As a freelance writer, entrepreneur, aspiring anthropologist, traveler, homemaker and foodphile, I write and have written articles about meal planning, grocery budgets and culinary chaos around the block and around the globe. This blog is used as a place to store my past work and create new for easy retrieval and to share.
Serves 4
Ingredients:
Directions:
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Skin and wash www.geoduckrecipes.com/clean-geoduck.html
Serves 4
Leftover Caribbean roast chicken is the star of this presentation. For additional zing, soften diced hot peppers in the olive oil that you will mix with the mayo sauce mixture.
http://www.examiner.com/x-12395-Seattle-Budget-Meals-Examiner~y2009m8d9
Ingredients:
Directions:
Serves 4
This traditional dish is served whenever possible and my husband’s family from the U.S. Virgin Islands never tires of it. Easy to understand once you take a taste! This dish may be made vegetarian style by omitting the pork. Also, when using Sofrito, it should be noted that the ‘meat’ bits in it are really soy bits.
Ingredients:
Directions:
2. In a pot or deep pan heat the oil.
3. Add garlic, cooking until just tender.
4. Add sofrito and racaito and let fry 2 min.
5. Add tomato sauce and let fry 2 min.
6. Add Sazon seasoning packet.
7. Stir in beans and cook until heated through.
8. Serve over rice.
Tip: If you want to create “pegao”, crispy rice that sticks to the bottom of the pot, add oil to the rice and let it fry a little while longer after it is finished, about 2 minutes.
Hanging around the kitchen with my sweet and talented mother-in-law #1, I’ve picked up some tasty ideas to spice up many meals, especially roast chicken. This recipe not only yields a great tasting bird, but also makes a great stock when the bones are boiled.
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Directions:
I lived in Italy for five years. I spent a lot of that time in the kitchens of the mothers of friends and also worked in a restaurant both in the kitchen and on the floor as a cameriera or waitress (not as a Carabinieri -military police as I mistakenly told everyone the first few months). One big thing I learned is that U.S. American red sauce is much more complicated than it has to be! In Italy the idea is to (usually) pare down and celebrate just a few basic flavors.
This is the most basic recipe. From this recipe add whatever you want. Just make sure to only keep it to a maximum of 4 major flavors.
Ingredients:
Directions:
Tip: when tomatoes are cheap and plentiful at the end of the summer, I buy in bulk and make a lot of sauce!
Tip: I don’t know where I heard or read this, but I found it to be true. The acid in tomatoes stops the cooking process for many ingredients, so I either add the tomatoes last or cook the some of the other ingredients on the side and add in later.
Tip: Do not add fresh, soft herbs like basil or parsley until the end as they will turn black.
Serves 6
“In a pig’s ear I’ll eat that!” you say? Well, you have taken the first step and opened this article, therefore you must be interested. Give me just a few moments of your time to tempt your taste buds with something just a little bit different, yet also very familiar. Remember that home cooks all over the world share the same dilemma; feeding themselves and others on limited income and resources. When we look to each other for ideas, we expand our menus.
Souse or head cheese dates back to the Middle Ages and is served sliced cold. It is another example of waste-free budget cooking. I use ears and tails since they are cleaner and only require one-time cooking. With other parts of the animal it is necessary to boil the meat until tender, discard the water and boil again in clean water.
I had something similar to this soup when I was pregnant with my first son in South Carolina. My husband’s uncle made this with a wry smile as I sat and watched. Little did he know the kinds of things I ate around the world and was looking forward to his meal. They politely brought home KFC chicken for me to eat, but I never touched a mouthful. No-siree, I ate bowl after spicy bowl to their amazement and joy.
“Ok, what does it really taste like?” you ask. Well, it tastes like a gelatinous piece of pork in spicy gravy. It is a cross between Caribbean souse and Filipino adobo. The only way to really understand its flavor is to try it yourself.
Ingredients:
3 lbs pig ears and tails combined, ears sliced into smaller pieces
6 C water
5 cloves garlic, chopped
1 medium onion, diced
1 carrot, diced
2 celery stalks, diced
1 green pepper, diced
1 Scotch bonnet pepper, other hot chili pepper or several shakes of Tabasco
1/4 C fresh lime juice
2 T olive oil
1 packet adobo seasoning
1/4 C apple cider vinegar
Salt and pepper to taste
Directions:
In a deep pot over medium heat, just cover the ears, onion, garlic and hot pepper with water.
Add vinegar
Cook about 2 hours or until ears and tails are soft and gelatinous.
In the pot, sauté pepper, carrot, and celery in olive oil over medium-high heat until tender.
Add ears and adobo packet cooking for about 5 minutes.
Add 6 C water and simmer for 15 minutes.
Take off of heat, add lime and serve.
Written by Lori St. Kitts July 13, 2013
Eggrolls, deep-fried meat, seafood or vegetable-filled packets of whisper-thin dough were originally eaten as tea-time snacks in China during the Spring after Chinese New Year. This is also why they are often called, spring rolls (1).
Eggrolls do not need to be deep-fried to be delicious. They may be made a bit healthier by oven-frying. Set your oven to 400 degrees. Place on a cookie sheet and spray with cooking spray. Bake for about 20-25 minutes, until golden brown.
Mix and match the wrappers, fillings and sauces below to create your own style of eggroll. Filling and delicious, you only need to add a salad or vegetable side to make them a main course that will soon be a go-to favorite.
Wrappers:
Filling:
Sauce:
Source (1): The Thousand Recipe Chinese Cookbook, Gloria Bley Miller
Written by Lori St. Kitts September 3, 2009
My family loves this night because it is so easy to prepare and so hands on – literally. It is a fun way to enjoy a meal together and can also be a great ‘bar’ to serve at a buffet. This is my ingredient list and is just a suggestion that can be altered with whatever you like and fits your budget.
Written by Lori St. Kitts January 9, 2011
Substitute expensive ingredients with those that are less expensive found in your local Seattle stores.
Written by Lori St. Kitts December 7, 2009
On a cold winter’s day, nothing warms a Seattleite quite like a steaming bowl of hot and sour soup.
Anthro Darling 