Archive for August, 2010

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Food Stamps Cooking Club: Could Your Head EXPLODE?

August 31st, 2010

You won't BELIEVE what is happening to our healthy choices!

SOMETIMES Mother Connie is sure her head may explode!  Get a load of THIS:  There is an advertising campaign which takes baby carrots, packages them like junk foods-e.g. chips, cookies, etc-and trots them out to tempt children!

Oh, this is fraught with issues.  #1, it’s probably a clever concept and someone will likely be handsomely paid for thinking of it.

#2, I have serious issues with baby carrots.  Yes.  Baby carrots are NOT healthy, NOT nutritious and in some cases they are downright dangerous.

#3, is it kosher for people to appeal to kids in this way?  It makes me squeamish.

The reason why baby carrots are not good is that the clever food processing people take all the ugly, misshapen carrots and make them look perfect because after all, we eat with our eyes first.  Right?  Right.

The problem is that after they get them shaped just so, they dunk them in a vat of slush that purports to keep them sanitary.  That vat has CHLORINE in it in order to kill the bad guys that might be growing there.  Those carrots sit in that brine from the time they go in to the time you use the little critters.  Didn’t you ever notice how LONG those things keep and HOW SLIMY THEY ARE? Yuck!

The manufacturers can dress them up any way they like to sell more stuff.  But if you dress up a pig and put lipstick on it, IT IS STILL A PIG.

Does Mother Connie make herself clear, people?

Families who are managing their food dollars with the help of WIC or SNAP and an EBT,  need to have accurate information about the food they purchase.  For people who use Angel Food Ministries, for those who have items from a food pantry or use food commodities, these are important considerations.  If you have goods from a Farmer’s Market or are just plain frugal and you love food, especially comfort foods, you need to have good information about the food you and your loved ones consume!

Good food is good food.  It should be good FOR you, not just perfectly pretty.

If you have REAL carrots, with their imperfections and all, I want to share a prep tip with you.  And if you get your kids involved in shopping or growing or digging or cleaning the produce the chances of them EATING it are much, much greater.  Here’s what’s really good:

COOKED CARROTS

1 pound of real carrots, scrubbed, not peeled.  Do cut off the end pieces for your stock pot.

Cut the carrots the way you want them to look.  They can be grated, cut crosswise, chopped into chunks-however you like them.

Put them in a heavy saucepan and add some water and salt.  Bring them to a boil; reduce the heat to a simmer and allow them to cook till fork tender.

Drain them, add a spoonful of butter to them and let that melt.  Add 2 Tablespoons of brown sugar and a sprinkle of nutmeg.  These will smell divine, taste so elegant and those kids will beg for second helpings!

DON’T EAT THE BABY CARROTS, NO MATTER HOW THEY ARE PACKAGED!

Mother Connie

The FTC wants you to know there are links in this post.  Should they be clicked, resulting in sales, your humble blogger would be fairly compensated.  Please do your due diligence when conducting affairs online or offline.  Always do business with those you trust implicitly.

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Food Stamps Cooking Club: Is It ALL About the Money?

August 31st, 2010

Everywhere you look, people are fighting for the money it takes to survive!

According to USA Today there is grim news.  According to an article that appeared yesterday-thanks to Sandra for bringing this to our attention-more than 40 million people are using an EBT card for SNAP to feed their families!

I can tell you for certain that there are also people who NEED this assistance but for whatever reasons they do not qualify for benefits.

People who have Medicare-50 million of us-may have those benefits but paying the bills not covered by Medicare can leave the food budget in a shambles.

Hopefully this page will help you to hone your survival skills, particularly if you  use public assistance OR NEED IT; if you use food commodities or visit a food pantry.  Mother Connie wonders seriously and aloud if the Soup Kitchens of the 1930s will soon reappear.

Someone asked me this question yesterday:  “Why do you wake up every day?”

People who need help with feeding their families propel me out of bed every day.  Scouring newspapers, cookbooks, newsletters, articles online and speaking with neighbors and friends to pick their brains in order to help families manage their food dollars and keep their dignity intact is my main push.

There are a great many factors at work in the world.  Politics, greed, fear, natural disasters and of course, the stinking economy.  It doesn’t matter WHY the issue exists; what matters is that people can feed their loved ones and be well!

Bringing you food ideas, recipes, tips and including you in our circle is critical to all of us.  We want to teach your children the best ways to create meals as well as memories.  We want to help you learn better and better ways of preparing foods in order that you can be well and happy and do it all within your means, no matter how meager.

