The Hood

The hood above my stove fell off today! Not kidding! Pushed the button on the hood to start the fan and BOOM! The right side just fell. A complete mess. So I tried to fix it, the "pennyless" way of course, by first trying to nail it back up; nope that didn't work. Then, you'll be really proud of me for this invention; I took the longest wooden spoon I could find and my biggest bowl, turned the bowl upside down and the spoon on top of the bowl to prop up the hood. Voila! It's working! I don't know how long this is going to last I think.
So I leave the kitchen because it is giving me a complete panic attack, mainly due to the fact that we are having guests over tonight for this big dinner that I have been joyfully anticipating (using the second pound of the ground turkey, I might add-see post below).
I go to the bedroom and start to make my bed, Martha Stewart style, and then from the kitchen I hear CRASH! Yep, you guessed it, the entire hood has now fallen off. This is awesome.
I'll keep you posted on this current "Pennyless Cook" adventure.

Meatloaf used 3 ways

This week Meijer is having a sale on ground turkey....buy 2 pounds for $5. Pretty stinkin' good deal if you ask me. So I took them up on their offer and scoured my pantry for what I could whip up. Then it came to me! Meatloaf! I hadn't made meatloaf in I don't know how long, and plus this is a healthier version because of the lean ground turkey.
Serve a salad on the side like we did and you've got a healthy, WAY inexpensive meal for you and your family.

Turkey Meatloaf with Feta and Sun-Dried Tomatoes*
Ingredients:
-Vegetable cooking spray
-1/2 cup plain bread crumbs
-1/3 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
-1/4 cup chopped garlic and herb-marinated sun-dried tomatoes
-2 cloves garlic, minced, optional
-2 eggs, at room temperature, lightly beaten
-2 tablespoons whole milk
-1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
-1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
-1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
-1 pound ground turkey, preferably dark meat
Directions:
Place an oven rack in the center of the oven. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Spray a 9 by 5-inch loaf pan with cooking spray.

In a large bowl, stir together the bread crumbs, parsley, sun-dried tomatoes, garlic, if using, eggs, milk, feta, salt, and pepper. Add the turkey and gently stir to combine, being careful not to overwork the meat.

Carefully pack the meat mixture into the prepared pan and bake until the internal temperature registers 165 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer, about 45 minutes. Remove from the oven and let rest for 5 minutes. Transfer to a cutting board and slice. Put on a serving platter and serve.

This recipe is delicious, but I didn't have chopped garlic and herb-marinated sun-dried tomatoes. So I added garlic to the meat and made up my own concoction of roasted tomatoes and sweet onion.

Roasted Tomatoes and Sweet Onion
Ingredients:
-1 fresh garden tomato finely chopped
-1/4 cup of sweet onion finely chopped
-A drizzle of Extra Virgin Olive Oil
-1 pinch of sea salt
-fresh ground black pepper
Directions:
Turn oven on to broil. Spread out the onion and tomato on a baking sheet. Drizzle on olive oil; add salt and pepper. Broil for about 7 minutes or until a the vegetables get a bit browned. Remove from oven and take off any browned skin on the vegetables

I also didn't have plain bread crumbs, so I used Panko bread crumbs from my pantry instead. And I didn't have feta cheese on hand so I left that out, but I know adding the cheese would make it even yummier.

This meatloaf was fresh, simple and delicious without the exact ingredients it called for, so basically this is my take. Don't be afraid to try out different recipes even if you don't have the exact ingredients; you could miss out on a fun, creative spark that may come about as you make a meal, and you never know, yours may turn out even better then the original!

The other great thing about this particular meatloaf is it made a an amazing sandwich for lunch today on whole grain bread with mayonnaise, and even better then that is I already have a completely different dinner made for tonight using the leftover meatloaf!

