Angel Food Ministries

Check em out yourself folks, They offer food packages at incredibly low prices. There are no income requirements or restrictions of any kind and they accept food stamps. Chances are there is a host site near where you live.

Shameless plug for a good organization.

They even have a allergy free food package Amanda!

Much love to my friends.

Split in Half-in theory

Vegan with a Vengeance : Over 150 Delicious, Cheap, Animal-Free Recipes That RockThis week I'll be doing something very simple. I filmed a boring home made video demonstrating that the value of soda is the same per equal unit as the value of milk.

 You may ask why I would do such a thing. Well, my friend Chuck sent me a link for an article about  a typical family having trouble with grocery bills. One of the claims the mother made was that soda was cheaper than milk. So I broke it down for you all...stay tuned next week when I debunk the myth of veggies, are they budget busters or is that b.s?

4th of July BBQ

This week in honor of 4th of July I decided to try BBQ.

I was limited because we don't own a grill, but I did decide I could try pulled pork after looking over the menu of a "famous" local BBQ joint. The BBQ place sells the lunch plate for eight bucks and offers two sides, drink on the side.

First thing I'll do is break down how much I spent on ingredients:

boneless pork ribletts-4.95
1 head cabbage-.69
1 bag organic carrots-1.59
1 onion-.25
1 can tomato paste-.79
1pkg buns-2.50
1 can beef broth -.85
1 lb spinach-.79
4 ears corn-.80
1 gallon tea-2.50
misc-2.50

Those are the ingredients for pulled pork sandwiches, corn , spinach, cole slaw and ice tea to drink. Some of the ingredients can be used more than once for a family of four. It takes some and discipline, but you can plan around the extra ingredients. For instance, the hamburger buns will come in handy for mushroom burgers later in the week. The other half of the cabbage is a nice side  with other meals. I only needed about three carrots.And we have never had a whole gallon of tea in one sitting. Good gravy, what that would do to my kidneys. OK ,so figuring a few of the ingredients are used for other meals the price for the whole meal for four people came to....$11.29. Man, there where a lot of left overs! Had the same thing for lunch for four the next day.

Here's how I did it. It's easy to do in the crock pot which is a real time saver. I took the pork and a quarter cup water and cooked it for several hours on high by themselves. Next I mixed the tomato paste,  half a can beef broth, some molasses(about a tablespoon), some brown sugar, eighth of a cup apple cider vinegar, salt and pepper and threw them all in the crock pot. While that was cooking I made cole slaw but finely dicing cabbage, onions and carrots together and adding enough mayo to cover and a splash of vinegar. I threw that into the fridge to chill and then took a chill break myself. When the pork was pull apart tender I turned the crock pot to low and heated up some spinach with a little bit of onion and a left over piece of bacon.  The corn is easy enough, either boil it up or roast it shuck and all for a good half hour in the oven.

When the BBQ was cooked through I pulled it apart with a fork,  and mixed it well with the sauce. I served the sandwiches Memphis style which apparently means putting the cole slaw on the whole messy sandwich. I'm thinking I shoud name this sandwich the "kitchen sink sandwich because you should eat it over the sink with your sleeves rolled  up! The sides and drink you know about, not that exciting, but another success I think. I tried this time to give more information and I hope it helps.

Happy healthy cooking all! Have a wonderful 4th!

Just a bit about me...

Food, Inc.

I am a 42 year old home maker, full time student, and mother of two.

Just like you I don't have a lot of time on my hands. In between classes, chores, girl scout meetings, and homework I have to squeeze in time to make a few meals for the family. Since I have a two year old I have an extra selective eater in the house. I am fortunate to have a nine year old who is excited to try new things. She asked me to teach her to cook this summer which dovetails very neatly with this little project.

I also imagine that my budget is similar to most folks. That is, it is tight as a drum. We don't have money for "extras" like health care or mortgage payments.

I am always amused by well meaning budget advice that involves cutting things that haven't existed in this house since long before the recession. Cut out going to the movies? No problem! Did that like five years ago. Cancel cable, presto! It's gone as of.....2007. We have a cell phone month-to-month so we don't pay for long distance. We have the cheapest Internet plan out there. Anybody who knows us knows we aren't stashing jewels or fur coats in the mattresses. We live simply and cheaply.

Having deficits of money and health care are excellent reasons to be very careful about what we eat. Eating healthy saves on medical bills and it saves on grocery bills. That is the hope anyway. Tune in and see for yourself....

Spaghetti Dinner

Great Depression Cooking with Clara (season 1)

OK, my first meal comparison:

I cooked a pound of spaghetti noodles, topped with a gourmet sauce on sale for $2.50 and Parmesan cheese. Oddly, the thing that drove the price up was the four ounces of organic beef. The thing is, the take home message from one of those inspiring documentaries was ; Don't eat meat unless you like the taste of poop. Really the way meat is processed and handled can not be described on a pg blog.

On the side I warmed a loaf of plain french bread and gave it a roasted pepper and garlic spread made from scratch. I also served salad with vinaigrette dressing and sweet tea to drink. There was no high fructose corn syrup or artificial sweetener in any of the bottled products. The dressing did contain soy bean oil, but, baby steps.

The only ingredients listed in the sauce were tomatoes, olive oil, salt, garlic, onions, mushrooms and wine. The sweet tea contained tea, water, and pure cane sugar.

My total cost for the food and drinks was $11.05

I compared with a national Italian chain known for cheap food and big portions. For a similar meal minus the bread the total cost for spaghetti, salad and drinks was $33.88 for a family of four. They might throw in free bread sticks, but don't count on it.

So far, success! You can see from the picture there was plenty to eat. And before you ask, yes there was a fourth plate, but the babys food doesnt look as pretty on her plain plastic plate. I even had left overs that will be perfect reheated for dinner before school tomorrow.

My husbands only comment when I asked him if he could taste a difference was :

"I can't taste poop or corn, but otherwise exactly the same!" That's what I get for asking him I guess!

If you would like to know the brands I used please reply with e-mail and I will happily pass on my information!

Thanks and keep reading!

First blog about food

Alice in Wonderland

My intention with this blog is to find out how plausible it is to eat more cheaply at home than from fast food establishments. After seeing some fairly frightening documentaries about food, how it is made and what it is made into I decided to make some lifestyle changes. My main contention with all of these documentaries was the idea that eating at micketywhatwhats was cheaper than buying fresh food bought at the store and prepared at home.

To be honest, the documentaries weren't my only motivation. At 42 I have become decidedly plump. I definitely am a fan of fast food. I understand that it is fattening, I know its bad for my heart and I am vowing to systematically cut it out of my diet. I am not giving any chicken scratch excuses that I am fat because the fast food industry has duped me into believing their food is good for me. We all know deep down at the bottom of our fat clogged hearts this isn't true. There are a lot of things in my life I can't control. I can't control, death, taxes, or the price of gas. One of the only things I can reliably control is what I put into my own mouth.

So, now what? Now I will make periodic posts listing pictures and price breakdowns of various meals cooked in my own home. I intend to price compare with dollar menus and full price menu's of popular fast food joints. I make no claims about the calorie count or nutrition of my meals.

I am certain I will be eating healthier, but I also realize the futility of trying to eat 100 percent organic, nutritious home cooked meals. To start with I am well aware I am still up against genetic engineering, bio science, pesticides. I will make every effort to choose organic locally produced food whenever I can. And I sincerly hope that I can find and prove that no one need be a slave to fast food for the price.