We cannot do this alone.  We need one another in this Club.  We must have one anothers’ backs in order to bring out the best in everybody.

Today is the last day of the month.  If your house is anything like ours, your cupboard might be looking bare.  Your canisters may be low or empty.  The fridge sounds hollow; so does the freezer.  It is so easy to run out of food dollars before the end of the month.  I want to share a simple dish we turn to on EOM (end of the month) days:

Eggs with Zucchini

1 small onion, chopped

1 rib celery, chopped

Saute these in a bit of oil in a skillet until the veggies are “sweaty”.

Add 2 cups of peeled and grated zucchini.  Be sure to squeeze out excess moisture before you add the zukes to the other vegetables.

Let these hang out in the skillet until the zucchini is soft.

Add 1 cup of cooked rice, quinoa, oatmeal or barley

Stir well until everything is heated thoroughly.

Add 4 beaten eggs and cook on medium low heat until the eggs are cooked.

As soon as the eggs go into the skillet, season the whole shootin’ match with salt, pepper and curry powder (or whatever else your gang likes best!)  to taste.  It won’t take much of any of it.

If you have toast and jelly to go with this dish, you have a total meal and everyone will be too full for dessert!

Speaking of dessert, it’s apple season around here.  Find yourself a neighbor with an apple tree.  They are most likely to be happy to share the bounty.  If you HAVE an apple tree, please look for someone who could benefit from your harvest. You might even make some new friends under the apple tree!

This horrible economy and all our serious needs could really turn out to be a blessing in disguise, people, as we come together for a common cause and help one another in every way possible.

And, club members, if nobody has TOLD you yet today, please understand that you ARE loved and you ARE appreciated!

Connie Baum

The FTC wants you to know there are links in this post.  Should they be clicked, resulting in sales, your humble blogger would be fairly compensated.  Please do your due diligence when conducting affairs online or offline.  Always do business with those you trust implicitly.


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Food Stamps Cooking Club: End o Summer EZ Do?

August 28th, 2010

Who wants to spend the last, lazy days of summer in a hot kitchen?

We are experiencing the last dog days of summer.  The nights are cool enough for delicious sleep and rest but the days are humid, breezy and way warmer than we feel is comfy.

One of my guilty pleasures is listening to Lynne Rosetto Kasper’s radio show that’s designed for people who love to eat.  She talks about food and how to prepare ordinary things in interesting and creative ways and it strikes my fancy.  Her food ideas are always simple and easy to duplicate.  Best of all, her concoctions never send me out to buy something special that I won’t have on hand!

As I am wont to do, I reworked one of her summertime supper notions and it is uber divine! I think it falls under the umbrella of “comfort foods.”   Here’s what’s for dinner tonight at our house:

MOTHER CONNIE’S VERSION:

PASTA, TOMATOES AND CHICKPEAS

1 ripe tomato for each diner.  Peel them if you like, or not.  As you prefer

1 clove garlic, finely minced-I only had garlic powder on hand

Salt and pepper to taste

1 teaspoon balsamic vinega

1 tablespoon basil-I used dried sweet basil from my pantry shelf

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed

Combine the tomato pieces with the garlic, salt, pepper, basil and oil in a large bowl. Add the chickpeas. Stir and adjust the seasonings to suit your palate.   This can stand, macerating all those lovely tomato juices for a few hours before you cook the pasta.

I cooked regular old $.99 cent sale priced spaghetti.  If you want to use the whole wheat or other styles of pasta products it would work just as well but might not be as cost effective.

We had freshly baked Foccacia bread with this and it was a big hit with The Normanator.  It’s hard to impress that man, so I took that as a very positive sign!

If you are swiping an EBT card from WIC or SNAP, this is a dish that will be very easy on your food budget.  If you happen to have goods from a food pantry, it is very likely you could easily put this together.  Maybe you’ll even put your own spin on it.  If you use food commodities, this dish will help those commodities to stretch as far as your month. For users of Angel Food Ministries food or Farmers Markets food, this is a superb way to manage those resources.  And for all those frugal, thrifty types-this will be very kind to your food budgets!

Besides,  who wants to hang out in a hot kitchen at summer’s end?

Maybe you would like to learn more about healthy eating.  Mother Connie Sez has some big ideas about how to get and stay well.  Her rhetoric and rants can be found on the Mother Connie Sez blog

It might even be that YOU should like to rant and rave.  You can leave us your comment-we’d be pleased-or you can send an email to foodstampscookingclub@gmail.com.

