Save Money on Your Food Bill: The Garden of Eatin’

I made a spinach dish, the other day. Given today’s inflationary food prices, spinach has become a luxury, hovering around $5 a bag. Husband Ron to the rescue! He picked the spinach straight from the raised and framed vegetable garden he built last Autumn and planted three weeks ago. 

As satisfying as it is to grow your own produce, having a vegetable garden can be a substantial money-saver as well as an organic delight. More about its construction later in this post.

It’s never too late to start your own veggie garden, whether in a frame such as Ron’s, in pots - or both!

In the Time Zone and at the Latitude where we live, our tardy Spring has finally sprung - as have Ron’s fast-growing crops of green onions, radishes, lettuce, red cabbage, kale, cherry tomatoes, spinach, garlic, cauliflower, and broccoli. Planted but shy, our Brussels sprouts will be ready to harvest in late Fall; our rhubarb (which - despite its use in pies and jams - is actually a vegetable), in summer. 

Ron also plants basil, rosemary, oregano, chives, and parsley in pots and in raised ceramic planters.

In past years, he’s grown a variety of squashes, letting the shoots wind between the flowers and bushes of the main garden. Squash requires a lot of room (and water). We don’t want our framed garden overtaken by thirsty, runaway squash. 

He planted four varieties of this year’s a summer squashes only this morning, all tucked between the flowering bushes of the main garden, where no one will know but us. 

Zucchini’s fast growth is amazing to see: Forget to harvest it for a few days and you’ll later encounter “lurkers” - zucchini of a massive size - precisely what Ron needs and wants to make his famous Zucchini Relish.

Ron’s already learned a couple of smart tricks. Our local supermarket has been selling bunches of five small green onions (aka “spring onions”) at $3 and even at $3.99. That’s expensive! So here’s the smartest trick ever to get you started growing your own: Slicing off a little of the white part of the onion at the root end, poke it about an inch (2.54 cm) into the welcoming soil (more about soil in a moment).

In just a few days, the same little onion will poke its nose from the soil - and will soon start to multiply. You’ll have more than enough onions to share with friends, so be sure to share this trick, too. “Spring onions” really are just that: They like weather on the cool side. We have no idea if they’ll continue growing through the summer, but we’ll give it a try.

(This is the “royal we”… Although my pinkies never touch the soil, I’m skilled at pointing.)

We’re experimenting with radishes, done the same way. So far, nuttin’ - but other gardeners have succeeded, and so shall we! The same goes for Romaine lettuce: Planting lettuce from seed is easy; Ron wants to try something different. 

With the root and stem trimmed from the lettuce and buried in the soil, we fully expect a small crop of Romaine as the weather warms up. Friends have done that: We don’t know if the same technique works with other varieties of lettuce.

Onto the construction of this garden: Ron’s framed, raised vegetable garden is modest: 10 x 4 ft. (3 x 1.2 m). Framing and raising a small veggie patch such as this makes planting, harvesting, and weeding far easier than squatting between furrows directly on the ground. The frame is also narrow enough to plant and harvest produce at the garden's center.

Three weeks after planting: Home-grown veggies!

The area Ron chose for a framed garden was the former site of a huge old cedar tree that needed more water than our climate-changed, infrequent rainfall (or we) could provide. This tree was so dry, that its many dropped needles acidified the parched soil. We considered it a fire hazard, and its size blocked the sun our future garden might need. 

And so it came down, leaving plenty of space and sun for the raised garden we desired. After digging out the tree’s extensive root system, Ron leveled the area, spreading and smoothing fresh soil over what had been a dusty, sloped carpet of needles. The goal: The raised garden he planned would be level, holding evenly distributed soil, plants, and water.

Before building the frame, Ron dug trenches to extend the existing irrigation system to what would soon be our new vegetable garden. Voilà! Timed to use the least amount of water with the least amount of evaporation, two raised sprinkler heads would soon water our crops automatically and efficiently with an early-morning 10-min. spray.

