SmittenKitchen.com

A new friend directed me to this site today, and I have to tell you honestly . . . I’m in love.
She directed me first to the Crispy Black Bean Taco, which sounds too easy to be as tasty as it looks. From there it didn’t take long to find the Whole Lemon Tart,  Artichoke-Olive [...]

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Strawberry Frozen Yogurt

We have strawberries coming out of our ears right now. Yesterday we picked 10 pounds of fresh, sweet, amazing strawberries (yes, literally 10 pounds) and now I have to figure out what to do with all of them! My 3 year old has been eating them like they are going out of style, her face [...]

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Welsh Rarebit

I have such wonderful childhood memories of Welsh Rarebit. The frozen Stouffer’s variety, which my mother would boil on the stovetop in the pre-microwave days, was definitely one of my favorite meals. So I honestly expected my children to be thrilled when I made Welsh Rarebit from scratch the other night. What could be better [...]

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Brown Sugar Granola

1/2 cup margarine (1 stick)
1 cup raw brown sugar
1/4 cup water
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 cups rolled oats
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup dried fruit (optional)
1/2 cup nuts or seeds (optional)
In a large 4 quart saucepan melt the margarine, sugar and water together. Stir it well and let it simmer for a few minutes (2 or 3 minutes should [...]

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Yogurt!

I made yogurt! Seriously. I made it. From scratch! In my crockpot! This is crazy cool. And soooooo easy!

Take a half-gallon of organic whole milk, not super-pasteurized, but pasteurized will work just fine. Pour it into the crockpot and heat on the LOW setting for 2.5 hours.
Turn off the crockpot but leave it covered on the counter [...]

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Hunger Action Week – Day 4

Let me say right now, I knew in advance we were going to blow the budget big time on this one. We went camping. And there are certain things we eat when we go camping – really unhealthy, junk food things like chips and dip and trail mix made with M&Ms candy. And I could [...]

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Hunger Action Week – Day 3

Breakfast:
Homemade raisin biscuits ($2.50 for 13 biscuits)
yogurt ($1)
Coffee with half and half ($1)
Milk ($.75)
Lunch:
Leftovers for me (free!)
PB&J on homemade bread for R & the kids ($1.50)
oranges ($1)
Snacks:
leftover raisin biscuits from breakfast
Chai tea ($.25)
2 “bubbly” water ($.60)
Diet Coke ($.83)
Dinner:
Spanikopita ($10.77)
Corona ($1.25)
leftover brownies from yesterday
Total: $21.45
Cutting it a bit close on the budget, but the Spanikopita makes [...]

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Spanikopita

I love Spanikopita. This is one of the first dishes I made, back in college, that really made me feel like I knew how to cook! I’ve been making it ever since and it is always a big hit. For parties I fold it into little phyllo triangles but for family dinners it is easier [...]

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Other bloggers on Hunger Action Week

I’m a little intimidated by a lot of these blogs. Inspired, but intimidated. I’m not a culinary expert by any means. I wouldn’t even call myself a “foodie.” I’m just a mom trying to feed my family without breaking the bank. . .
Check them out – I think you will enjoy seeing how everyone is [...]

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Thinking about Hunger Action Week on Day 3

Yesterday was an incredibly difficult day for me. F. was sick, LG was whiny, R. was at work. And all my plans went out the window. I was ready to pull my hair out. Because the thing is, this budgeting requires planning in order to work. At least it does for me. And the stress [...]

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