Beans: A Love/Hate Relationship

For as long as I can remember, I have disliked beans. Much to my mother's chagrin, if I even suspected beans might be a part of the dish set before me, I quickly went on a search and destroy mission before they could ruin the rest of my food.

This continued into adulthood. Enter my quest for a frugal, more natural lifestyle. I remember the day my relationship with beans took a turn for the better. I was reading The Tightwad Gazette, aka the frugalista bible, and there it was in print: You will never be able to hit a rock-bottom grocery budget unless you incorporate dried beans into your diet. (My paraphrase)

If anything could convince me to give beans another try, this was it! That statement hit me right in the pocket book!

I started with lentils because they are so small and tend to take on the flavor and the consistency of whatever food you combine them with. I hit a roadblock, however, when I couldn't think of anything else to do with them besides putting them in soup. When an occasional idea did come to mind, I would end up not wanting to mess with re-hydrating the beans (even through this isn't that difficult with lentils) and would end up just leaving them out. Don't laugh. I know that re-hydrating lentils is no big deal, but you have to understand that my brain is still looking for any little excuse to forego those little buggers!

As I began reading about homemade convenience foods, I saw that a number of families create their own "canned" beans buy cooking dried beans in bulk and freezing them so that they can throw them into whatever is on the stove without any prior planning. I decided to give this a try by following directions I found here. I am looking forward to adding my pre-cooked beans into not only soups, but also skillet dishes, casseroles, and ground beef. This will stretch and add nutrition to many of the common meals we fix. What's not to love about the convenience of canned beans at the price of dried?

Do you like beans? How do you prepare them? What foods do you like to freeze and have on hand?

Sweet Pretzel Recipe

My friend Heather gave me a baggie of these sweet pretzels for Christmas, and I, despite the fact that I am not a pretzel lover, LOVED them. In fact, I could have eaten them all in one sitting if I had let myself.

A few days ago when I was looking for something to make for a Sunday School party, I stumbled upon this recipe in my Taste of Home cookbook for what looked like the same thing. They taste very much the same as the pretzels Heather made and were a big success at the party!

Here is the recipe:

Sweet Pretzel Nuggets

1 package (16 ounces) sourdough pretzel nuggets (I just used traditional pretzels).

2/3 cup canola oil

1/3 cup sugar

1 to 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1. Place pretzels in a microwave-safe bowl. In a small bowl, combine oil, sugar and cinnamon; pour over pretzels and toss to coat.

2. Microwave, uncovered, on high for 1-1/2 minutes; stir. Microwave 2-3 minutes longer, stirring after each minute, or until oil is absorbed. Cool to room temperature. Store in an airtight container.

This is a delicious frugal snack that takes just a few minutes to throw together. All of us in the picture below highly recommend it!

Frugal Comfort Food

Sometimes when I get home, I don't feel like cooking. Correction: that happens more than sometimes. My old standby used to be a soup and sandwich, but that gets old. In the last few months, I have discovered something that is quick to fix and comforting to eat, yet tastes like it comes straight from Cracker Barrel (or close, anyway).

Amy's Hash:

Scrub and slice one medium potato.

Chop 1/4 a small onion.

Fry the onion and the potato in oil or butter.

When potatoes are tender, cut up a slice or two of lunch meat ham and add to skillet.

Brown the entire mixture and remove from skillet.

Top with shredded cheese and chives and cover.

Fry two eggs over medium in the same skillet used above.

Place eggs on top of potato mixture.

Slather with ketchup.

Devour.

Yummmmmmmmm!

Besides the taste, another thing this meal has going for it is its versatility. I enjoy it for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.

You know I wouldn't leave you hanging without discussing the cost-effectiveness of my recipe, which happens to be very easy on the wallet. Each ingredients adds up to just a few cents.

I know I should have a picture and a cost breakdown, but I just don't feel like being that detailed at the moment.

Yummy Family History

Who knew family history could be so...delicious?

Some time ago I borrowed my mom's recipe box so that I could copy some favorites from my childhood. Tucked in the cards was a recipe I didn't recall ever having eaten. It was called "rice and curry," and since I like the taste of Indian food, I wrote it down. When I asked my parents about it, I found out that it was my great-grandmother Elsie (Genske) Meyer's recipe. Because she was a German, I was surprised to find curry attributed to her. It was then that my dad reminded me about Grandma Elsie's sister and brother-in-law, Maude and Floyd Heinly, who were missionaries to India. My dad conjectures that Elsie's recipe was either given or influenced by the Heinlys as a result of their ministry in India.

And why do I not remember eating this incredible skillet of deliciousness growing up? While my dad has fond memories of this meal, my mom is not a fan of curry. She says it too strong a flavor for her liking. Seth and I, being huge fans of heavily-spiced cuisine, LOVE our new discovery! I do believe it will become a staple at our house!

I truly enjoy delving into my family's history. The truth is, genealogy is so much more than birth and death dates. The "in-between" times, like dinner at the family table, are the real jewels.

Recipe for Grandma Elsie's Rice and Curry:

3 Tbsp. Crisco

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. sugar

2 tsp. curry powder

2 Tbsp. flour blended with 1/2 c. meat stock or rich milk

1 c. chopped onion

1 lb. ground meat

1 c. diced tomatoes

1 c. diced potatoes

1/2 c. beans, peas, corn (we think carrots would be nice, also)

Directions: Grease pan with Crisco. Add salt, sugar and curry powder. Heat. Add onions and fry until brown, stirring often. Remove onions. Put meat in pan and fry until brown. Add onions back in. Add tomatoes and potatoes and cook until tender. Add beans, peas or corn. Add stock/milk. Serve over rice. (We mixed the rice into the skillet and stirred it all together).