Ron then built the garden’s frame. It goes without saying that if you don’t have the multitude of skills Ron has (including single-handedly cutting down our giant cedar tree!), hire experienced help. 

An important note: Our garden’s frame was treated with a wood preservative, as yours will probably be. It’s important to line the frame’s interior with corrugated plastic - available at the lumberyard where you buy the wood for your frame. This lining will prevent the preservative from leaching into the soil that nurtures your crops.

Corrugated plastic liner to protect your crops.

Soil! I’m glad you asked. Preparing the soil of your edible garden is essential to your success. (Says Google: “Topsoil is the upper layer of soil. It has the highest concentration of organic matter and micro-organisms and is where most of the Earth's biological soil activity occurs.”)

Topsoil alone won’t keep your crops strong and healthy. Ron mixed three yards of topsoil (Ask Google: “How many bags of topsoil is that?”) with a couple of big bags of peat moss, a couple of big bags each of mushroom and steer manure, a couple of pounds (about a kilogram) of bone meal, and 4 c. (1 L) of fertilizer pellets (these resemble “little beads”). 

You may have noted that my first paragraph correctly states that Ron built and framed this garden last Autumn. There was a reason for that. We live on the West Coast. Autumn storms regularly deposit mountains of seaweed on our beaches.

As do many local gardeners, Ron filled a construction-sized bag with this bounty, chopping and adding and digging the seaweed into his soil mix, where it rotted in the ground. (If you live inland, ask your local nursery about using commercially sold sea soil.)

Ron turned and turned and turned this mixture, initially starting in the wheelbarrow, after which (after dumping many barrow-loads into his framed garden) he mixed it within the frame.

Don’t rush this job. Thorough mixing requires patience and time - shifting and shoveling and lifting and turning before spreading and raking the soil smooth to prepare for planting in the Spring.

He’ll repeat the process next Fall, combining and spreading peat moss, mushroom and steer manures, bone meal, fertilizer pellets, chopped seaweed, and topsoil, in smaller quantities and as needed. 

To minimize waste, Ron grows only what we can eat or freeze or share. We don’t grow potatoes, carrots, or celery - long-lived staples we buy in bulk when they regularly go on sale.

PS: And then, to put a smile on your face, there’s this:

https://www.facebook.com/watch/5Minute.Crafts.Men/

Sippers

A very easy appy ... I made this (for the umpteenth time) just a few days ago. No one would ever guess this delightful soup comes from a mix!

Sippers:

Never in a million years did I think I’d recommend a commercial product as a deliciously easy appy, but I’m doing it now!* Knorr packaged dry soups are sold internationally, making them easy to find.

All you need is ...

One 4-person serving Knorr dehydrated cream soup of your choice

Water and milk, as package directs

That’s all there is to that, too! Serve these “sippers” in small cups with saucers. I use small paper doilies to signal a “special” occasion. Taking less than 5 min. to prepare, these soups draw raves from guests and drop-ins who assume these deliciously creamy soups are homemade. 

Ready in minutes, Sippers make excellent appys!

* Ethics Note: Neither Knorr or parent company Unilever is aware of this recommendation. I’ve neither received nor been offered a gratuity for my recommendation. I’m proud to say this blog remains and always will be free of advertising.

Trudy’s Hummus

As regular readers may have guessed, I’m not exactly a spring chicken. At my age (double oh! 7), it takes more effort to entertain guests than it once did. I tend to suggest pot lucks and “easy” recipes. Here’s a delicious example. 

Trudy’s Hummus:

One 19 fl. oz. (540 mL) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed 

2 heaping tbsp. (30 mL) tahini

Enough cold water to thin hummus, starting with 2 tbsp. (25 mL) and increasing as desired

Salt, to taste

Purée in a blender. Serve! That’s all there is to it!

Note: Trudy uses a hand blender (aka a “stick blender”) to make this - a great idea! The chickpeas fall to the bottom in a regular blender, leaving lumps and husks.