Meatloaf to Spaghetti
-1/4 or 1/2 of leftover meatloaf, finely chopped (recipe above)
-1 large can of tomato puree
-1/4 cup sweet onion, finely diced
-Drizzle of Extra Virgin Olive Oil
-1 tbsp chopped garlic
-1 tsp of fresh sage, chopped
-1 sprig of fresh thyme
-1 tbsp of fresh basil, chopped
-1 bay leaf
-1 pinch of red pepper flakes
-sea salt
-fresh ground black pepper
-5 roasted tomatoes, diced (see recipe Roasted Tomatoes and Sweet Onion above-just leave off onion of course)
-1 pound of whole grain spaghetti, cooked
Directions:
On medium heat add olive oil so it covers the bottom of a large sauce pan. Add garlic and onion, saute till tender. Add can of tomato puree and leftover meatloaf that has been finely chopped. Simmer for 5 minutes and continue to stir; then add remaining ingredients. Cover and simmer on low heat for at least 30 minutes. The longer the better as the flavors will combine. Taste, add more salt and pepper if needed. Serve over spaghetti! Add some more more fresh herbs on top. Ciao!




*Recipe courtesy of www.foodtv.com Giada De Laurentiis

Chef Cooks 'Dream Omelet'

This is an incredible recipe and so inexpensive you won't believe it!

Red Peppers 10 for 10

My dear friends Nina and Bonnie let me in on a little secret.....red peppers are 10 for 10 at Kroger this week. For those that need help in the math department like me that's $1 a piece; something worth getting excited about! I know it's not much of a secret, but it was to me since I missed that ad this week. Plus, I have this simple and extremely healthy recipe for red pepper soup, that even my 3 year old keeps asking me to make. Red peppers are usually so expensive, but not today. Enjoy.....

Roasted Red Pepper Soup*

1/4 cup, raw cashews soaked 1-2 hours in water (this surprisingly adds so much creaminess and richness without the fat)
1/2 cup water
1/2 teaspoon
black pepper to taste
3/4 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon agave nectar (couldn't find agave nectar so substituted mango nectar which worked just as well)
1 pinch cayenne
1 pinch red chili flakes
1 cup roasted red bell peppers 1 cup
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 large basil leaf chopped (dried worked fine; sprinkle quite a bit to garnish with)

Blend all ingredients, except basil, in a blender until smooth. Heat mixture in a saucepan until just warmed. Garnish with chopped basil.

How to roast red peppers: Halve and seed two red peppers, brush with olive oil and place under a broiler for 5-7 mins, until skin is slightly blackened. Use a sharp knife to remove skin that is blackened. This recipe only makes 2 servings; I usually double it.

*Taken from "The 3-Day Cleanse" by Zoe Sakoutis & Erica Huss

Fruit Flies-Catch & Release

This is totally gross, but I know I am not the only one this has happened to. Com on....admit it.....you have had fruit flies in your house too! Haven't you? Well, even if you haven't you may one day. So this post isn't necessarily about a recipe for cooking, but it is a recipe for catching those nasty fruit flies that invaded my ever so important kitchen. Those annoying flies came about because of all the summer garden tomatoes I told you about, that have piled up, and that I am now trying to can for future use. There are a number of different traps that you can try, but I'll let you know what has worked for me and what hasn't. These are all "pennyless" and green ways to get rid of those little pests.
First and foremost, obviously get rid of the fruit that is causing those nasty flies to do the nasty and make more nasty fruit flies. Second, thoroughly clean the entire kitchen; wiping down countertops with vinegar, and make sure there is no exposed fruit anywhere else.
Third, when I say clean entire kitchen I mean ENTIRE kitchen, no dirty dish rags or towels laying around, wipe down outside of refrigerator from top to bottom and the dish washer and the trash can; make sure the trash can is also empty or covered.
Fourth, my favorite, time to set the traps!

Traps:
One trap that I tried was filling the sink with soapy water. This attracted some of the flies, but not all would land in it. Two landed in it and drowned.
Another trap tried is putting a piece of an apple in a plastic bag that you can zip up. This attracts the flies, but not all would venture into the bag, and it was hard to zip up the bag fast enough to catch them and then release them outside.
The trap that worked the best for me was placing a few grapes that were beginning to rot (or any other piece of fruit would work) in the bottom of a plastic cup . The key is patience, which I don't always have, especially when it comes to bugs in the house! I found the place where these flies were congregating and placed the cup there. I also had the idea to cover the bottom of the cup with honey and then placing the grapes on top of the honey. After an entire day the flies started getting brave and went to the bottom of the cup; some got stuck in the honey and drowned which made it easy. Once the flies got inside the lip of the cup I quickly slammed a plastic plate on top of the cup and went outside to release them. I surprisingly even got a house fly with this trap! Make sure to replace the fruit every day or so. This process is repeated over and over until there are no more; it can take up to 10 days. I know 10 days! But it's worth it to get those things out of the house, and so I can use my kitchen, the "pennyless" way of course, in peace!

