Frugal Feeds | Raw Diet Day 15

Raw Diet Day 15:

For breakfast I made a juice of 2 pink lady apples, 1 small beet, 4 medium carrots with their tops, 1 small handful of mint and 1 cup of cranberries. It was tangy and sweet and very delicious. If you make this juice be sure to brush your teeth right after as the beet juice turns your teeth a rosy red color :)

For lunch I made burritos using a nut filling that combined the left-over sunflower seed taco filling from Raw Food/Real World and a cup and a half sized recipe of the walnut taco filling I made earlier this week. I didn't dehydrate it though, just mixed it with the left-over sunflower seed taco filling. I used medium sized collard green leaves with their long stem cut off for the wrapper. I scooped two or three tablespoons of filling onto each collard green. I topped that with red bell pepper, cilantro, green onions and avocado. Then topped it all with a few tablespoons of left-over mole sauce from when we had tamales. Folded it up like a burrito. Made 4 burritos. I had two. Very yummy and satisfying.

Tonight we'll be having a large salad with crackers. I'll be making the crackers using the same recipe as before but using the left over pecan meal from when I made pecan milk the other day and only making half of the recipe.

Spicy Crackers

1 cup of pecan meal
1/4 cup sun dried tomatoes
1 red bell pepper
1 jalepeno
1 cup flax seed meal
1/4 cup lime juice
1/2 Tablespoon cumin powder
1/2 Tablespoon chili powder
1/2 Tablespoon Sea Salt (plus a sprinkling on top halfway through dehydrating)
1/4 cup cilantro and basil

Process all above. Spread on solid dehydrator sheet. Dehydrate at 105 for 6 hours. Remove from tray, score or cut into shapes, sprinkle with sea salt. Return to dehydrator on perforated tray and continue to dehydrate until crispy, between 4-6 hours.

Frugal Feeds | The Basics of Casseroles Made Easy with Eleven Recipes to Start With

Easy One Dish Meals

One dish meals make the dish cook with less hassle and create fewer dishes to clean up. The reason casseroles exist is to use up little bits of food that would likely otherwise get thrown out. Not only can they use up lots of odds and ends, they can taste really excellent. A few days after a taco meal you might find that you have scraps of meat, beans, cheese, tortillas and salsa--mix them into a casserole. After the third day of turkey around the holidays you might have turkey, sweet potatoes, corn, gravy and stuffing. Layer the turkey, potatoes and corn, pour the gravy over and use the stuffing to top it. It will be much more palatable than another plate of dried out leftovers. First let’s look at what proportions you use to make four servings.

Protein (2 Cups)        Starch (2 Cups)          Vegetable (2 Cups) 

(cooked)  

Chicken                         Brown Rice             Frozen Mixed Veggies

Turkey                          Potatoes                                         Carrots

Lean Beef                     Whole Wheat Pasta                            Peas

Pork                             Whole Wheat Bread               Green Beans

Fish                              Corn                         Frozen Asian Veggies

Clams                           Beans                                                 Kale

Oysters                        Peas                                               Spinach

Eggs                            Tortilla chips                            Bell Peppers

Low Fat Cheese          Quinoa                              Onions (Sauteed)

Ham                            Kamut                                          Tomatoes

Sausage                       Whole Grain Crackers        Celery (Sauteed)

Nuts                            Couscous                                  Green Peas 

Beans                           Corn Meal                     Edamame (Cooked)

Lamb                            Millet                                  Squash (Cooked)

Tofu                              Wild Rice                          Eggplant (Cooked)

Ground Meats                Sweet Potatoes             Mushrooms (Sauteed)

Buffalo                           Pumpkin                                            Zucchini 

Binder (2 Cups)                              Topping (1-2 Cups)

