blends well with stronger flavors or stays mild for sauces. In this one we are going to make a spread that will allow you to turn that jar of nut butter into the equivalent of four jars of nut butter spread.

Nut Butter Bean Spread

You will need:

1 cup water
1/2 cup White Bean Flour
1/2 cup nut butter--peanut, almond, cashew, soynut etc...

Bring water to boil in a small pot. Whisk in the white bean flour. Bring back to boil then reduce heat. Let simmer for several minutes. Remove from heat. Let it cool. Whisk in the nut butter. If too thick add a little more water. If too thin add a little more nut butter. Chill. Makes two cups, or 16 servings. One serving of Nut Butter Bean Spread made with Almond Butter gives you 105 calories and 17% of your daily fiber. Made with cashew butter it is slightly lower calories and fiber. With sesame butter (tahini) it is 95 calories and 16% of your daily fiber. Peanut butter has almost the same number or calories and fiber as tahini.

Quick and Easy Bean Soup

1/3 cup bean flour--whichever kind or blend them
4 cups liquid--low sodium broth (chicken or beef), water, wine or milk

Optional Vegetable: 2 teaspoons dried vegetable flakes, carrot, spinach, onion, leek, mushroom, etc.. or 3 tablespoons of minced fresh vegetables. (onions, carrots, celery, mushrooms, chives etc.)

Optional Garlic: 1/2 teaspoon garlic flakes or a 1/4 teaspoon of garlic powder or 1 small garlic clove, minced

Optional Herb: A pinch (1/8 teaspoon) of any herb (thyme, marjoram, oregano, basil, mint, parsley, etc.)

Optional Spice: A touch of spices--black or white pepper, cumin, red pepper, ground chiles, etc.

Whisk bean flour into cold liquid until smooth. Pour into a medium pot. Add optional ingredients. Bring to a simmer on the stove top. Simmer three minutes. Serve. Makes 4 one cup servings.

Above are the components to make a different bean soup, very quickly, every day. Here is a starter:

Pea Soup

1/3 cup pea flour--use either yellow or green
4 cups chicken broth
2 teaspoons onion flakes
1 Tablespoon carrots, minced
1/4 cup bacon bits--or imitation bacon bits
A pinch of thyme
White pepper to taste

Whisk pea flour into cold liquid until smooth. Pour into a medium pot. Add remaining ingredients. Bring to a simmer on the stove top. Simmer three minutes. Serve. Makes 4 one cup servings.


Here are some more budget savers:

Refried Beans

1/3 cup pinto bean flour or black bean flour
1-2 1/2 cups low sodium beef broth
1 teaspoon corn oil

For thicker refried beans use less water, for thinner use more water. The amount of liquid you use will determine how much refried beans you end up with. So using 2 cups of liquid will give you 2 cups of medium thick refried beans. Whisk bean flour into cold beef broth until smooth. Heat a small pan over medium. Add oil to pan and pour bean mixture in. Bring to a simmer on the stove top stirring constantly. Simmer three minutes. Serve. Makes between 1 and 2 1/2, half-cup servings.

Budget Guacamole 1/2 cup white bean flour, 2 cups water, 1 tablespoon garlic powder. 1/4 cup onions, 1 minced pepper, 1/4 cup cilantro, juice of 1 lime, 1 large avocado, 1 cup canned tomatoes.
Stir white bean flour, garlic and water until smooth. Bring to boil and simmer a few minutes. Remove from heat. Dice your onions, peppers and cilantro. Mash your avocado and add lime, tomatoes, peppers, onions, cilantro and cooled bean flour mixture. Chill briefly before serving.


Now that you have tried each of these simple recipes, mix them up.

Instead of using garbanzo bean flour in the hummus, use the green pea flour, or the white bean flour.

Instead of using the green pea flour in the split pea soup, use the garbanzo flour or the white bean flour.

Instead of using the white bean flour in the spread, use the garbanzo flour or green pea flour.

Instead of using nut butter as the oil in the spread, use olive oil or avocado or cheese or cooked, diced ham or bacon.

Instead of using meat in the soup, use a nut butter.


The recipes are yours, mix them up and make them your signature dish. Also, if you don't have bean flour available you can use canned beans or peas, just drain and mash them up--but it will taste different, and not as good. Alternately, you can make the cooked beans from scratch which will take a lot longer but will also taste a lot more flavorful.



Next up quick and simple breakfast dishes...

