Food Lush

Reader Help: Grocery Shopping

By Julie

I’ve been thinking a lot about how I grocery shop. It may not be the most efficient way, but it works for me and for us as a family. I clip coupons when I can, and read the circulars so I can get the most bang for my bucks. Every two weeks I go through my kitchen, make a list of the things I need, and head out to Walmart. As much as I generally dislike having to shop at Walmart, the low prices are a siren song to my frugal little heart. Plus, I can take all those circulars there and they will price match, so I don’t have to run all over town.

Recently, I’ve added a pre-Walmart trip to Aldi, because if anyone is going to beat a Walmart price, it’s Aldi. Their selection isn’t as vast as the behemoth box store, so I can’t get everything I need, but I can get quite a bit. This is good on many levels, including that my time in Walmart is greatly reduced.

Of course, I fill in during the week as I need milk, eggs, and bananas. These are the things we always seem to use up in seconds (either that, or my son is hoarding fruit under his bed and I’m too scared to look). And because it is fun for me, I like to go to Sprouts on Wednesdays because they let their circulars overlap and so there are double the items on sale that day. They also have free coffee samples. Oh, and their produce just seems fresher and is often cheaper that the aforementioned behemoth.

I don’t meal plan because it feels constrictive and I prefer to figure out dinner on a day to day basis. I keep staples around the house (I have a refrigerator and a deep freeze) so I can have the freedom to change my mind. I like to think I have enough cooking know how to make substitutions for ingredients I don’t have on hand, or I just don’t make that recipe until do.

So that’s what I do. I reserve the right to amend my process at any given time, especially given that I’m about to ask: How do you grocery shop? Have you developed any tricks to make it easier/faster/cheaper?

The State Fair of Texas and All the Fried Food in the World

By Julie

There are many things for which the State Fair of Texas (yes, capitalized) is known, but perhaps none so much as the cuisine. Which, in this case, is a fancy word for fried everything. Literally. And it is awesome.

I haven’t been to the fair in many years, so when I had the chance to partake this week, I jumped at it. They have a contest every year to crown winners in new food categories, and the list of champions is long, distinguished, and deeply weird. There have been fried bacon, fired butter, and fried coke. Sensing a theme here?

So I did my own little taste test of decadent delights. My criteria for selection were as follows: it had to be unusual and it had to have enough tickets to buy it. Let Fried Fest begin!

Let me just state from the beginning that all of these foods, ones tasted and ones left for another day, look remarkably similar because they are all created on the principle of “let’s see what bizarre thing we can wrap in dough/dip in batter and fry to oblivion.” Nothing wrong with that.

I started off with the fried banana pudding because I saw it and remembered I’d seen a coupon in the guidebook for it. Savings at the fair? Yes, please. My judging panel consisted of myself, my 4 year old daughter, and my dad. Our conclusion was that this was pretty good, basically a banana cream fried pie. The whipped cream frosting was the best part, in my opinion. My dad said that it would really be better with some crushed up vanilla wafers inside to give it the full banana pudding experience, and I wholeheartedly agree.

A bit later, we were joined by my husband (who’d been off on his own fried food expedition, and more on that in a moment) to try the fried pineapple upside down cake and the fried “taste of autumn” pumpkin pie. The cake was just a canned ring of pineapple battered and friend, and was incredibly difficult to eat with only a flimsy plastic fork. The pineapple just slid out of the coating and refused to be severed by said fork. The pie was ball shaped and merely filled with pumpkin pie filling, so it wasn’t all that spectacular and I have no idea why it required a special “taste of autumn” descriptor. It was merely fine. I guess I just prefer my pumpkin pie chilled.

Now, my husband had wandered off in search of this year’s best taste winner, the fried jambalaya. He said it was tasty, but that it was predominantly a disc of fried rice and couldn’t really find any sausage or seafood in it, as one might expect in jambalaya. He also said it was fairly teeny in portion.

All that said, the winner of the day was a classic: the good ol’ corn dog, a fair staple since forever. Whether you’re a purist and go for a good slather of mustard, or a renegade and cover yours in ketchup (like my daughter, whom I don’t even know anymore, because ketchup?), you cannot go wrong with a corny dog. So good.

And there you have it, my 2012 State Fair of Texas food roundup. If you’d like to join my next year, please being prepping your arteries now.

{Photo Credits: blogs.observer.com, sidedish.dmagazine.com, and eatsblog.dallasnews.com. I actually took my own photos, but my computer and camera are currently conspiring against me.}

Gallo Family Vineyards

By Julie

Confession: I enjoy wine, but I am not a wine connoisseur. I prefer white to red, sweet to dry, and cost and label mean nothing to me. In fact, if I find a wine that I like that’s super easy on the wallet, I consider that the holy grail. And today’s grail comes from Gallo Family Vineyards.