You may also want to check out the simply named Hummus or Hummus Wraps, also on this blog.

One Click: An Overview

This blog is 12 years old: Time to make your recipe search faster and easier! I’ll be the first to admit my Index is overly long and complex!

For some while (on and off), I’ve been working on a categorization system I’ve named One Click. Rather than suggest you check the lengthy, complex, and often frustrating Index in your recipe search, I’m partway through a process of providing quick links to the recipe you’re looking for as well as others in a similar categories. 

Feel like making stew? The post headed Stew: One Click will quickly take you to a listing of every stew recipe in this blog. No more scrolling: One Click will take you there. The Index doesn’t do that, because you’d need to search for Stew/Pork, Stew/Chicken, and so on. The search box won’t do that, either, because many other hits that barely mention the word “stew” also pop up.

I still have plenty of work ahead of me (and take l-o-n-g breathers because getting there is tiring), but that’s the direction in which this blog is heading. I’ve also been changing the teensy-weensy fonts in which I started this blog, as well as adding metric to the Imperial measurements already there. Unfortunately, Google’s Blogger platform has some bugs and instability that sometimes make the work unnecessarily difficult and frustrating.  

When I finally complete this lengthy process (not in months, but likely years), you’ll have a far easier and more interesting search tool at your disposal. To the best of my knowledge, no other recipe blog uses a system like this. 

Down the road, expect a greatly simplified Index, making it much easier for you to find what you’re looking for. Several One Click listings already appear in the Index. Examples:

One Click: Brussels Sprouts 

One Click: Chicken Wings 

One Click: Soups (Onion) 

One Click: Turkey 

These and other recipe categories will also appear in reverse. Try Chicken Wings: See One Click or Turkey: See One Click, etc. On the surface, not much has changed - except that Nicole Parton’s Favorite Recipes is gradually evolving into a more effective tool for your quicker and easier recipe picks. I hope you’ll feel as enthusiastic about these changes as I do! 

Cookie in a Mug

This delicious treat requires only a standard mug and a few basic ingredients. You’d think that - with no baking powder or other leavening - this recipe wouldn’t work, but it does (brilliantly), in a non-metallic microwave-safe mug that holds 10 oz. (310 mL) of liquid. 

The ingredients require far less room than that, but once the cake-like cookie rises, the finished product will be just right for the mug. Makes one yummy serving.

Cookie in a Mug:

1 tbsp. (15 mL) butter or margarine

1 tbsp. (15 mL) granulated sugar

1 tbsp. (15 mL) brown sugar, firmly packed

1/2 tsp.(2.5 mL)  vanilla extract

1 egg yolk

 3 tbsp. (45 mL) all-purpose flour

Dash of salt

1-to-2 tbsp. (15-to-30 mL) chocolate, butterscotch, or peanut butter chocolate chips

Microwave butter in a mug until melted, 30 seconds to 1 minute. With a spoon, mix in sugars, vanilla extract and salt until well-combined. Mix in egg yolk until no traces of the yolk are seen. Mix in flour and chocolate chips. Microwave on high 40-to-50 seconds. Serve warm. 

Note: The texture and taste of this cookie resembles a delicious piece of cake. Because this makes just one serving, you won’t be tempted to eat more (and more and more …). The cookie is so quick and easy to make that no one will guess you’ve gobbled it down. It’s as easy as 1, 2, 3! 

Mix butter, sugars,
egg yolk, and vanilla.

Stir in flour and
chocolate chips.

Eat! I’m almost finished!

This is so simple, you’ll probably want to rename it Smug in a Mug … You’re already halfway to hell. Why not add a squirt of whipped cream?

One Click: Soups (Onion)

With food prices going through the roof, these outstanding onion soups may just be a gourmet meal on a pauper’s budget.

Nicole’s Own French Onion Soup

Cream of Onion Soup

Nicole’s Cream of Onion Soup

Ron’s Cream of Onion Soup

Dry Onion Soup Mix

For even more decadence, top with Nicole’s Special Croutons.