Frugal Feeds | 9 Recipes for White Sauce Creates Endless Diversity in your Dishes

Understanding white sauce will open up a tremendous amount of options for your recipes. Although called a sauce, and in some cases used as a sauce, white sauce is actually more of a binder. Think of it as either a thin, liquidy glue, a standard white glue, a paste or a caulk. When thought of in these four terms it is closer to how we use it.

Today we will focus on white sauce number one--thin, liquidy glue.

For White Sauce #1 you will need:

1 T. fat--olive oil, coconut oil, nut butter
1 T. starch--white whole wheat flour, whole wheat flour, whole oat flour, 3/4 T. brown rice flour or 3/4 T garbanzo bean flour
(Pan browned flour makes it less thick but more flavorful.)
1 c. liquid--2% milk, plain milk alternative, low sodium broth, wine, juice or water
1/2 t. seasoning--salt, pepper, herbs, spices, low fat cheese, bacon

Makes 4, 1/4 cup servings, or about one ladle-full each


For the Traditional White Sauce #1 that works out to be:

1 T. olive oil
1 T. white whole wheat flour
1 c. 2% milk
1/4 t. salt

You will need a whisk, a pouring cup and a saute pan.

In a medium sized saute pan over medium-high heat (usually 7 on the dial), melt the fat, if using coconut oil, and bring to a low simmer. If using nut butter add a bit of water to the nut butter before bringing to a simmer. Sprinkle the starch (white whole wheat flour) over the simmering fat and whisk it until it is very smooth, bubbly and fully mixed. Allow it to simmer for five minutes. You have just made a Roux. Using about one third of the liquid (2% milk) at a time whisk it into the Roux--fat-starch mixture.

Have the liquid fully whisked in before adding the next third of liquid. By this careful process you end up with a sauce that is free of lumps.

Once all of the liquid is whisked in--drop the temperature to medium low (usually a 4 on the dial) and let it simmer until it thickens slightly. Add the seasoning (salt) to taste and serve.

This is the sauce you would use for making a thin white sauce for left-over chicken, a cream-of-something soup, a creamy wine sauce, and a bechamel. One serving of White Sauce #1 gives you 70 calories.


For the White Sauce #1 using Corn or Potato Starch:
Melt the fat in the pan. In a bowl whisk together the liquid and the starch until fully smooth and lump free. Add liquid to pan, whisking regularly. Add seasoning and allow to thicken.


For the Thin White Sauce for Chicken
Change it up from plain white sauce to something different every time.
Things to change:
Add mustard (be sure it doesn't contain vinegar, lemon or other acid or your sauce will curdle) or use mustard powder
Add some grated low fat cheese once you remove the sauce from the heat, and stir to melt
Add Summer Savory
Add Rosemary
Add Thyme



For the Cream-of-Something-Soup
Recipe, as it is, is one serving for a soup. To make it a family sized four serving soup change the ingredients to:

4 T. fat
4 T starch
4 c. liquid
2 t. seasoning

This change to the serving size for Basic White Sauce #1 makes each serving of Cream of Something Soup provide 281 calories and 16% of your daily fiber.

Veggie Soup: Add leftover cooked vegetables at 1/2 cup per person
Broccoli Cheese Soup: Add 1/2 c. broccoli and 1/4 c. shredded low fat cheese per person--add the cheese after you remove it from the stove but before you serve. Stir until melted through.
Cream of Mushroom Soup: Add 1/3 c. sauteed mushrooms and some garlic to taste.
Cream of Tomato Soup: Whisk in 3 c. tomato puree, 2 T. tomato paste and 1 tsp. black pepper.
Cream of Potato Soup: Add 2 diced, cooked, medium sized potatoes and 1/2 cup crumbled bacon or imitation bacon bits.

Adding vegetables increases the nutrients. Adding cheese increases the fat and calories.

 
For a Creamy Wine Sauce:
You will need to replace at least 1/2 of your liquid with red or white wine, depending on how strong a wine flavor you are seeking.

For a Creamy Bechamel Sauce:
You will need to replace 1/2 of your milk with low sodium beef or low sodium chicken broth, depending on how strong a meat flavor you are seeking. Low fat broth reduces the calories in the White Sauce #1 recipes.

You now have a simple sauce that can be used to enhance flavor, mask left over meats, add variety to dishes or to take small amounts of left overs and turn them into filling soups. Add a few croutons from last week and the taste and texture will be outstanding.

Tomorrow we will cover White Sauce #2.