Frugal Cooking

Now that Halloween is (almost) over, what are you going to do with all that candy? You could just put it in the pantry until you feel like a treat, but that would be boring. There are lots of ways to use that candy that’s better than just shoveling it in.

I just read that McDonalds had a big third quarter (2008) that’s being attributed to the economic downturn. Apparently, consumers are jumping on the frugal food bandwagon and think they’re being frugal by eating at McDonalds. Well, they very well may be. It really depends why they choose to go to McDonalds. True frugalites, frugalists and frugalistas know that frugality is much more wholistic than just saving a few bucks on a single meal.

Ever since I made potato leek soup with cauliflower instead of potatoes, I’ve been dying to try cauliflower with different vegetables to see how it would turn out. I tried asparagus and ended up with a winner! It doesn’t get much better than this- low fat, low carb and delicious!

This is a delicious Romanian eggplant salad that is amazingly simple and even more delicious. You won’t believe the flavor you get from just three ingredients. The key is in the specific but simple preparation.

I can’t say enough good things about beans. Beans are cheap, healthy, tasty and I love beans. While the most frugal beans start dried and are usually soaked overnight before boiling for a couple of hours. If you’re trying to put together a meal for pennies a serving, dried beans are a good place to start. Sometimes inspiration hits me and I can’t wait 24 hours for dried beans to be edible. That’s when I turn to canned beans for the following stew recipe.

I can’t tell you how many times I find myself with a bunch of fresh vegetables and no idea what to do with them. I love to browse the farmer’s market and pick up whatever looks good. The challenge then is how to take those random items and make something good. I turned cauliflower and leek into an amazing soup that I just had to share with you.