Cooking to Impress

A few weeks ago I was watching the Food Network and got drawn into the Barefoot Contessa's episode on cooking from local food. In the first 15 minutes she went to a farmers' market and whipped up an impressive looking eggplant caponata for an appetizer. It was vegetarian-friendly and looked easy enough to make. I was scheduled to go to one of Collin's family gatherings the next day and thought it might be a good dish to roll in with.

Here's the recipe from: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/roasted-eggplant-caponata-recipe/index.html

Ingredients
1 large eggplant (1 1/2 pounds)
Good olive oil
4 ounces jarred roasted red peppers, chopped
1/2 cup large green olives, pitted and chopped
1 cup chopped yellow onion
1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon minced garlic (3 cloves)
3 tablespoons minced parsley
2 tablespoons pine nuts, toasted
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 tablespoons drained capers
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
Toasted pita triangles, for serving
Directions
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a sheet pan with aluminum foil.

Place the whole eggplant on the pan, prick with a fork in several places, and rub with olive oil. Roast for 45 to 50 minutes, until the eggplant is very soft when pierced with a knife. Set aside to cool. Halve the eggplant, peel, and discard the skin. Place the eggplant, peppers, and olives in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade and pulse until coarsely chopped. Pour into a mixing bowl.

Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a medium saute pan. Add the onion and red pepper flakes and cook over medium heat for 5 minutes, until the onion is lightly browned. Add the garlic, cook for 1 minute, and add to the eggplant mixture. Add the parsley, pine nuts, lemon juice, capers, tomato paste, vinegar, salt, and pepper and mix. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for a few hours to allow the flavors to develop. Taste for seasonings and serve at room temperature with toasted pita triangles.

The basic cliff notes version is that there are many expensive ingredients (read: pine nuts, capers) and it takes over an hour to put together. I ended up not having time to make the dip before the party, but once I did make it-- it was delicious. I certainly would not make the investment again until I actually do need to bring a food item to impress.

The best part of the recipe, however, was the footnote: "serve with toasted pita triangles." Ina did not show me how to do that! With some googling, I came up with this method:

1 package of Joseph's pita

olive oil

salt and pepper

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

2. Split the pita in half (so it is one layer) and cut into smaller pieces. Spread the pieces on a cookie sheet and brush a bit of olive oil onto each one. Sprinkle with salt and pepper (or garlic).

3. Bake for about 8 minutes.

I brought the pita chips to work to share with co-workers and they were a big hit! Plus they are less expensive than Stacy's pre-made pita chips.

Sunday Soup

I am not always diligent about bringing lunch to work five days a week, even though it is admittedly much less expensive than spending $7.99 on a sandwich Downtown.

As a solution, I started making what I affectionately call, "Sunday Soup." The recipe changes weekly, but it is a basic homemade vegetable soup. It costs about $10-$14 per week to make a batch for 5 days.

Here is a typical Sunday Soup recipe:
-1 1/2 box of Nature's Promise vegetable broth (2 for $4).
-1 carton of pre-sliced fresh mushrooms ($1.99)
-1 onion (bag of 10 for $2)
-1 bag of fresh spinach ($1.99)
-can of petite diced tomatoes ($.75)
-can of chick peas ($.89)
-1 green zucchini (price varies per week)
-1-2 cubes (clove) of frozen Trader Joe's garlic
-pepper to taste.

On different occasions I have made variations with asparagus, lentils, pasta, broccoli, green beans, and peas.

Cooking the mushrooms, onion, and zucchini before adding the broth can add flavor, but I usually start with broth too keep the oil ingredient low. Keep the broth on medium heat and start with the harder vegetables first. Spinach goes in last, since it will weep very quickly.

I have found that this soup is very easy and can be done while cramming in some reading for school.

Introduction

Hi Team--

This blog is about how I do deliciousness on a budget. Okay, sometimes I am not good at sticking to my budget. BUT I love to eat. I mostly shop for groceries at a Stop and Shop or at Trader Joe's and spend under $50,($40 on a good day) per week.

I am a vegetarian, but I do eat fish (so I guess if you are a stickler, that's a pescetarian).

I never considered myself a cook, but I really love to eat. Choosing to be a vegetarian at age 11 taught me the essentials of cooking, but had I written a blog then, the main kitchen utensil would have been a microwave.

Since moving into an apartment with a big, open kitchen, while trying to limit the number of times a week I ate out, I have tried to become more creative with my "deliciousness." Working full time and taking a full graduate courseload, however, does not permit me with much time to make elaborate four course meals.

I basically grew up watching daytime cooking shows, begging my parents to change the channel because they seemed boring and unrelatable. Now the Food Network is one of my guilty pleasures but Paula Deane is not really my style, and it can be frustrating when the Barefoot Contessa's ingredients for one dish are more than 50% of my weekly grocery bill.

Sometimes I use published recipes, but mostly I pull pieces off the internet or make up my own concoction entirely. While my mother and grandmother have stacks of delicious family recipes and comfort food, I just could never get behind the pot roast. I am still not ready to own a Kitchen Aide stand mixer-- that still cuts a bit too deep.

Furthermore, I am not a baker, so do not expect beautifully designed cakes or muffins.

Since I love eating and dining out so much, I will also post about restaurant experiences. (That's the part where I go off budget.)

Please feel free to share your own experiences, recipes, coupons, and advice.