As I’ve previously written, this blog has been gradually undergoing some changes. As I work through its earlier years, metric and a different font are appearing, and One Click: An Overview will include more categories, make more sense, and appear more frequently. 

There will eventually be One Click for many different types of soup. When project is complete, the Index will be far easier to navigate, with far fewer categories. 

Ron’s Oven-Roasted Yams

This is the single best yam recipe I’ve ever tasted. This super-great dish uses only three ingredients: Orange-fleshed yams, olive oil, and seasoning salt. One large yam yields enough for two adults. 

Even those not partial to yams will instantly become converts. The natural sugar in the yams caramelizes under the high temperature at which they bake. Don’t worry if a few pieces char ... They’ll taste even better!  

Ron’s Oven-Roasted Yams:

1 large yam, peeled and diced 3/4-in. (1.9 cm)   

1/4 c. (60 mL) olive oil

2 tbsp. (30 mL) Cajun seasoning or seasoning salt

Preheat oven’s convect setting to 400 deg. F.  on oven’s convection setting. Place prepared yams in medium bowl (see Note). Combine olive oil and Cajun seasoning or seasoning salt, pouring over yams and stirring until diced yams are evenly coated.

Use baking sheet with no parchment paper. Bake, uncovered, 50 min., flipping two or three times as yams roast. Omitting the parchment paper allows the yam to caramelize, rather than sweat and steam. Serves 2.

Flavor Note: Some like it hot! You can always add a shake of chili powder, another of onion powder, and another of garlic powder. But the recipe above is how Ron and I like it. 

History Note: In days gone by, orange-fleshed yams and yellow-fleshed sweet potatoes were considered distinctly different.  Today, everything seems to be called a sweet potato. Don’t use the yellow-fleshed kind for this recipe.

Popcorn Campagna

Readers of this blog may be familiar with Sister Mabels Caramel Corn, the recipe the late, great Orville Redenbacher gave me when we met at a food fair in Dallas, TX, in the 1980’s. Although Hunt-Wesson, Inc. now owns the brand, I remain loyal to Orville’s popcorn.

Although Orville Redenbacher’s Popcorn Book is long out of print, used copies are still available online. You’ll also find plenty of recipes online at popcorn.org

I have no idea where this Popcorn Campagna recipe originated, but it’s tasty and unusual. We often sprinkle powdered Parmesan cheese over fresh, hot popcorn while we’re glued to a movie on TV, but this recipe goes several delicious steps further! PS: For more popping fun, you may also want to try World Series Popcorn. 

PPS: Do yourself a flavor and buy a popcorn maker - the quickest and most reliable way to pop corn. 

Popcorn Campagna:

8 c. popped corn (1/4 c. or 60 mL unpopped kernels) 

1 tbsp. (15 mL) olive oil

1 tsp. (15 mL) balsamic vinegar

1 tsp. (15 mL) powdered Parmesan cheese

Black olives, capers, canned or bottled anchovies (as desired; coarsely chopped, well drained, blotted dry)

Set aside 1/3 c. (80 mL) popped corn, quickly tossing with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, Parmesan, and olives, capers, and anchovies. Add remaining popped corn, tossing well. 

One Click: Meat Loaf

Hands up for meat loaf! At our house, we love it. I often double the recipe, making extra and freezing it for those days I don’t feel like cooking. I made two today - no recipe - just ground beef, ground pork, and a center layer of chopped onion fried with a chopped apple and four slices of chopped bacon. To make that layer stand out, I ladled it with a little salsa. 

Into the oven one’s about to go, while the other - labeled and wrapped - went into the deep freeze. With inflation raging and meat expensive, I make many meatless meals, and buy meat and fish only when they’re on sale. Even if high food prices aren’t a concern for you, please change your shopping habits to support others, and please donate to your local food bank.

