Saturday, January 26, 2008

Mmm Cheap!

I cooked ribs last night and was not pleased; I think they came out tough, despite the fact my family practically fought over them. Normally I let ribs simmer for close to two hours in sauce before throwing them in the oven or broiler to get nice and crispy. Last night I was rushed though. You can't rush a good meal, dammit. Oh well.

Despite the fact I haven't been posting as such I've been doing very well on the budget I set for myself for the groceries in January. I haven't kept the closest track but if my estimates are correct I'll be surpassing it by about $50 for a grand total of less than $275. Not bad at all when you have six mouths to feed. Last time I posted I gave this list of cheap eats:

Split pea soup and biscuits
Morro (rice and beans together) with roasted chicken
Chicken Noodle Soup
Ramen and Onigiri
Yaniqueques (fried bread) BLTs
Rice and beans with tostones (fried plantains)
Shrimp alfredo
Lentil stew
Home fries with Scrambled Eggs
Oxtail (a treat) with white rice and beans
Penne with Marinara and romano cheese
Stuffed shells

The italicized items are the ones I actually got around to cooking. Not bad! Sorry I don't have pictures of all of them. Some days I sit down with every intention of going back to photograph food only to find empty pots in the sink. Whoops.

My family sat around last night telling me what they wanted me to tackle in the upcoming week. Here are the suggestions so far:

Spaghetti and Meatballs
Rosemary and Garlic Cornish Hens (a fall back I haven't made in a while)
Beef Stew
Soft Tacos
Chicken Empanadas
Salmon and Rice Pilaf
Lasagna
Fettuccine Alfredo
Chicken Parmesan
Black Bean Chili with corn chips
Gumbo

A lot of Italian and saucy stuff there. I think it's the cold. Some new things are on there too; I've never made gumbo before! I'm going to attempt this recipe someone told me about and go from there. Here's hoping at least one person in my household likes it.

Until next time,
<3 Jess

1 comment:

Bakin Rapscallion said...

I bet there's nothin' cheap about the taste of those meals.