I found this particular line of wines right in the grocery store, on sale for $4 a bottle. I’ve sampled the sweet chardonnay, moscato, red moscato, and sweet red varieties, and I love them all. These are light, refreshing drinks, not heavy or overly complex. They are exactly what I want to unwind from the day, sitting out on my back porch or on the couch. I would happily serve these at a dinner party or a girls’ night anytime. And even though the label isn’t important to me, the Gallo name is a nice bonus.

I think I’ll open another bottle tonight.

{Photo Credit: www.gallofamily.com}

What I’ve Learned About Smoothies

By Julie

A few months ago, I got a Ninja blender, and since then, we’ve been making smoothies like they’re going out of style. Well, some of those have been adult smoothies – OK, they’re margaritas – but I digress. And I’ve discovered a few things along that way that I’d like to pass on.

Greens actually do blend up to an almost undetectable level, texture-wise, if you blend long enough. Kale adds a distinctive grassy note to the flavor, which doesn’t bother me, especially considering the nutritional punch it provides. Spinach is much more low-key, and I really can’t taste it much, if at all.

If you use frozen fruit, you may not need as much ice to get the right thickness. If you use fresh fruit, you may not need as much liquid.

I find that a little dollop (maybe a teaspoon or two) of fruit preserves (not straight up jelly, since we’re trying to be somewhat healthy here) is a huge flavor boost. It’s not exactly a traditional ingredient, but go with me on this one.

You probably know all of this, but I didn’t going into this smoothie business, and I wish I had. It might have saved me some truly awful beverages.

Lastly, I saw on a talk show recently a smoothie recipe that included grapes and apples. I had never thought of using either fruit, and now I’m intrigued. I usually go the blueberry / strawberry / pineapple route (but stay away from blackberries – the seeds are murder).  Have you tried this? I’ll have to give it a whirl (pun intended) and report back.

{Photo Credit: myrecipes.com}

What My Child Agreed to Eat: Chicken Wontons

By Julie

My daughter is becoming a pickier eater by the day. No matter how I prepare chicken, it just doesn’t measure up to her standards (read: pre-made nuggets only). Forget pork chops. And seafood doesn’t exist until it is in stick form. All of this gives me headaches. Repeatedly.

So on a recent trip through Costco, I was somewhat surprised to see her eagerness to try CJ mini chicken wontons. I say slightly because it was a free sample, and since she’s my child, it’s highly unlikely that she would turn it down. But I digress. She happily ate the morsel and deemed it “yummy.”

Now, I am not so easily convinced and did not take her little culinary adventure as a sign that the pickiness was abated. Oh no, I’d seen this before.  Many times, she would taste something, promise to eat it, and then wouldn’t come near it once the food of note was actually on the table. I wasn’t going to be suckered so quickly this time. And then, the sample lady got involved: “I’ll bet if she eats another one, she’ll be sure to eat them at home.” Gee, thanks, Sample Lady.

Well, lo and behold, she did eat the second one and declared it as good as the first. And so a bag of chicken and cilantro mini wontons came home with us. They jury is still out as to whether the house 4 year old will actually eat them in a mean, but that’s OK, because I had a sample, too, and they are mighty tasty. I’m not the biggest fan of cilantro, particularly as a major flavor, but the taste was quite subtle and complimentary to the whole bite. As a bonus, they’re only 50 calories a serving and they’re made from all natural ingredients. I’ll call this a win win situation.

{Photo Credit: cjfoods.com}

Spices: the Garden, the Bulk, and the Penzeys

By Julie

There are lots of ways to procure herbs and spices for your pantry collection. If you’re an avid, or even amateur, gardener, you can grow your own in season. In fact, I once heard that herbs are second only to succulents for their growing ease and forgiveness. That little morsel has not stopped me from killing every cilantro plant I’ve tried to grow, but I keep trying. There’s nothing like being able to clip a few sprigs of basil or rosemary right off the plant for the dinner you are in the process of making.  I’ve haven’t yet attempted drying my own for future use, but I will one day.

Then there is picking up those little bottles at the supermarket (or the dollar store – my little trick).  This is fine if you use a particular spice consistently (cinnamon is one such spice in our house), but sometimes you only have a recipe or two that use tarragon, for example, at it’s just not worth the expense of the entire jar.  Dried herbs and spices do last, but they do eventually go flat.  For these situations, I recommend buying just what you need from the bulk section of the store.  Now, not all stores have bulk sections, so you may have to do a little research, but it’s a growing trend in the grocery industry. I used to drive fifteen miles to the one store around with a bulk section, but now there are at least two within a mile, and both of these are regular, everyday markets, not high end, fancypants stores. You can save a ton of money (little scoops of dried spices weight hardly anything, so you can get what you need for pennies) and possibly try out something new that you couldn’t price justify.