You are most welcome to visit the sponsors of this blog: Saving Dinner, Rapid Cash Marketing and ToothSoap, too.  Each has interesting ideas and there may be possibilities for extra income for your family that you’d find appealing.

Connie Baum

The FTC wants you to know there are links in this post.  If you should click on them and sales result, your humble blogger would be fairly compensated.  Please do your due diligence when conducting business online or offline.  Do business only with those you trust implicitly.

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Food Stamps Cooking Club: Smile! It’s Marilyn’s Cucumbers!

August 22nd, 2010


Marilyn knows and grows cucumbers so she sent her favorite salad recipe for us to share!

Marilyn describes herself as frugal.  That pretty much says it all for all of us who hang out in the Clubhouse.  We are all about getting all we can from EBT cards from SNAP and WIC.  We do all we can with food commodities and what comes from the food pantry.  If we have goods from the Farmers Market or Angel Food Ministries, we make that stretch as far as possible.  And then, some of us, like Marilyn, are frugal and want to be good stewards.

She sent her favorite recipe for cucumbers:

MARILYN’S CUCUMBER MARINADE

4 medium cucumbers, thinly sliced
1/2 cup vinegar
1/4 cup cold water
2 tablespoons chopped dill
3 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
dash pepper

Combine sliced cucumber with all other ingredients; cover and refrigerate for 2 to 3 hours before serving.
Marinated cucumbers recipe serves 4 to 6

YUMMY, Marilyn!  Pretty similar to what we make at our house but with a bit of a twist.  It’s always fun to freshen the menu with new ideas and we appreciate your sharing!  Thanks so much!

We have  another great offering from our faithful contributor, Sandra.  She suggests this would be a perfect project for the weekend because it needs to simmer to marry the flavors.

SANDRA’S OLD COUNTRY SPAGHETTI GRAVY

3½ hours | 25 min prep | Yields about 24 cups of gravy.

4 (6 ounce) cans tomato paste

2 (28 ounce) can tomato puree

3 (28 ounce) cans crushed tomatoes

1 (35 ounce) can whole tomatoes in puree or water (crush by hand when adding to the pot)

4 cloves garlic, crushed (or substitute 2 tablespoons garlic powder)

½ cup onion, chopped

3 – 4 tablespoons good olive oil (it should smell fruity when heated)

2 tablespoons sugar

1 tablespoon Kosher or other coarse salt

2 teaspoons ground black pepper

2 tablespoons dried basil

2 teaspoons dried oregano

1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves

1 tablespoon red pepper flakes (optional)

½ cup parmesan cheese

1 cup dry red wine

5 cups water

In a large stockpot on low-med heat add olive oil and sauté onions for about 4 minutes, then add garlic powder and cook a moment longer. Then add remaining ingredients, being sure to mix everything very well. Cover and cook for 2½ hours. Taste and adjust seasonings, salt or sugar as desired.

So now we have the makings for a complete meal, except for dessert.  Maybe we’ll be too full for dessert?

Those of you who have entered your name and email address have received a series of cooking tips and we hope those have been helpful for you.  Occasionally, VERY occasionally, we send out messages that are germane to this site.  We never mean to intrude or overload your Inboxes.  We are tickled pink when new people join our gang!

We are also tickled pink to have comments and emails: foodstampscookingclub@gmail.com will get your email to us.

If you are interested in health and wealth you might also like to see The Healthy and Wealthy You blog.  You might even like to look into having another stream of income or super dental care by clicking on some of the ads and links in this post.  No pressure; just great ideas to enhance your life if you like.

Connie Baum

The FTC wants you to know there are links in this post.  Should they be clicked, resulting in sales, your humble blogger would be fairly compensated.  Please do your due diligence when conducting affairs online or offline.  Always do business with those you trust implicitly.

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Food Stamps Cooking Club: Patty Came to Dinner?

August 21st, 2010

Guess who came to dinner? PATTY!

Mom always maintained that if you did not get to the grocery store you’d just have to make do in order to put a meal on the table.

Chef Shawn Bucher recommends that most meals consist of protein, sides and dessert.  He also puts a high priority on sauces.

Today I satisfied BOTH of those folks’ requirements and felt proud as punch in the process.

Mother Connie is not a fancy-schmancy cook; has no formal training and certainly is no high priced expert when it comes to the culinary world!

I made a meatless ‘meat’ patty!  Here’s how I did it:

MOTHER CONNIE’S PATTY

2 potatoes, scrubbed and quartered.  I had 1 white and 1 red tater.

1 small zucchini, peeled and cut to match the size of the cut potatoes.