White Sauce #1                                        Bread Crumbs

White Sauce #2                                   Crushed Crackers

Brown Sauce                                              Ground Nuts

Mushroom Sauce                                  Low Fat Cheese

Cheese Sauce                                                  Parmesan

Mock Hollandaise                                             Croutons

Cream Gravy                                   French Fried Onions

Egg Sauce                                                  Potato Sticks

Veloute Sauce                                              Lean Bacon

Chaud-Froid Sauce                                     Raw Biscuits

Poulette Sauce                                       Raw Puff Pastry

Bechamel Sauce                                         Tortilla Chips

Onion Sauce                                                 Hasbrowns

Sauce Supreme                                              Tater Tots

Nut Sauce                                              Herbs and Nuts

Tomato Sauce                                   Herbs and Crumbs

               Pesto                                             Crumbs and Nuts               

You will want to take one item from each category, except the topping, add herbs and spices and layer in a medium-sized casserole dish. Cover with aluminum foil or a fitted lid. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Remove from oven, remove cover, and add the topping. Return to the oven without its cover for 10-20 minutes, or until the topping is lightly browned and crispy.

Now, here is the fun and challenging part. Not everything is going to taste right if you put them together so start off with things you are familiar with combining. I'll get you started:

Pizza Casserole: Browned and drained lean Sausage, Whole Wheat Pasta, 1/2 cup Onion, 1 cup Bell Peppers, 1/2 cup Mushrooms, Tomato Sauce, 1 cup low fat Mozzarella, 1/2 cup Parmesan. Add garlic, thyme, marjoram, pepper and salt. Add the mozzarella and Parmesan in the last 10-20 minutes. Serve with garlic bread.

Chicken and Dumpling Casserole: Cooked Chicken, Whole Wheat Pasta, 1 cup Peas, 1 cup Carrots, White Sauce #2 made with Low Sodium Chicken Broth, Raw Whole Grain Biscuits. Add 2 Tablespoons Dried Parsley, black pepper and salt. Add the raw biscuits in the last 10 minutes. Serve with corn.

Mexi-Casserole: 1 cup browned and drained lean Ground Beef, 1 cup Beans, Tortilla Chips or torn leftover tortilla shells, 1/2 cup Tomatoes, 1/2 cup Onions, 1 cup Bell Peppers, Tomato Sauce, Low Fat Cheese. Add garlic, 1 teaspoon cumin, oregano, chili powder, black pepper and salt. Add the cheese in the last 10-20 minutes. Serve with salad.

Noodle Bake: Browned and drained lean Ground Turkey, Whole Wheat Pasta, Mixed Vegetables, Low Fat  Cheese Sauce and Herbed Crumbs. Add garlic, onion powder, thyme, salt and pepper. Add the herbed crumbs in the last 10 minutes. Serve with steamed carrots.

Ham and Potatoes: Cooked lean Ham, Sliced potatoes, Peas, Cheese Sauce and Potato Sticks (like PikNik brand). Add pepper. Add the potato sticks in the last 10 minutes. Serve with broccoli.

Green Bean: Diced browned lean Pork, Wild Rice, 1 1/2 cups Green Beans, 1/2 cup minced Bell Peppers, White Sauce #2, French's Fried Onions. Add salt. Add fried onions in the last ten minutes. Serve with potatoes.

Lasagne: Browned and drained lean Italian Sausage, Whole Wheat Lasagne noodles boiled and drained, 1/2 cup Spinach, 1/2 cup mushrooms, 1/2 cup onions, 1/2 cup sliced, sauteed eggplant, Tomato sauce, Mozzarella cheese. Add thyme, oregano, marjoram, garlic, onion powder, pepper and fennel seed. Add Mozzarella in the last 20 minutes. Serve with salad.


Stroganoff Casserole:  Sliced, browned lean Beef, Whole Wheat Noodles, 1 cup Mushrooms, 1 cup Onions, White Sauce #1, Parsley Herbed Bread Crumbs. Add garlic and salt. Add herbed bread crumbs in the last ten minutes. Serve with green beans.

Eggs Benedict Casserole: Boiled Sliced Eggs, Toasted, Sliced, Lightly Buttered, Whole Wheat Sourdough Bread, Tomatoes, Mock Hollandaise Sauce, Lean Crumbled Bacon. Layer toast on bottom, top with layered tomatoes and eggs, add sauce. Add bacon in last five minutes.