What is your favorite family recipe?

*Sorry about the picture...it looked better before Seth and I devoured it!

Granola

I very rarely buy cold breakfast cereal for two reasons. 1) You guessed it, it's just too darn expensive per ounce; 2) It doesn't fill me up, leaving me starving a half hour after eating it. As a result, I have come up with some breakfast alternatives that I consider superior in cost and quality.

One of those alternatives is granola. In this post I would like to share my recipe, which I collected from the book Miserly Moms by Jonni McCoy. I usually make a double batch and it lasts a long time.

Ingredients:

3/4 c. brown sugar

1/3 c. concentrated apple juice from frozen concentrate (I just use apple sauce, which is a more versatile ingredient, and it tastes fine).

1/2 c. nonfat dry milk

1/3 c. honey

5 c. quick-cooking oats (the regular kind work fine, too)

2 T. cinnamon

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 c. dried fruit (I have tried raisins and cranberries)

1/2 c. nuts (I have tried peanuts, pecans, and almonds)

*The last 2 ingredients definitely up the price of this cereal. I find peanuts and raisins to be the most affordable, but sometimes I leave the fruit and nuts out altogether if I don't have any on hand. It still tastes good without, especially over yogurt.

Process:

"Mix sugar, juice, dry milk, and honey in saucepan and heat over medium heat only until sugar dissolves. Combine dry ingredients and fruit in mixing bowl. Pour sugar mixture slowly over dry mixture and blend well. Place on cookie sheet and bake at 375 for 10 to 20 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes." (My oven runs hot, so I turn the oven down a little and stir every 5-7 minutes.)

"Options: Be creative by adding peanuts, sunflower seeds, coconut, sesame seeds, peanut butter, or whatever else your family enjoys."

"Cost analysis (1 pound):

Homemade = $1.50

Store-bought = $3.29"

Here it is fresh out of the oven. Yum!!!

Homemade Laundry Detergent

Last night, I made my own laundry detergent for the first time. I am very pleased with the results so far. My clothes had a pleasant soapy smell when I took them out of the washer and then had no scent coming out of the washer; they just smelled clean! They felt fairly soft, even without fabric softener, and had no residue or stiffness as was the case with my purchased detergent. Here is the recipe:

Homemade Laundry Detergent:

• 1 bar Fels-Naptha laundry soap (I have read you can use most any bar of soap except for "beauty bars" with lots of lotion and additives).
• 1 cup Arm and Hammer Super Washing Soda
• 1 cup 20 Mule Team Borax
• (Some recipes I have found suggest using 1/2 cup Oxyclean, especially for whites; I may try this if I feel the whites are not maintaining their brightness over time)

1. In a large bowl mix together the washing soda and Borax.

2. Place your shredder disk in your food processor. Shred the bar of soap in the processor. Remove shredding disk and place the metal blade in the bowl. You can also grate the soap with a hand grater.

3. Add about 1/2 cup of the dry mixture into the FP bowl with the shredded soap. Process until the texture of sand.

4. Dump the soap mixture into the remaining dry mixture and combine thoroughly.

5. Use 1 heaping tablespoon per full load, 2 for heavily soiled loads. (Some recipes say 2 tbsp. per full load, but I thought 1 worked fine for my full load of jeans and t-shirts). Store in a yogurt container or large butter tub.

*As this is a compilation of many things I have read, there may be some variation depending on your water hardness and preferences.

*Be aware that this does look strange because the soap doesn't completely blend in with the powders.

*Another useful tip I have discovered is that vinegar works great for a fabric softener and also keeps your washer clean and deodorized.

This recipe is an incredible savings per load. I haven't done any figuring but it is something like between 1 and 2 cents per load. The Simple Dollar Blog did a cost breakdown and found that commercial laundry detergent is 10 times more expensive. I'm actually surprised that more people don't do this; it's pretty easy!

My only question is this: IS IT SAFE TO USE MY FOOD PROCESSOR FOR LAUNDRY SOAP MAKING AND FOR FOOD AS LONG AS I THOROUGHLY CLEAN AND SOAK IT? I know Borax can be toxic. I would appreciate comments on this.

Food Processor Pizza Dough

I found a recipe for food processor pizza dough in Amy Dacyczyn's The Complete Tightwad Gazette. Seth and I have fixed pizza using this dough several times and have been impressed each time with the great consistency and taste of it. Even if you are busy, you have time to make this recipe! It's so easy! Let me know what you think.

Ingredients:
1/2 to 3/4 c. warm water (105-115 degrees F)
1 pkg. (I Tbsp.) dry yeast
1 tsp. sugar
2 c. flour
1 Tbsp. Vegetable Oil
1/2 tsp. salt

Directions:
Combine 1/4 c. of the water with the yeast and sugar. Stir to dissolve the yeast, and let stand until bubbly, about 5 minutes. Put the flour, oil and salt into the bowl and process about 5 seconds with a steel blade. Add the yeast mixture to the flour mixture, and process about 10 seconds, or until blended. Turn on the processor and drizzle just enough of the remaining water through the feed tube so the dough forms a ball that cleans the sides of the bowl. Process so the ball turns around about 25 times. Put the dough ball onto a 14-inch greased pizza pan or lg. cookie sheet (we use a pizza stone, so we just put the dough ball in a greased mixing bowl and cover with plastic wrap). Let stand 10 minutes. Pat dough out so that it covers the pan, leaving a ridge on the edges. Spread with sauce and add toppings.