I saw a cauliflower for $9 the other day, and a small bunch of green onions for $5! If you say no to such prices, prices will come down. Some of these meat loaves are penny-pinchers - tasty ones, too! The first two meat loaves use only ground beef; the next two use ground beef and pork; the Greek Pie meat loaf uses ground beef, pork, and veal. One Click is all you need to find each: 

Best-Ever Meat Loaf

George’s Meat Loaf

Greek Meat Pie

Onion Meat Loaf

Rice Meat Loaf

If you prefer, search Meat Loaf: see One Click.

My Favorite Mexican Cough Remedy

I’m writing this as another wave of the COVID pandemic sweeps through the Time Zone and at the Latitude Where I Live. We’ve had it, ourselves - nasty, nasty! Deep coughing came with this: Our local pharmacies had none on the shelves.This alternative proved superb - and the ingredients, readily available.

My Favorite Mexican Cough Remedy:

1 tbsp. (15 mL) lemon juice

1 tbsp. (15 mL) liquid honey

1/2 tsp. (2.5 mL) fresh ginger, peeled and grated (no substitutes)

1/8th tsp. (0.6 mL) cayenne pepper

Partially hollowed large red or white onion, peeled

In small bowl, combine lemon juice, honey, ginger, and cayenne. Spoon into onion; cover lightly several hours. Expect some of the onion juice to flavor this mixture. To treat cough, serve a spoonful (about 15 mL) as needed.

Note: This excellent cough remedy isn’t a substitute for medical consultation; when in doubt, consult your healthcare provider.

Steam from a hot shower or humidifier will help a loose, wet cough., as will spitting out phlegm as often as possible. 

Lozenges, steam, or gargling with warm salt water will help ease a dry cough.

Beans, Bacon, and Sprouts

Colorful vegetables high in protein and dietary fiber can be a welcome change from meat and fish. If only I could say they were a money-saver! Unfortunately, I can’t. 

With pecans pricey, I bought only what I needed for this recipe: $5. Brussels sprouts: $1.30. Kidney beans (on sale): $2.50. Canned niblet corn (on sale): $2.30. I buy carrots in bulk: The two I used cost approximately 25 cents. The bacon? Oy, the bacon! It’s difficult to guess. I buy it in bulk, freezing it in small amounts. I’ll estimate the four strips I used cost 50 cents (all estimates in Cdn $).

Making this low-cal, tasty dish for two adults cost less than $12 - wit leftovers for another meal. Buying two burgers and a side of fries would cost more than that. 

Whether you sizzle a steak or prepare a dish such as this, what matters is the price per-serving. Dividing the cost of this high-protein, delicious Beans, Bacon, and Sprouts dish by four comes to $3 per adult. 

As you know, money’s tight everywhere: These are dark times for many. Please, please, please donate to your local food bank or soup kitchen - or ask how you can help in other ways.

Beans and nuts are great meat substitutes in this quick, easy recipe. Whether a served as a main course or as a salad, this nutritious dish is delicious.

Beans, Bacon, and Sprouts

One 19-oz. (540 mL) can kidney beans, rinsed and drained

One 12 fl. oz. (341 mL) can niblet corn, drained

Three large Brussels sprouts, trimmed, slivered, raw

2 small carrots, peeled, quartered, and sliced 1/2-in. (1.25 cm) thick

4 slices bacon, chopped, sautéed, and blotted dry to remove fat

1/4 c. (60 mL; 100 g) shelled pecans, toasted, coarsely chopped, divided 

While bacon is pricey, I used only what I needed, freezing the rest in small amounts. Pecans are definitely expensive: Try buying just enough for this recipe at a bulk food bin. If the price remains daunting, omit the nuts altogether.

Combine vegetables gently but thoroughly, taking care not to squash kidney beans. Add cooked  bacon and half pecans, again combining gently. Top with remaining nuts. Serves 4 adults as a main dish; serves 6 as a salad. Toss with Three-Ingredient Salad Dressing - though no dressing needed.

For more recipes using Brussels Sprouts, see One Click: Brussels Sprouts. For a different version of this yummy dish, see Spicy Black Bean Salad.