Pilaf: 1/3 cup browned and drained Ground Lamb, 1/3 cup Almonds and 1/3 cup Pistachio Nuts, Couscous, 2 cups peas, 1 cup Spinach, 1 cup Carrots, Onion Sauce, Herbed Pine Nuts. Add 1 teaspoon cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice, 1/2 cup raisins. Add herbed pine nuts in the last ten minutes.

Chicken Pot Pie: Cooked lean Chicken, Brown Rice or Barley, Mixed Vegetables, White Sauce #2 made with Chicken Broth, Raw Puff Pastry. Add dried parsley, onion powder, salt and pepper. Line the bottom of the casserole with puff pastry, making sure that it comes up the sides of the casserole and drapes slightly over the edge. Fill with mixture. Top with puff pastry. Roll edges inward to seal the top puff pastry. Make a small rectangular cut into center of puff pastry top.

Okay, so now you have some casseroles to play with. Try each as they are and then the next time change it up. If it calls for ham, try fish. If it calls for chicken, try tofu. Mix it up however sounds good. The first few times you do this it will probably just taste okay. As you get used to making casseroles you will start to find some combinations that are really good. Play away!

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.

Frugal Feeds | Delicious French Toast Sandwiches

Now that you have the hang of French Toast, lets take it past breakfast. First up, keep the custard dip on the sweet side. But, instead of serving with powdered sugar or syrup, add a slice of lean ham and a slice of Gruyere between the still hot French Toast, or place a slice of each on the open sandwich and broil briefly to warm. This is your basic sweet Monte Cristo.

Now, lets change it up. This time, when you make the custard dip, don't add brown sugar or vanilla. Prepare the French Toast as usual on the griddle. When all are cooked, remove from griddle and turn griddle down to low. Spread a slice of lean ham with mustard and place a slice of low fat cheese on top. Place the ham/mustard/cheese on a slice of the French Toast and top with another slice of French Toast. Place back on the griddle. Put a lid over it and cook until the cheese is melted--less than five minutes. This is Croque-Monsieur.

You have two basic recipes here. Do them a few times and then try making them your own.

For the Monte Cristo try adding any of these to the sandwich--turkey, low fat breakfast sausage, different low fat cheeses, fat free cream cheese, cranberry sauce, preserves, no meat, several lean meats, a fried egg, apple slices, pear slices, cooked berries, cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, allspice, or a sweet mustard.

For the Croque-Monsieur try adding any of these to the custard dip--grated cheese, different mustards (without vinegar or lemon in them or the custard will curdle) or powdered mustard, different herbs, different spices, some beer or some white wine. Or just prepare it as it is and add different lean meats, low fat cheeses, A-1 sauce, Worcestershire sauce, tomatoes, grilled onions, grilled peppers or sauteed mushrooms to the cooked French Toast slices.

So, you have a lot of variations now available to you. Lets think this through. You go to your kitchen and you have some stinky cheese, some dried up ham slices, stale bread, an egg and some milk. Sounds pretty depressing for lunch--but if you make a custard dip, dip your bread, cook it, put the stinky cheese on first, then the ham, top with another slice of French toast, cover with a lid and let it steam under that lid for less than 5 minutes you will have a delicious sandwich from things that you would have normally thrown away.

So, next time you see a tablespoon of preserves in the jar, now you have a plan for it. That bit of sauteed veggies that isn't enough for a whole dish? Make a Croque-Monsieur. The great thing about these sandwiches is that you can make different sandwiches for each member of your family, have each serving look similar, and be using up small amounts of odd leftovers--and they will thank you for such a fabulously yummy meal. :0)

Frugal Feeds | French Toast Five Ways

Using up stale bread is a staple of frugal living. So, to continue on yesterdays theme I am going to continue talking about what to do with that left over bread.

French Toast is broken down into a few simple components--

1. Bread that is unpalatable as it is.
2. Something that makes the texture of that bread palatable.
3. Something that makes the taste of that bread palatable.