I covered the potatoes and the zucchini with water, sprinkled them with salt.  I brought them to a boil and let them simmer til the vegetables were fork tender.

While those cooked, I chopped a small onion and set it aside.

I combined 3 small eggs, 2 slices of bread made into fine crumbs, the chopped onions and 1 teaspoon of curry powder.  I salted and peppered the mix, as well.

When the potatoes and zucchinis were cooked I drained and mashed them, skins and all, and added that combination to the eggs, crumbs, onions and seasonings.

I was eager to see if my combination would be fit to eat, so I took a page from Rachel Ray’s book and made a teeny sample sized patty to fry.  When it had browned on both sides I borrowed a hint from Anne Burrell, who is big on QC  or Quality Control-as in TASTE.

Well, let me tell you:  I thought it was MOREish, which means there may not be enough! grin

While the patties browned in hot olive oil I made a beshemel sauce.  That’s only a fancy word for white sauce.  I used 2 Tablespoons of melted butter, a slurry of 1 teaspoon of corn starch in water and stirred it all together.  Before it thickened I added about a cup or so of milk.  When it came together I salted and peppered it and added about a half a bag of frozen peas.  I flirted with the idea of adding spinach but the peas were more appealing to me.

You can see for yourself that it made for a pretty dish, spread all over a luncheon plate.  I had some beets-they had sat in a rice vinegar brine for most of the afternoon so I sliced them and used them as a garnish.

Next time I make these goodies, I’ll hope to have celery and corn on hand.  Oh, and beans.  Mashed beans could replace the potatoes and help to bind the vegetables together.  Carrots, cabbage-any combo of foods would work well with this method.  And the curry is just ONE of many ways to season things.  That’s where the creative cook can shine.

Fooey!  Even young children or picky husbands who don’t like anything but chicken nuggets will enjoy these yummies!

Oh.  About dessert.  I hate to admit it.  We had green gelatin.  Well, like Mom said, you have to use what you have in the house…I have no idea why we have gelatin in our house because it has no redeeming nutritive value.  It does LOOK cheery, though.

If you are users of Angel Food Ministries, visit a food pantry or use food commodities; if you have an EBT card for SNAP or WIC, we hope “Patty” will be YOUR new best friend forever!  This is also true if you have food from a Farmers Market or you are just thrifty and pinching your pennies to make your food budget last through the month.

Leave your comment on our doorstep or shoot us an email at foodstampscookingclub@gmail.com.  We ADORE hearing from you!

PS/We hope you have scoped out The Dinner Diva’s ideas, too! They are spectacular!

Connie Baum

The FTC wants you to know there are links in this post.  Should they be clicked, resulting in sales, your humble blogger would be fairly compensated.  Please do your due diligence when conducting affairs online or offline.  Always do business with those you trust implicitly.


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Food Stamps Cooking Club: Is It Breakfast or Dinner?

August 20th, 2010

Does breakfast ALWAYS mean toast?

You are keenly aware that Food Stamps Cooking Club is all about saving you cash on your food costs and making sure you and your loved ones are healthy and happy.

Leanne Ely has that same goal in mind and one of her recent messages to me underscores that goal.  I want to share it with you all so you can have a new perspective on breakfast, especially now that fall is in the air, school is in session again-or soon will be.  Those of you who struggle with the EBT card covering the costs whether you use SNAP or WIC or if you depend on food commodities food pantries will appreciate the value in what The Dinner Diva has to offer:

“Breakfast for Dinner

by Leanne Ely, C.N.C.

My passion in life is that everyone would understand just how important the family dinner table is. That simple piece of furniture represents an intimate ministry in the home that will leave a legacy. To lose this focus and become driven by all kinds of extra curricular activities (both for the kids and the parents) is to lose your family vision. Those are some sharp words, but the consequence of skipping this ritual in favor of another activity is to invite chaos into your home and influence that you don’t want. Statistics have proven over and over again that the family that eats dinner together at least 4 times a week, at the family dinner table (not in front of the tube or in the car) will have children who are less likely to do drugs, drink, have premarital sex and do better in school. What parent doesn’t want that? And all because of a simple thing like dinner. Amazing how un-complex it all is, isn’t it?

The family dinner table represents the connection we have with each other. Each person sitting at the table isn’t there by accident, but is (I believe) a God-given gift and a specific fit for your family.

If I had the opportunity to give every woman on the planet a gift, it would be a vase of flowers for the middle of their dinner tables to remind them that this is a sacred place where their families are not only fed, but nurtured and loved. Where heart strings are tied and relationships realigned.