Summertime Gazpacho

My husband and I recently finished "The 3-Day Cleanse" by the founders of "BluePrintCleanse"; ever heard of it? More on this in the future........one meal the founders recommended to prepare your body for the cleanse is Gazpacho. I grew up eating this during the summer as a child, but had kind of forgotten about this healthy, inexpensive, and don't forget tasty, cold soup. There are so many variations of Gazpacho so here is my "pennyless" version. It's ideal for the summertime and using up those summer tomatoes, and other vegetables as well!

Ingredients:
-1 cucumber , peeled, seeded, and diced
-1 green bell pepper, seeded and diced
-1 jalapeno (optional)
-3 medium tomatoes, seeded and diced
-1-2 tablespoons white wine vinegar (regular vinegar can be substituted just use less)
-2 cloves of garlic
-3 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
-2 teaspoons of Sea salt
-1 avocado peeled and diced
-Freshly ground black pepper
Directions:
Place 1/2 cup and cucumber and 1/2 cup of green bell pepper in a bowl to the side. Place all remaining ingredients, minus the avocado, in a food processor and pulse until smooth. This may take a few minutes. Pour in large bowl and mix in diced cucumber and green bell pepper. Garnish with avocado, a drizzle of olive oil and more ground black pepper. Serve cold or at room temperature.

You can certainly add whatever vegetables you want to this cold soup and pulse those until smooth. Zucchini, squash, and eggplant would be delicious, especially after sauteing in a bit of olive oil.

Summer Tomatoes

A dear, dear friend to me has fresh, garden tomatoes growing out of her ears, like some of you probably, and needs some recipes so they don't go to waste. So here is one of my recipes I shared with her, now I want to share it with you.


Simple Tomato Sauce

Ingredients:
-28 oz can of whole peeled/crushed/diced/halved cherry tomatoes* (if your using homegrown fresh summer tomatoes squeeze to get all the seeds out in a small bowl; preserve as much juice as possible)
-3 tbsp of Extra Virgin Olive Oil
-3-4 tbsp of fresh chopped basil (use much less if dried, but there's really no substitute for the flavor with fresh basil)
-1 diced sweet onion
-Pinch of red pepper flakes (optional)
-1 clove of garlic
-Fresh, grated Parmesan cheese
-Sea salt
-Fresh ground black pepper

Directions:
Add olive oil to a hot, deep skillet. Add onion until soft or caramelized**. Add garlic until it just sizzles. Add red pepper flakes next if desired. Then add your tomatoes-if using whole peeled; crush up with a potato masher until you get the consistency you desire. Otherwise pour the can or fresh tomatoes in and reduce to a simmer & cover for about 10-15 minutes. Boil your choice of pasta until al dente, drain & do not rinse-you want to keep the starchiness of your pasta so the tomato sauce will stick and soak into the noodles. Pour pasta into the skillet and mix until pasta is covered. Add basil, salt and pepper and Parmesan cheese (it's cheaper in the long run to buy a wedge of cheese and grate over meals as needed. It keeps forever, and you can freeze the rind to add to soups in the future, which gives massive flavor).

I'll be posting more ways to use up those summer tomatoes soon, but if any of you have any other recipes please share.....I'm getting hungry and my tomatoes just keep staring me down!

*If using cherry tomatoes there is no need to cook these. Simply cut in half, toss in hot pasta immediately and the tomatoes will cook by the heat of the pasta. Then add pasta with the tomatoes to the skillet with the oil. Drizzle more olive oil here if desired.

**Here is also where you can add other veggies; finely diced carrots, broccoli, etc. This makes the sauce more meaty; it's healthier and lasts longer. The veggies would be best when you make a thicker sauce using the whole peeled or crushed tomatoes.