The bread does not need to be French Bread. It can be any bread. But what makes French Bread make great French Toast is the chewy crust and airy, absorbent body. When thinking about turning that stack of unpalatable bread into French Toast consider the breads current components. Then consider what you will want to do to modify that bread so that everyone in your household is not only willing to eat the bread, but actually eagerly anticipating its yumminess.

The Basics--Traditional French Toast Custard Dip
To moisten your stale bread you need a custard dip. The traditional dip consists of egg, milk, vanilla and sugar. You can enhance this a million ways and modify it with different qualities of the basic ingredients. Using cream or skim milk makes significant differences. Using egg whites, tofu or bananas in place of the eggs makes a huge difference in texture and flavor. Pure vanilla, artificial vanilla, vanilla beans, orange flavor, almond flavor, no flavor--all result in totally different tastes. Brown sugar, syrup, stevia, all make a difference. Really, once you learn the basic custard dip you can make it as different as your imagination allows--but take it a step or two at a time and see what you like. Changing too many things too fast could result in recipes that don't work very well. Experiment, but do it a few things at a time.

My Version of the Basic Traditional Custard--For 8 thick slices

2 Eggs, beaten
1 cup 2% Milk
2 Tablespoons Brown Sugar
1 Tablespoon Pure Vanilla Extract


So, lets look at a few different types of common bread and how we want to modify them:

Day old French Bread--Slice at a diagonal into 1 inch thick ovals. Use a straightforward custard mix. Serve with Honey, Maple or Fruit Sauce. French Bread with the custard is traditional and tastes great. No need to doll it up.

Day old Sour Dough Bread--Slice as above or, if it is pre-sliced sandwich style, consider whether the slices are too large and if so, cut in halves. Sour Dough is naturally tangy so you are going to want to make that work to your advantage. You can do the traditional custard but it will just taste good enough. Lets make it great by removing the milk from the custard and replacing that with half apple juice and half apple sauce. A bit of cinnamon is nice too. Now when your family eats this they won't need any sugar or syrup and will enjoy a Green Apple French Toast.

Stale Plain Jane Bread--If the bread is soft or soggy toast in the oven for 10 minutes or until dry. Then, modify the traditional custard by reducing the milk by 1/3 and adding 1 pureed ripe banana. The more over-ripe the banana the better the flavor, so use up the one that looks the most unappetizing. Add a pinch of nutmeg. Serve with Maple syrup and toasted pecans. Creates Maple Pecan Banana French Toast.

Stale Wheat Bread--Modify the traditional custard by reducing the milk by 1/3 and adding 1/2 cup pureed berries. I puree my berries with a stick blender. If there are a lot of seeds, like blackberry or raspberry puree would create, then strain through a wire mesh strainer. Creates Berry French Toast.

Stale Raisin Bread or other moist sweetened bread--Eliminate the brown sugar from your traditional custard and reduce the milk by half and add cinnamon. Makes Cinnamon Raisin French Toast.


Cooking it--
I prefer to use my large griddle and set the temp at 350 or medium. I set up the work area in an assembly line. Stack of bread next to bowl of custard next to the griddle. When the griddle has reached temperature I butter it lightly. Then I dunk the bread, roll it around in the custard and then put it right on the griddle. I repeat until all 8 pieces are on the griddle. I cook them until they are well browned on both sides and no longer steaming. The lack of steam indicates that the interior of the toast is fully cooked. This can happen very quickly with sandwich sliced bread or may take quite a while for thick, not too dry, bread. Adjust your temperature accordingly. If you think the center will cook quickly, you can raise the temp a bit. If you think the center will cook slowly, lower the temp. That way the exterior can brown and not burn.

French Toast freezes just great too. When it is cooled just set it on a cookie sheet in the freezer for the day. That night place into freezer bags, label and close. If your freezer might give it a strange taste because of frost in the space you can also just put straight into the freezer bag, foregoing the cookie sheet but the pieces may stick together and you will get ice crystals inside the bag. To eat just place in a 275 degree oven for 15 minutes or until warmed through. (You can also microwave them but the texture isn't great.)