I invite you this week to make that sacred place pretty. Even if you are facing a raging schedule, at least attempt one dinner there this week. Are you up to the challenge? I know you can do this! Splurge on some flowers, or just a big bowl of apples in a basket you love. You could EVEN do candles if you wanted! As a matter of fact, why not have Breakfast for Dinner this week? It’s quick, easy and your kids will love it.

My children have many fond memories of sipping orange juice from a stemmed glass and listening to Vivaldi by candlelight while diving into a stack of pancakes! It will take 5 minutes to set the table and will create a lifetime of memories–I promise. Sometimes those old fashioned breakfasts of pancakes, waffles and eggs are near impossible to pull off even on weekend mornings. Why not have it for dinner?

Here’s a recipe to get you started:

Crustless No Recipe Quiche
Serves about 6

  • 1 dozen eggs, beaten like for scrambled eggs
  • 1/4 cup milk
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 1 small package of frozen, chopped spinach; drained
  • 1/2 a small onion chopped and sauteed
  • 1 cup ground beef, cooked (I use just about anything from leftover spaghetti meat to leftover taco meat–use whatever you have)
  • 6 oz. shredded sharp cheddar (I use lowfat)

    • In a bowl, beat your eggs and add milk, salt and pepper. In a lightly greased 9 x 13 pan, put meat, spinach and cheese down then top with egg mixture. Bake @ 350 for 20-30 minutes, but check it often. I have noticed a great deal of difference in cooking times on this. Serve it with a great big salad and some whole grain bread and you have one wonderful supper.

    For the spinach, you can use broccoli instead if you like. I’ve substituted the meat for turkey ham or sausage even or left it out. You can do anything in the cheese dept. This (un)recipe has served me very well and guess what? It will work for you low carbers, too!

    That’s all there is to it. Simple, easy, cheap and quite good! Enjoy!

    ^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*

    Breakfast Mixes
    by Leanne Ely, C.N.C.

    To make the most of our days and to really start off right, it’s important to remember that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. This is when you break your fast from not eating all night. Your blood sugar is low–you need fuel. To start the day fuel-less is akin to taking a car on a long journey hoping the reserve tank will get you there and back–I promise you, it’s not gonna happen. Most likely you will end up eating something greasy from a drive-thru because your blood sugar has crashed or waiting till lunch and then eating out of control because you’re starving. Let’s not even talk about our foul moods due to our blood sugar being in the can. This is not how we’re meant to operate and we deserve better.

    The wonderful thing about breakfast is that it’s a cheap and easy meal. I’m not talking about the artificially colored, overly sugared breakfast cereals. That stuff is so over priced, you’ll need to take a second out on your house just to keep up with the expense! Not only that, but the only thing those cereals are good for is getting your kids hyper–there is NO nutritional redemption in that expensive stuff. Let me say this again: YOU are the parent and YOU can control what goes in your child’s cereal bowl every day.

    Pancakes and waffles are more “weekend” food. Who has time to make them during the week? YOU do if you can get these mixes together. Even better, you can make extra pancakes or waffles on the weekend, freeze them in big freezer zipper topped bags and use them instead of those expensive and less nutritious toaster waffles in the freezer section in the store.

    Here’s a terrific mix:

    8 cups flour (if you’d like an all whole wheat mix, use whole wheat pastry flour from health food stores)
    2 cups whole wheat flour
    1 1/2 cups buckwheat flour (at some markets, but for sure at health food stores. Optional; use more whole wheat flour if you can’t find it)
    1/2 cup cornmeal (stone ground)
    1 1/2 cups oatmeal (blend in your blender till powdered)
    2 cups buttermilk powder (this is in the baking section of your market)
    5 tablespoons baking powder
    2 tablespoons baking soda
    1 cup sugar (or sucanat–natural sugar at the health food store)
    2 tablespoons salt

    This will make four quarts. Mix all together in a very large bowl and divvy up into gallon sized freezer storage bags. I would mark the date with a Sharpie pen and keep it in the freezer although you can keep in your pantry.

    To make pancakes or waffles:

    1 cup pancake mix
    1 egg
    1/2 to 2/3 cup water (start with the lesser amount first and add if you need to)
    2 tablespoons vegetable oil

    In a medium bowl, stir mix with water, egg and vegetable oil. Heat your griddle and make your pancakes as usual! To make waffles, double the batter and follow the directions for your waffle iron.

