Cheap, cheerful (& healthy!) recipes - eating well despite the recession!

Sounds good, patiodog!

Tell me though, what parts of the chicken are included in the 1lb of "gizzards"?

Gibblets & .....?

Roger, my dear, I see we are going to have to teach you a few inexpensive, healthy & delicious recipes!

The gizzard is the muscular bit of the bird's esophagus that grinds food up before it goes to the stomach.

Realizing that I omitted a fair amount of dill and a bit of dried shallot.

Sound good, patiodog..
I too have never put gizzards in soup. My soups often start similarly to yours - I call the onion/celery/carrot start a "battuto" since that is what the italian cooking diva Marcella Hazan calls it - but I saute them first, which probably changes the taste to some degree. If you don't though, as you don't, you save using some fat, which could be a good idea.

re: sauteing the vegetables first, I've read it's to release the sugars especially in root vegetables for more flavour (but you probably already knew that).

I never throw out anything that might contribute to a good homemade stock. Yesterday we had a small roast of beef cooked with no water, just a splash of BBQ sauce, in the crockpot. After I fished out the roast last night, I left the crockpot "running", added some water and a handful of barley. Now I have a beautiful dark, smoky/spicy base for soup cooling in the frig (so I can skim the fat off the top). That's my cheap and cheerful tip for the day!

True about releasing the sugars, especially if sauteed slowly for some time..

That's usually how I start, too, but I was doing it all in one go and one pot and wanted to give the bones plenty of time in the broth. (Battuto. Gotta recomember that.

Haven't made this - it was the email offering from Peak of the Market today.

Looks like a good possibility.

Vegetable Cobbler

Metric Ingredient Imperial
15 ml vegetable oil 1 tbsp
1 garlic clove, finely chopped 1
250 ml broccoli, cut into florets 1 cup
1 large leek, thickly sliced 1
250 ml frozen peas, thawed 1 cup
50 ml butter 1/4 cup
50 ml flour 1/4 cup
250 ml milk 1 cup
125 ml cheddar cheese, grated 1/2 cup
50 ml all-purpose flour 1/4 cup
3 ml baking powder 3/4 tsp
.5 ml salt 1/8 tsp
50 ml butter 1/4 cup
15 ml fresh parsley, chopped 1 tbsp
30 ml milk 2 tbsp

In a large saucepan; heat oil. Add garlic, broccoli, leek and peas. Saute for 8 minutes or until softened. Transfer vegetables to deep casserole dish.

In the same pan; heat butter. Stir in flour and cook for 1 minute. Gradually stir in milk, stirring until thickened. Bring to boil and simmer gently for 3 minutes. Add all of cheese except a little bit. Stir until melted. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Pour sauce onto vegetables.

In a small bowl, using your fingers, mix flour, baking powder, salt and butter to resemble breadcrumbs. Stir in parsley and milk. Mix to make a dough, adding more milk if necessary. Shape mixture into 8 balls and flatten each one gently with palm of hand. Arrange on top of casserole and sprinkle with reserved cheese. Bake in preheated 425 F (220 C) oven for 20 minutes or until cobbler has risen and is golden.

Serves 4

(phooey on the spacing, I can't get it to stick properly)

If, like me, you're dealing with a lot of rhubarb just now, here's a simple recipe from my Aunt Mame -- rhubarb pudding:

1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups rhubarb

Pack above mixture in greased baking dish. Then mix
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup boiling water
1 tablespoon butter
Pour over first mixture and bake at 350 degrees F for 30 or 40 minutes.

1.5 cups rhubarb

hahahahahahahahaha

ok
so that's one stalk
what do I do with the other mmmmmmm pounds and pounds?

A new take on stuffed peppers:

Mixed a box of lemon and spinach couscous with a can of white turkey meat and stuffed the peppers. Topped them with V8 juice and shredded cheese. Baked in a 350 degree F oven until tender.

Not bad for cobbling together a meal out of cans and boxes when I was out of just about everything.

Well, the rest of mine's in the freezer

With determination, I'll do the risotto that I used as a trigger to start a risotto thread. Yesterday I pooped out and made popcorn instead, baaaaad. But, hey, cheap and fairly healthy. (Had a salad with a lot of goodies before that.)

On the artichoke risotto, I consider artichokes expensive, though they are lower priced right now. But... one can use frozen artichoke hearts and not break the bank.

I have recently tried this salad; so thought of sharing it with you all.
Cut zucchini into noodle-shaped strands using a spiralizing tool. Place "zoodles" in a large bowl and top with cucumber, tomatoes, olives, red onion, and feta cheese.
Whisk olive oil, lemon juice, oregano, salt, and pepper together in a bowl until dressing is smooth; pour over "zoodle" mixture and toss to coat. Marinate salad in refrigerator for 10 to 15 minutes.