And then, there’s Penzeys.  Penzeys is a purveyor extraordinaire of all things herby and spicy. They are a mail order/internet business, but also have store sprinkled around the country. You can get anything from them. You’re probably not going to save a bunch of money this way, but it’s a great way to get those hard to find items. Plus, their seasoning blends are so unique and fun. A favorite around our house is the Arizona Dreaming blend of southwestern flavors that we sprinkle of chicken, pork, and a whole host of veggies. Yum.

There is a world of flavor out there beyond McCormick and Spice Islands. And you don’t have to break the bank to try it.

{Photo Credit: thekitchn.com}

Mimi's Cafe Muffins

By Julie

Have you ever been to Mimi’s Café? Mimi’s has location in 24 states and is, in my opinion, a fantastic place for breakfast. I mean, their lunch and dinner options look divine as well, but I love going to Mimi’s for breakfast. So does my dad, and in fact, we celebrated his birthday there this past week.

I have two favorite things about Mimi’s. One, they bring kids a little sampler platter of orange slices, cereal bits, and other snacky items, along with a kid’s colorable menu and crayons, to keep them occupied (my daughter did not get this treatment recently, so I’ll have to bug them about that next time).  But two, and this is by far my favoritest favorite, is their muffins.  They make several different kinds, but the one that makes me weak at the knees is the honey bran. I know, a bran muffin? Do not be fooled by the name. This muffin is made with so much honey, they serve it to you upside down so it can seep down all over.  It is delicious. I almost always pick up some extra to take home for later.

Now, of course, they don’t give out the recipe for my beloved honey bran muffin, but they do provide the method for another fantastic offering, the buttermilk spice muffin.  I can’t wait to give this a try at home.  But then again, I might just make a run over to Mimi’s and get some. Either way, I win.

(Photos from: mimiscafe.com)

Tandoor Chef Naan Pizzas

By Julie

So I'm perusing my local fancypants grocery store's ad (and I mean that as a compliment because they sell nifty products you don't find just everywhere), and I notice naan pizzas from Tandoor Chef are on sale. I've eyed them in the freezer case before and not yet picked one up, but with a buy one, get one free sale? Yessir, I'll take two, please!

I tried the spinach and paneer cheese pizza, and I have to say, I loved it. I could taste both of the main ingredients, as well as a copious amount of garlic, which is always a good thing in my book. The naan made an excellent crust - soft, light, and airy, with just the perfect crisp on the outside. (Jess posted about homemade naan pizza, too!) It was the best lunch I've had all week, hands down.

Next up is the margherita pizza, which I fully expect to measure up. If you like out of the ordinary pizza without an extraordinary pricetag, I definitely recommend Tandoor Chef. Now, please excuse me while I head back to the store to try the other flavors.

{Photo Credit: tandoorchef.com}

Aldi Markets

By Julie

Do you have an Aldi market in your area? They have just begun to pop up in my neck of the woods. Aldi prides itself on providing the lowest prices possible, which is a sentiment that goes straight to my heart. And wallet.

There are a couple of things you need to know about Aldi before making a trip. It costs a quarter to free a cart from their chained pen, but you get your coin back when you return the cart and lock it back up again. The point is to cut down on missing carts and parking lot damage. They don’t take credit cards, only cash and debit. Bring your own bags or pay for paper or plastic, and you’ll be bagging your own purchases. You won’t recognize most of the brand names. But it’s all part of their master plan to save customers moulah.

Knowing all this, I went in, armed with my mental database of food prices from every other store I shop. Well, well. You really can save here, even over Walmart costs. Produce is a big area to save, as long as the quality looks good on any given day (it can vary). Generics don’t bother me, so I have no problem picking up the Aldi-offered brands. Their inventory isn’t as large as most other grocery stores, but what they do carry almost always will cost less than comparable products elsewhere. For a breakdown of some specific savings, check out this post by Erica.

They also have seasonal merchandise which runs the gamut from toys at Christmas to patio furniture in the summer. You never know what you might find.

If you have Aldi nearby, check it out. It might be just want your grocery budget needs.

(Photo Credit: aldi.us)

Reader Help: Back to School Lunch Dilemma

By Julie

Monday is the first day of school for my second grader.  He is utterly excited; I am totally stressed out.  One of the reasons is lunch. For the past two years, we have had exactly three lunch options in rotation: a peanut butter and jelly sandwich (the odds-on favorite), a hot dog, and, on occasion, a Lunchable (I know how some people feel about these, but I just don’t want him to starve at school). Even though he‘s not terribly picky at home and seems to eat constantly, when it comes to the contents of his lunchbox, he has, ahem, a certain discerning taste.  And it’s driving me nuts. What is wrong with a good old ham and cheese?

Hit me with your ideas to shake things up a bit, please. Otherwise, I’m going to have to take out stock in Skippy.

(Photo Credit: Amazon.com. Yes, this is the lunchbox we're using this year. I just wish it could be as easy to fill it as it was to choose it.)