    Basic Muffin Mix
    Makes 11 cups

    8 cups flour (again, if you prefer whole wheat, use whole wheat pastry flour)
    3 cups sugar (can use sucanat if you prefer, see note on pancake mix)
    3 tablespoons baking powder
    2 teaspoons salt
    2 teaspoons cinnamon
    2 teaspoons nutmeg

    Combine everything in a large bowl and divide into freezer zipper topped bags. Mark date with a Sharpie pen and store in the freezer or cool dry place.

    To make muffins:
    Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

    In a bowl, mix together 3 cups baking mix, 3 tablespoons vegetable oil, 2 eggs, 3/4 cup milk and 3/4 cup berries, raisins, chocolate chips or whatever else you’d like.

    Bake in a prepared muffin pan–that means lightly greased (I prefer the cupcake papers–easy clean up!), filling cups 2/3 full. Bake for 20 minutes or until nicely browned. Cool for five minutes in the pan then turn out on to a rack to cool. Makes about 12 muffins, depending on the size of your muffin tin.”

    Copyright (C) 2010 www.savingdinner.com Leanne Ely, CNC All rights reserved.

    Connie Baum

    The FTC wants you to know there are links in this post.  Should they be clicked, resulting in sales, your humble blogger would be fairly compensated.  Please do your due diligence when conducting affairs online or offline.  Always do business with those you trust implicitly.


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    Food Stamps Cooking Club: Tomato or TomAHto?

    August 17th, 2010

    The Normanator's Handiwork...is he a KEEPER or is he a KEEPER?

    Whether you call them tomatoes or tomAHtoes; whether you eat them fresh or preserve them all luscious in jars that sparkle with their red goodness-it all means great eating year round.

    So many tomatoes!  So little time!  So how can we present them to our families so they do not groan and complain, “Oh, no!  Not tomatoes AGAIN!”

    Mom used to stuff tomatoes with tuna or chicken salad on little beds of lettuce.  We always thought that was the chi-chi poo-poo version and that must be what people ate who had servants.

    SIDEBAR:  Most who find their way to this blog do not have servants!  We are the uber thrifty; we use EBT cards from public assistance like SNAP or WIC.  We might have food from a food pantry or we might use food commodities.  Farmers Markets coupons could get us some tomatoes.  We might even use Angel Food Ministries.  Servants are not an option.  END SIDEBAR.

    My mom also made a brine for chopped tomatoes.  She would use vinegar, salt, pepper and a little sugar.  Sometimes there were cucumbers and/or onions swimming in a bowl of that.  She reused that brine, adding tomatoes as we ate them.  This was a summertime staple on the table for lunch and dinner.

    My dad taught me how to love tomato sammies for breakfast.  He would slice some of Mom’s home made bread, lather it with butter and pile on slices of tomatoes from the garden.  This was comfort food for me as I was growing up.  Sometimes when I’m hungry and don’t know what I want, I still settle on tomato sammies!

    Mom’s best friend, Helen, used to make a concoction using quartered tomatoes, garlic buds, onions and oil.  She would spread it out over a baking sheet, drizzle the oil over all of it and pop it into the oven.  When it came out, Helen would chop it up and pour it over cooked spaghetti noodles.  She toasted garlic bread for us, too.  We thought it was absolute luxury.  And so it was!

    Myra, our landlady, used to treat us to fried green tomatoes.  As I recall, she dredged quarters of the green fruit in corn meal and fried them in oil.  I can still remember sitting at her kitchen table, watching her work, and having her present me with a plate full of the beauties.  Such delicious memories…

    We eat breakfast at the ungodly hour of 1:30 AM.  One of our faves is to stir up a few eggs and add chopped tomatoes to the pan.  It makes for a flavorful and filling breakfast with lots of nourishment.  Better yet;  it is cost effective.

    Call them tomatoes or call them tomAHtoes. They are delicious and nutritious whether they are fresh, cooked, canned or pickled. Even better than that, they are easy on the food budget!

    What do YOU do with these beauties?  I can’t wait to hear from you!

    We appreciate you!  Please consider yourselves hugged.  Now I’m going to enjoy a tomato the way you might enjoy an apple:  just with a shake of salt AND A NAPKIN TO CATCH THE JUICE DRIZZLES!

    PS/There is a link below that will transport you to a website offering a healthy, cost effective way to clean your teeth.  Please check it out.  It’s important to save money any way we can and if we eat well and wisely and can keep our medical care costs low we have won TWICE!

    Connie Baum

    The FTC wants you to know there are links in this post. Should they be clicked, resulting in sales, your humble blogger would be fairly compensated. Please do your due diligence when conducting affairs online or offline. Always do business with those you trust implicitly.

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    Food Stamps Cooking Club: Sheila Went to Idaho?

    August 16th, 2010

    Sheila was responsible for the famed "Ben Bowl" we received so joyously. Now Sheila has traveled to Canada. AND IDAHO.

    Sheila is another of our faithful Food Stamps Cooking Club members.  She’s been vacationing and eating well and wisely in the process.

    Always eager to lend a helping hand to our Club Members, Sheila has offered this recipe on a post card she picked up in, as you might expect, Idaho!  Mother Connie jumped all over this because of the great crop of taters The Normanator has produced in this year’s garden.  And, not surprisingly, has put HER spin on this tasty dish.

    IDAHO BAKED POTATO SOUP 

    *Mother Connie says this translates as “comfort food!”


    2/3 cup butter

    2/3 cup all-purpose flour

    7 cups milk

    4 large potatoes, baked, peeled and cubed-approx 4 cups

    4 green onions, sliced

    12 bacon strips, cooked and crumbled

    1 ¼ cups shredded cheddar cheese

    1 cup sour cream

    ¾ teaspoon salt

    ½ teaspoon pepper

    In large soup kettle, melt butter.  Stir in flour; heat and stir until smooth.  Gradually add milk, stirring constantly until thickened.  Add potatoes and onions.  Bring to a boil, stirring constantly.  Reduce heat; simmer for 10 minutes.  Add remaining ingredients; stir until cheese is melted.  Serve immediately.  Yield:  8 to 10 servings.

    ***Mother Connie, in her quest to be thrifty, used 3 cups of potatoes and 1 cup of shredded sautéed zucchini.  Also, not having green onions, white onions from the garden were substituted.

    Remember the Foccacia bread recipe we shared recently?  The leftover bread we had was cut into cubes, drizzled with olive oil and parked in the oven to toast.  That made for lovely, yummy croutons and we felt as if we were attending a feast!  We had a salad with Swiss Chard and tomatoes from the oven.  What a great meal!

    Thank you, Sheila.

    Users of EBT cards provided by WIC or SNAP; Angel Food Ministries users; those who frequent food pantries or use food commodities can appreciate the value and cost effectiveness of this soup, even in warm weather.  If you garden, if you have taters and no meat you could make this sans bacon and have a very nourishing meal.  For those who watch their food budgets closely; for those who yearn for comfort food-this is a wonderful menu item.

    Your cards and emails and comments are priceless to us.  Thank you SO MUCH for your participation in this effort to help folks stretch their food dollars.

    Connie Baum
    The FTC wants you to know there are links in this post.  Should they be clicked, resulting in sales, your humble blogger would be fairly compensated.  Please do your due diligence when conducting affairs online or offline.  Always do business with those you trust implicitly.

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    Food Stamps Cooking Club: Does Sandra Have a License?

    August 13th, 2010

    Sandra bakes bread for a song...

    Sandra, who is a regular contributing Food Stamps Cooking Club Member, really resonated with the post that went up about the growing use of public assistance for getting food and making those food dollars stretch.  She sent such delightful offerings that I’m wondering if she should procure a Blogger’s License?

    Actually, I take that back.  Some Federal official will see it and think it is a wonderful idea for raising revenue.

    Suffice it to say that Sandra has either thought this through very carefully or she has lived through a time which taught her a great many good lessons.  See what she sent us:

    “Dear Mother Connie,

    There’s no doubt that that money will be put back but we all still have to worry about those rising food costs especially when it comes to things like produce.  There are a lot of things we do to save money on the grocery bill.

    1. Bake your own bread.  You can make bread for around 40 cents per loaf.  That’s much cheaper and healthier than store bought.

    2. Eat pancakes, oatmeal, eggs, muffins, or French toast instead of boxed cereal.

    3. Make your own pancake/waffle syrup.  There’s a great product called Mapleine on the market.  It comes in a blue and white box and is maple flavoring.  While the bottle costs around $3.50 per bottle, it takes only 1/2 tsp to make a pint of syrup.  It takes one cup water, 2 cups sugar, and 1/2 tsp Mapleine.  Much, much cheaper than store bought syrup.

    4. Buy chips, treats, and cookies only for special occassions.  You can make your own treats much cheaper and healthier and with less packaging.

    5. Don’t drink fruit juice.  While it seems economical, it really isn’t.  A serving of fruit is more satisfying to the appetite.

    6. Eat meat only in very small portions.  You really don’t need a lot – just a few ounces per day fills your protein requirements especially if you eat eggs and dairy.

    7. Eat more vegetarian meals.  Eggs, pasta, grains, etc can provide variety at a lower cost than can meat.

    8. Don’t buy storebought mixes.  You can make your own more cheaply.

    9. One of the biggest things we do is to follow the pantry principle.  We try to keep our pantries stocked with basic ingredients all the time so that we don’t run out of things and have to make extra trips to the store.

    10. Make your own salad dressings.  This really can be cheaper and healthier and once you have a few basic ingredients, you can make different kinds.

    11. Learn to like beans.  Seriously, beans are one of the most nutritious and frugal foods you can eat.  They store well too.

    Mother Connie, I have a lot more ideas, but this is a very good start.  I hope this can help others.  :)

    –Sandra

    We were thrilled with that list.  But Sandra, ever the thoughtful Food Stamps Cooking Club member that she is, sent a follow up message, too:

    Oh, a word about produce.  Learn to keep veggies and fruits that keep for a long time such as potatoes, carrots, cabbage, celery, and apples on hand for main use.  Then buy a few veggies or fruits that don’t keep as long.  Use those first and then rely on your staples.

    Keep in mind that if you have bananas going bad and you aren’t ready to bake with them, you can freeze them and save for the smoothies or baking later.

    If you are willing to go to farmer’s market or produce stands near closing time, you can often get reduced prices.”

    –Sandra

    Sandra, I baked some Foccacia bread this morning.  I eyed the pan of leftovers and pondered what great bread pudding that would make.  Now THAT will save us some moola…and I am known as the Bean Queen around here so you and I are pretty much on the same page! Why, we could be roommates.  Well, you know what I mean.  grin

    If people use Angel Food Ministries,  food pantry food or food commodities; if they have an EBT card for WIC or SNAP they will most assuredly appreciate the worth of your thoughtful ideas, offered most generously.  You are a very wise woman, and we appreciate you very much.

    We are delighted to hear from any of our Members. All emails can go to foodstampscookingclub@gmail.com  and please leave your comments here.  We love those, too.

    Our goal is to help you, because we care about your situation and we care about people-neighbors, people on the net-whoever we might assist.

    Pass the word.  The series of cooking tips are fun and we don’t hammer you to death with messages till who laid the chunk.

    Connie Baum

    The FTC wants you to know there are links in this post.  Should they be clicked, resulting in sales, your humble blogger would be fairly compensated.  Please do your due diligence when conducting affairs online or offline.  Always do business with those you trust implicitly.

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    Food Stamps Cooking Club: Cutting SNAP?

    August 11th, 2010

    HOLY COW! What are the Feds THINKING???

    The headlines are screaming a 26 BILLION dollar cut in the program known as Food Stamps.  We know it, of course, as SNAP.

    Just when food prices are getting out of reach, the government, in its infinite wisdom, expects families to do more with less!  One expert panel expects that the amount families receive will be $59.00 less by 2014!

    Well, the saving grace might be that the economy may turn around by 2014…we can always hope.  However, it behooves us to do the best we can with what we have and learn every way there is to stretch those food budgets whether we use EBT cards for SNAP or WIC or if we order Angel Food Ministries; procure food from food pantries or use food commodities.  Maybe we are just thrifty.  In any case, making the food last as long as the month does and meeting our loved ones’ needs is of primary concern.

    What are YOU doing to trim your food bills?

    • If you use canned beans, you may decide to cook dry beans.
    • Use the “waste” from celery, onions and other vegetables to brew your own homemade veggie broth.
    • Learn to garden.  Even if you  grow in containers only, you will be amazed at how much money you’ll save on food.
    • Buy the lowest cost cuts of meats and prepare crock pot meals or slow cook in the oven.
    • Don’t turn up your nose at produce that is GIVEN to you: experiment with zucchini recipes, cucumbers and other abundant garden goods that others may share

    These are but a few suggestions; experience tells me you have more and better ideas than this, dear Members. Leave your comment here below and/or mail your ideas to foodstampscookingclub@gmail.com .  We LOVE hearing from our Members.

    If you find this blog helpful, you might appreciate The Healthy and Wealthy You or Mother Connie Sez. Those blogs have places for comments, too-hint, hint.

    Connie Baum

    Follow me on Twitter: www.Twitter.com/motherconnie

    The FTC wants you to know there are links in this post.  Should they be clicked, resulting in sales, your humble blogger would be fairly compensated.  Please do your due diligence when conducting affairs online or offline.  Always do business with those you trust implicitly.


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    Posted in Food News

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